Thirty-one counties are completing reappraisals or triennial updates this year. The values they certify this fall will impact three years of tax bills.
Somewhere in a county auditor’s office, a mass-appraisal model has already decided what your building is worth. That number will set your property tax bills for the next three years, and the window to change it is open now.
This is what a revaluation year looks like in Ohio, and 2026 is a big one. The state revalues real property on a six-year cycle, a full reappraisal in year one and a triennial update at the midpoint. County auditors in thirteen counties, including Butler, Clermont, Greene, Montgomery, Summit, and Wayne, are completing full sexennial reappraisals. Eighteen more, including Franklin, Hamilton, Delaware, Licking, and Mahoning, are completing triennial updates. Together, the revaluation reaches the Columbus, Cincinnati, Dayton, and Akron commercial markets.
The Issue
The new values are effective as of the January 1, 2026 tax lien date and apply to tax year 2026, payable 2027, and generally to the two tax years that follow. The process unfolds in two windows, and they close in a specific order.
The first window is informal. County auditors publish tentative values between July and September, and most counties hold informal review sessions in which an owner can present evidence to the auditor’s office before values are certified in the fall. The windows are set county by county, and several are already open.
The second window is formal. Once values are certified, an owner may challenge the valuation by filing a complaint with the county Board of Revision. For tax year 2026, that window opens January 1, 2027 and closes March 31, 2027. The deadline is statutory, and there are no extensions. Subject to certain exceptions, an owner may file only one valuation complaint per three-year interim period, which makes the decision of when and whether to file a strategic one, not a clerical one.
Revaluation is mass appraisal. Auditors are required to value every parcel in the county at once, and they do it with models built on sales data, cost tables, and broad income assumptions. A model of that scale cannot see a specific property’s actual rent roll, its deferred maintenance, its functional or external obsolescence, or the difference between the value of the real estate and the value of the business operating inside it. For complex commercial property, industrial facilities, senior living communities, income-restricted housing, and single-tenant buildings, mass appraisal models are imprecise and present opportunities to potentially reduce property taxes.
Why It Matters
The arithmetic of a revaluation year applies in both directions. A value that is certified too high this fall may cost the owner or operator of the property one or more years of excessive tax because the certified value generally carries through the triennial period. The time to compare the auditor’s number against the property’s actual income and condition is now, while the informal window is open and before the formal complaint window becomes the only remedy.
The exposure also runs the other way. Owners who purchased in the last several years generally should expect their sale prices to be visible to taxing authorities, which is significant because Ohio law gives weight to a recent arm’s-length sale price as evidence of value. While recent legislation narrowed the circumstances in which school districts may seek increases in value, it did not eliminate this possibility. Specifically, boards of education may chase sale prices by filing original complaints if the sale occurred prior to the tax lien date and the sale was an arms-length transaction, among other factors. School boards filing original complaints must comply with the same filing deadlines as property owners, between January 1 and March 31 each year. At that point, the taxpayer has the opportunity to file a counter-complaint to rebut the sale price as the true market value of the property. As such, an owner who ignores the appeal cycle can be pulled into it anyway.
How It Plays Out in Practice
A recent Franklin County matter illustrates both sides. The operator of a continuing care retirement community faced a board of education complaint seeking to increase the property’s assessment to a recent sale price. Jones Pyatt Law moved to dismiss the complaint for lack of jurisdiction because the sale post-dated the January 1 tax lien date for the year at issue and presented an appraiser’s opinion of value grounded in the property’s actual operations to overcome the sale-price presumption. The case ultimately settled and resulted in the increase complaint being defeated, arriving at a settled value that was closer to the market value of the real estate. The result was more than $700,000 in client tax savings across three tax years. It is important to note that prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome. Each property is evaluated based on its own facts and market conditions.
What Owners Should Do Before Values Become Final
The practical steps between now and certification are straightforward.
- Pull the tentative 2026 value for every Ohio parcel in the portfolio and compare it against the prior value, the property’s actual income, and its physical condition.
- Identify the informal review window in each county where the portfolio has holdings, and use it where the tentative value does not hold up.
- Calendar March 31, 2027, the Board of Revision filing deadline for tax year 2026, for any property where the certified value remains too high.
- Assemble the evidence now: rent rolls, operating statements, closing statements, and any recent appraisals.
- For properties acquired in the last several years, assess increase-complaint exposure.
Contact JPL to perform a review of your portfolio at no charge to determine whether you may be at risk of increase due to a recent sale or eligible for potential property tax savings in the next triennial.
Keith Petty is a Partner at Jones Pyatt Law, LLC. His practice focuses on commercial real estate property tax appeals, with experience in multifamily, corporate headquarters, and industrial properties, among other property types. Jones Pyatt Law, LLC has secured more than $100,000,000* in client tax savings for owners of commercial real estate across the Midwest and Mid-Atlantic.
*Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome. Each property is evaluated based on its own facts and market conditions. This article is for informational purposes and does not constitute legal advice.
Articles are published by Jones Pyatt Law, LLC and are made available for informational and educational purposes only. They are not considered legal advice. By viewing articles published on this website, you agree that there is no attorney-client relationship between you and Jones Pyatt Law, LLC. The articles should not be used as a substitute for competent legal advice from a licensed attorney. Please consult an attorney for any specific legal questions you may have.