Property Tax by State: How Assessment Limits Differ

“2% cap”, “3% cap”, “10% cap” — these phrases travel between states, but they do not mean the same thing. Some limit the value the assessor may place on your property; some limit the tax bill; some limit the revenue a local government may raise. Confusing them is the single most common source of wrong advice online.

AssessCheck publishes a state only after its rules have been read in official sources and its deadlines verified. That is why this page lists nineteen states and not fifty: an unverified page is worse than no page.

Texas — 10% limit on a homestead’s appraised value

• What it limits: the annual increase in a qualifying residence homestead’s appraised value — 10% per year, plus the value of new improvements, under Tax Code § 23.23.
• What resets it: a new qualification after a change of ownership or a lapse in the exemption.
• Where an appeal goes: a protest to the appraisal district, then an Appraisal Review Board hearing, then district court or binding arbitration.
• Texas property tax →

Florida — 3% or CPI for homesteads, 10% for non-homestead residential

• What it limits: two different rules. A homestead’s assessed value may rise by no more than the lower of 3% of the prior year’s assessed value or the CPI change (Save Our Homes, § 193.155). Certain non-homestead residential property is capped at 10% for non-school levies only (§ 193.1554).
• What resets it: a change of ownership (with statutory exceptions), removal of the homestead exemption, and new construction, which is assessed at just value.
• Where an appeal goes: a petition to the county Value Adjustment Board after the TRIM notice, then circuit court.
• Florida property tax →

Arizona — 5% applied to the limited property value

• What it limits: a second value placed on the same property. The full cash value is the assessor’s market estimate and is what an owner appeals; the limited property value is the figure the tax is levied on, and by statute it is the preceding valuation year’s limited value plus 5%, never exceeding the full cash value (A.R.S. § 42-13301).
• What resets it: a specific list in § 42-13302 — construction, destruction or demolition worth 15% or more of the full cash value; a change in physical use (a change of occupant is not a change in use); a split or consolidation; lost valuation protection.
• Where an appeal goes: a petition for review with the county assessor within 60 days of the notice mailing, then the county Board of Equalization (25 days) or Tax Court (60 days), or directly to Tax Court by December 15 if no assessor petition was filed.
• Arizona property tax →

California — 2% or CPI applied to a base year value

• What it limits: the annual increase of the factored base year value — a figure set in 1975 or at the last change in ownership or completed new construction, adjusted each year by the lower of the CPI change or 2%. The assessed value enrolled is the lesser of that figure or the January 1 market value (Proposition 8 decline-in-value).
• What resets it: a change in ownership or completed new construction, which establishes a new base year value at market value.
• Where an appeal goes: an application for changed assessment (BOE-305-AH) to the county Assessment Appeals Board, then superior court within six months.
• California property tax →

Nevada — 3% or up to 8% applied to the tax bill itself

• What it limits: the tax bill, not a value. The amount of tax may not rise by more than 3% over the prior year’s bill for a claimed primary residence (or a rental renting at or below the county’s fair market rent), or by more than a figure of up to 8% for other property. In practice the bill is the lower of that capped figure or the calculated tax, and the difference is the abatement (NRS 361.471–361.4735).
• What resets it: not a change in value at all — a recorded ownership document removes the owner-occupied 3% level until a new claim is filed; value new to the roll (new construction and changes in use) is not abated at all; and the qualification is fixed as of July 1 of the fiscal year.
• Where an appeal goes: the value is appealed to the county Board of Equalization by January 15 (then the State Board of Equalization by March 10); the abatement determination is a separate petition to the county assessor by June 30, then the Nevada Tax Commission within 30 days.
• Nevada property tax →

Oregon — 3% on the maximum assessed value, plus Measure 5 limits on the tax

• What it limits: the maximum assessed value, a limit created by Measure 50 beside the property’s real market value. Assuming no change to the property it is the greater of 103% of the prior year’s assessed value or 100% of the prior MAV, and the tax base — the assessed value — is the lower of the MAV or the real market value.
• What resets it: the limit is not reset, and that is the point. It may rise by more than 3% only through an exception event: new construction, an addition or a renovation above the published thresholds, a partition or subdivision, rezoning, omitted property, or loss of a special assessment. New property enters at real market value multiplied by the county’s changed property ratio, which is why new construction is taxed on a fraction of its value.
• Where an appeal goes: a petition to the county Board of Property Tax Appeals, filed with the county clerk by December 31 after the tax statement arrives; then the Oregon Tax Court, Magistrate Division (30 days from the order), then the Regular Division (60 days).
• A second limit on the tax itself: Measure 5 caps education taxes at $5 and general government taxes at $10 per $1,000 of real market value, with bond levies and some special assessments excluded. The bill is the lower of that calculation and the assessed value multiplied by the rate, so a property can be held down by compression — and can rise by more than 3% when compression is lost.
• Oregon property tax →

Michigan — inflation or 5% on taxable value, and an uncapping on sale

• What it limits: taxable value, which under Proposal A is the lesser of the state equalized value or the capped value. The capped value is not a figure from the notice: it is the prior year’s taxable value, less losses, multiplied by an inflation rate multiplier that may not exceed 1.05, plus additions.
• What resets it: a transfer of ownership — the only reset on this page that is a legal event rather than a change in value. The taxable value becomes the state equalized value in the calendar year after the transfer, and the property is capped again the year following that. Additions and losses do not reset the cap; they are terms inside it, which is why a lawful increase can exceed 5% in a year with no transfer at all.
• Where an appeal goes: the March Board of Review first for residential and agricultural property, which is what reserves the right to go on to the Michigan Tax Tribunal by July 31. Commercial and industrial property may file directly with the Tribunal by May 31.
• Michigan property tax →

Colorado — no percentage cap on value; the rate is the lever

• What it limits: nothing limits the year-over-year change in actual value. Colorado’s distinctive control is on the other factor: the assessment rate the legislature applies to actual value (with residential property split into separate local-government and school rates since 2025). The bill is the mill levy applied to assessed value.
• What resets it: the reassessment cycle — real property is revalued every odd-numbered year, so an even-year notice usually carries the prior value over. Legislation has adjusted rates and valuation mechanics in several recent sessions, which is why the current rates are read from the state’s own table rather than restated here.
• Where an appeal goes: oral or written objection to the county assessor between May 1 and June 8 for real property; then the county board of equalization; then arbitration, district court, or the Board of Assessment Appeals within 30 days of the decision mailing.
• Colorado property tax →

Ohio — no cap at all; 35% of true value on a county revaluation cycle

• What it limits: nothing limits the year-over-year change. Ohio taxes a fixed 35% of true (market) value — the taxable value the rates are applied to — and the county auditor reappraises on a six-year state-supervised cycle with a triennial update in between.
• What resets it: the reappraisal itself. A full reappraisal resets the value from market data; the triennial update adjusts it; other years it mostly carries over. There is no percentage limit to test.
• Where an appeal goes: a DTE Form 1 complaint to the county Board of Revision (filed with the county auditor, January 1 - March 31 of the following tax year or the last day to pay first-half taxes, whichever is earlier); then the state Board of Tax Appeals within 30 days of the decision mailing, including a small claims docket for residential appeals.
• Ohio property tax →

North Carolina — no cap; the revaluation date controls the appeal

• What it limits: nothing limits the change, but the valuation date does the work a limit does elsewhere: real property is reappraised at least every eight years and holds that value until the next revaluation, so 2026 appeals in a 2025-revalued county are argued on January 1, 2025 market value.
• What resets it: the county’s next revaluation, with off-cycle changes limited to what the statute allows (new construction and similar).
• Where an appeal goes: an informal review with the assessor’s staff, then a formal hearing before the county Board of Equalization and Review (convenes around the first week of April; the window closes when the board adjourns); then the state Property Tax Commission within 30 days of the decision letter.
• North Carolina property tax →

Massachusetts — no value cap; the levy limit and the abatement clock

• What it limits: no cap on a property’s value. Proposition 2½ limits the total levy a municipality may raise — a revenue limit — while the protection an owner uses is the abatement process anchored to the first actual tax bill (usually February 1 with quarterly billing).
• What resets it: each fiscal year’s bills, and the Department of Revenue’s three-year certification of each municipality’s values.
• Where an appeal goes: State Tax Form 128 to the board of assessors by the first-actual-bill deadline; the assessors have three months (or it is deemed denied); then the Appellate Tax Board within three months, with the tax paid for appeals over $5,000.
• Massachusetts property tax →

Virginia — 100% of market value, no cap, strong procedure

• What it limits: nothing limits the change — assessments are at 100% of fair market value by statute. The owner’s protections are procedural: a notice of any increased assessment at least 15 days before a hearing, showing the two prior years’ assessments.
• What resets it: each locality’s annual assessment; there is no cap to reset.
• Where an appeal goes: an application to the local board of equalization by a deadline each locality sets by ordinance (no earlier than 30 days after the notice hearing); then an original, de novo appeal in the circuit court, open until the latest of three years from the tax year’s end, one year from the first notice, or one year from a board determination.
• Virginia property tax →

New York — no cap; a municipality-chosen uniform percentage of market value

• What it limits: nothing limits the change. Every municipality (except NYC and Nassau County) must assess at a uniform percentage of market value of its own choosing, so the meaningful comparison is assessment against the market-value estimate printed on the same roll — never a raw assessment against a raw assessment.
• What resets it: the annual roll. The valuation date is July 1 of the prior year (most communities) and the tentative roll appears May 1, showing assessment, market estimate and uniform percentage together.
• Where an appeal goes: a grievance (Form RP-524) to the Board of Assessment Review by Grievance Day — the fourth Tuesday in May in most communities, with major published exceptions (NYC March, Nassau March, Suffolk May, Westchester June, villages February); then SCAR (owner-occupied small homes, $30 fee) or tax certiorari in State Supreme Court within 30 days of the final roll (July 1 in most communities).
• New York property tax →

Georgia — no cap; annual market reassessment with the burden on the county

• What it limits: nothing limits the change — all property is assessed at fair market value every year as of January 1 (no state revaluation schedule), and the tax base is 40% of that value. Some counties offer local valuation-freeze exemptions for homesteads, which is the closest thing to a cap and is local-option.
• What resets it: each January 1; the county reviews its digest against sales data annually.
• Where an appeal goes: a written appeal (PT-311A) to the county Board of Tax Assessors within 45 days of the assessment notice — declaring a method: Board of Equalization, hearing officer, or arbitration. The Bill of Rights puts the burden of proof on the board when it changed the owner’s value, binds the board to its stated rejection grounds, and awards fees if the final value is 85% or less of the appeal-stage figure.
• Georgia property tax →

Maryland — no value cap; the state assesses and the bill is credit-capped

• What it limits: the value standard has no year-over-year limit — SDAT assesses at 100% of market value on a triennial cycle — but the taxable assessment on a principal residence may not rise more than 10% per year (counties may adopt less), via the Homestead Property Tax Credit. Meanwhile any reassessment increase is phased in over three years anyway.
• What resets it: a transfer of ownership ends the homestead protection (apply once, on purchase); the phase-in completes over three years.
• Where an appeal goes: to the Supervisor of Assessments within 45 days of the notice (or a petition for review in off-years); then the county PTAAB within 30 days of the final notice; then the Maryland Tax Court within 30 days.
• Maryland property tax →

Indiana — the bill is capped, not the value: 1%/2%/3% of gross assessed value

• What it limits: the tax bill, like Nevada but against a value instead of last year’s bill: no owner pays more than 1% of gross assessed value (homesteads), 2% (other residential and agricultural land) or 3% (all other property), with a per-class cap credit on the bill. Referendum projects are outside the caps. Values themselves are trended annually with no limit.
• What resets it: the annual adjustment — values trend to market every year, so there is no cap to reset; the caps apply fresh to each year’s gross assessed value.
• Where an appeal goes: Form 130 to the local assessor within 45 days of the Form 11 notice (or the bill, where no Form 11 was issued) — with the burden on the county after a 5% increase; then the PTABOA, then the Indiana Board of Tax Review (Form 131), then the Indiana Tax Court.
• Indiana property tax →

Washington — no value cap; the levy itself is limited

• What it limits: not a value — the levy, the dollars each taxing district collects. A district’s levy may grow to at most 101% of its highest lawful levy since 1985 (larger districts use 100% plus the Implicit Price Deflator or 101%, whichever is less), with voter-approved levy lid lifts above it and a constitutional 1% aggregate limit as the outer bound. Assessments themselves are at 100% of market value with no cap.
• What resets it: a levy lid lift approved by voters raises a district’s limit; the since-1985 baseline otherwise rolls forward each year.
• Where an appeal goes: a petition to the county Board of Equalization by July 1 of the assessment year or within 30 days of the change-of-value notice — whichever is later; then the state Board of Tax Appeals within 30 days of the decision (no extensions, and hearings currently 18–24 months out).
• Washington property tax →

New Jersey — no value cap, but a ±15% band around the average ratio

• What it limits: assessments are set annually at the assessor’s view of full market value with no year-over-year limit — but the Chapter 123 test polices the ratio: the Division of Taxation certifies an average ratio per district, and an assessment outside ±15% of that average is presumptively wrong and gets adjusted into the range automatically.
• What resets it: the certified average ratio is recalculated every year, so the band moves with the district.
• Where an appeal goes: Form A-1 to the County Board of Taxation, filed and received by April 1 (May 1 after a revaluation; January 15 in Burlington, Gloucester and Monmouth Counties); direct to the Tax Court over $1M; then 45 days to appeal the board’s judgment to the Tax Court.
• New Jersey property tax →

Minnesota — no value cap; class rates distribute the levy and the boards set the clock

• What it limits: nothing limits the value — assessments are set January 2 for taxes payable the following year, and classification rates (not a cap) determine each property type’s share. The homestead market value exclusion reduces taxable value on a sliding scale that phases out as value rises.
• What resets it: each assessment year’s sales study (October 1 – September 30); there is no cap to reset.
• Where an appeal goes: the Local Board of Appeal and Equalization (meets April 1 – May 31; a prerequisite where the city holds its own), then the County Board (June) — the meeting dates on your valuation notice are the deadlines. Or skip both: direct to the Minnesota Tax Court by April 30 of the year the taxes are payable.
• Minnesota property tax →

The comparison that matters most

Why other states are not listed yet

Several large states are frequently cited in this comparison and are not here, for honest reasons:

• Some states limit levies or revenue (the amount a local government may raise) rather than the value of an individual property. A page about a personal assessment limit would be a misdescription of their law.
• Some states have no statewide assessment limit, so the content would restate the same principles already covered here without a state-specific rule to test against.
• Some states are mid-reform: their rules change every legislative session, and a page that cannot be kept accurate should not be published.

Each one is on the list to research properly — official sources read, deadlines verified, and a state-specific page structure — before it appears here.

Where to start

• The assessment checker — screens year-over-year changes under the rules it is configured for, and says which states those are.
• The evidence guide — what each kind of evidence can and cannot show.
• Methodology — how sources are verified and what is published.