Pennsylvania property tax appeal · $49 flat · keep 100%
How to appeal your Pennsylvania property taxes
Pennsylvania has no statewide reassessment mandate, so most counties tax off an old base-year value. The State Tax Equalization Board publishes an annual common level ratio (CLR) for each county, and that ratio is the core tool in an appeal: it converts your base-year assessment into what the county is implicitly claiming your home is worth today. You file an annual appeal with your County Board of Assessment Appeals, generally by September 1.
Free to check in 30 seconds. No signup, no credit card.
See how the Pennsylvania process worksPennsylvania appeal deadline
Filing deadlineNext deadline: around September 1, 2026
On or before September 1 in most counties (53 Pa.C.S. §8844(c)(1)).
Under the Consolidated County Assessment Law, the annual appeal deadline is September 1 (53 Pa.C.S. §8844(c)(1)), but a county may set an earlier date, no sooner than August 1 (§8844(c)(3)), and two of Pennsylvania's biggest appeal markets have done exactly that. Montgomery County's deadline is August 1 and Bucks County's is August 3, 2026, both roughly a month before the statewide default. Allegheny County is September 1 (it moved from March 31 effective tax year 2026, so older guides are stale). Philadelphia runs under a separate law, with an October 5, 2026 deadline. Confirm your date with your county before relying on it, because the statewide September 1 figure quoted by most guides is simply wrong for Montgomery and Bucks.
The Pennsylvania appeal process, step by step
1. Find your assessment and your county's common level ratio
Your assessment is a base-year number, not today's market value. Divide it by your county's current STEB common level ratio to get the market value the county is implicitly asserting. If that number is higher than your home is actually worth, you have an appeal.
2. File your county's appeal application by the deadline
File with your County Board of Assessment Appeals on or before September 1 (53 Pa.C.S. §8844(c)(1)). A county may set an earlier date, no sooner than August 1. Allegheny is September 1; Philadelphia is the first Monday in October under its own separate law.
3. Build your evidence
Two arguments work in Pennsylvania. Overvaluation: recent arm's-length sales of similar homes show your implied market value is too high. Uniformity: under the Pennsylvania Constitution (art. VIII, §1), comparable assessment-to-value ratios show you are assessed higher than similar properties. The Supreme Court's Downingtown decision (590 Pa. 459 (2006)) is the leading case on proving non-uniformity with ratio evidence.
4. Board of Assessment Appeals hearing
The board hears your case and issues a decision. Where the county's predetermined ratio varies from the common level ratio by more than 15%, the board applies the CLR to market value (53 Pa.C.S. §8844(e)(2)).
5. Court of Common Pleas (optional)
If you disagree with the board, you generally have 30 days to appeal to the Court of Common Pleas, which hears the matter de novo (53 Pa.C.S. §8854).
Pennsylvania counties
County-specific filing notes for Pennsylvania's largest markets. More counties added as we expand.
Allegheny County
Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh's county. The annual appeal deadline is September 1 (moved from March 31 effective tax year 2026, so older guides are wrong). Allegheny's common level ratio makes it one of the strongest appeal counties in the state.
Montgomery County
Norristown
Philadelphia's largest suburban county, taxed off a 1996 base year. File your annual appeal with the Board of Assessment Appeals by August 1, a full month before Pennsylvania's September 1 default.
Bucks County
Doylestown
Taxed off a 1972 base year, so the common level ratio does heavy lifting in a Bucks appeal. Bucks sets its own annual deadline of August 3, 2026, earlier than Pennsylvania's September 1 default.
Philadelphia
Philadelphia
Philadelphia is a first-class city under its own law, not the Consolidated County Assessment Law. The BRT appeal deadline is the first Monday in October, and the separate First Level Review with the Office of Property Assessment runs on its own earlier date.
Pennsylvania property tax appeal FAQ
What is the property tax appeal deadline in Pennsylvania?
September 1 in most counties (53 Pa.C.S. §8844(c)(1)), but do not assume it applies to you. A county may set an earlier date, no sooner than August 1, and the two largest Philadelphia-area suburban counties have: Montgomery County is August 1 and Bucks County is August 3, 2026. Allegheny County is September 1, having moved from March 31 effective tax year 2026. Philadelphia is October 5, 2026, the first Monday in October, under a separate law. Confirm with your county board before you rely on any date.
What is the common level ratio and why does it matter?
Pennsylvania has no statewide reassessment mandate, so most counties still tax off an old base-year value. The State Tax Equalization Board publishes an annual common level ratio per county that converts base-year assessments to current market value. If the county's predetermined ratio varies from the CLR by more than 15%, the board applies the CLR to market value (53 Pa.C.S. §8844(e)(2)).
What form do I use to appeal in Pennsylvania?
There is no statewide form. Each county issues its own annual appeal application through its Board of Assessment Appeals. Philadelphia uses the Board of Revision of Taxes' own appeal form.
Are you missing a Pennsylvania exemption?
Exemptions cut your bill before any appeal even starts, and most homeowners never claim all the ones they qualify for. Answer four questions:
We're building Pennsylvania's county data now
Your Pennsylvania protest guide is ready above. We're loading Pennsylvania's county-level comparable-sales data so you can check your exact over-assessment in one click. Drop your email and we'll notify you the moment it's live.
We'll only email you about Pennsylvania property tax data, no spam.
See if your Pennsylvania home is over-assessed
Free check, no signup. If you want the protest kit after that, it's $49 flat, pre-filled and ready to sign and submit. No contingency, no recurring charge, 30-day refund. You keep 100% of your savings.
Check my address free →