Property Value Appeals Board

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Property Value Appeals Board

(Formerly known as the "Board of Property Tax Appeals")

The County Clerk administers the Property Value Appeals Board (PVAB). Property Value Appeals Board (PVAB) members are private citizens appointed by the Marion County Board of Commissioners. They have training, experience, and knowledge in property valuation. PVAB members are not employed by Marion County and play no role in the setting of the values on your property by the Assessor's Office.

As a property owner, you may appeal to the Property Value Appeals Board if you disagree with the property value on the tax statement you receive this fall. Your evidence must reflect the value of the property as it existed on January 1, 2024.

You can access petition forms below.

It is recommended that you contact the Assessor's Office prior to completing your appeal form. The Assessor's Office can assist you in understanding the basis for your property value and, in some cases, may be able to make changes without requiring you to file an appeal. The Assessor's Office phone number is (503) 588-5144.

Filing a Petition

Appeals can be filed after receipt of tax statements in mid-October but no later than December 31, 2024.*

Complete one petition for each account being appealed.

Only the property owner, and certain people he/she authorizes, can sign a petition to the Board. Please review the instructions included with the petition form. Return your petition to:

Marion County Clerk's Office
Property Value Appeals Board
PO Box 14500
Salem, OR 97309
Phone: (503) 588-3578 Fax: 503-373-4408 Email: pvab@co.marion.or.us

*Hand delivered petitions must be received by 5 p.m. PST on December 31, 2024.
Faxed petitions must be received before midnight PST December 31, 2024, as evidenced by electronic acknowledgement of receipt produced by the County's Fax machine.
Emailed petitions must be received before midnight PST December 31, 2024 (as evidenced by the digital time stamp – a confirmation of receipt email will be sent within 2 business days).
Mailed petitions must be postmarked no later than December 31, 2024.

Petitioner Presentation and Evidence

Evidence and documentation should be submitted with your petition. You may bring additional evidence to the hearing. Evidence submitted to the board clerk or provided at the hearing will not be returned. Evidence considered by the Board must be retained by the board clerk.

You need to have convincing evidence to support your opinion of your property's value
One mistake many taxpayers make when they file a petition is to present the Board with a study of the difference between their property tax and their neighbor's property tax. If you want the Board to reduce the real market value of your property, you should provide evidence of your property's value, not the tax you pay.

Another mistake petitioners make when appealing to the Board is to compare the value of their property on the tax roll with their neighbor's value on the tax roll. This study may be interesting, but does not provide proof of the MARKET VALUE of your property.

Generally, to be successful in your appeal, you must provide evidence of the MARKET VALUE of your property on January 1, 2024, the date the Assessor used to establish the real market value of your property. Below are examples of the types of evidence you might use to convince the board the value of your property should be reduced to the value you are requesting:

Documentation of a recent arm's-length sale of the property
A recent fee appraisal
Proof that the property has been listed for sale on the open market for a reasonable time period at a price below the real market on the tax roll
A comparison of properties that have recently sold, similar to yours in location, size and quality. If there are differences between the properties, the differences should be accounted for in the comparison of values
Cost of new construction that took place close to January 1 of the assessment year and was performed by a professional contractor
Cost to repair your property. You should provide written estimates of the cost of the repairs.
For commercial property, documentation of income and expense information or a comparable sales analysis

A reduction in the real market value of your property may not result in a decrease in your property tax. Your taxes will only be lowered if the Real Market Value (RMV) is reduced below the Assessed Value (AV) on your tax statement.

Scheduling

The Board will consider your appeal between Feb. 1st and April 15^th. The schedule is dependent on the number of petitions received.
TBD

Notices of hearing will be mailed 5-10 days in advance of the scheduled time.

Hearing times cannot be rescheduled except in the event of a death or severe illness. If, after your hearing is scheduled, you find you cannot attend, you may send a qualified representative. To designate a representative, fill out and submit the Authorization to Represent form found below.

You do not have to appear before the Board, though the Board strongly recommends that you do in order to answer any questions members may have regarding your petition. If you do not wish to be present a hearing will be held in your absence when the board has time available - i.e. between regularly scheduled hearings if time allows or at the end of the day.

In the event a quorum of the Board cannot meet as scheduled due to weather conditions, any hearings scheduled for that meeting will be rescheduled and the petitioners notified. The decision to cancel a Board meeting will be made by the Chairperson. Notification to petitioners may be made by use of any and all available media.

Hearings and Decisions

Hearings are held in Courthouse Square, North Santiam Conference Room, 555 Court St NE 2^nd Floor, Salem OR 97301

Hearings are held to about 15 minutes in length. The process is informal. You will be given 5 minutes to present your evidence, the Assessor representative will be given 5 minutes and the Board will have 5 minutes to deliberate. The Chair must adhere to the time schedule and you will be asked to cooperate in this regard.

The Board does conduct hearings by telephone conference call with prior arrangements.

Decisions are made at the hearing. Whether you are present or not, a written Board Order will be mailed to you within 8-10 business days after the hearing.

You have the right to appeal the board's decision to the Magistrate Division of the Oregon Tax Court. Complaints must be filed within 30 days (not one month) of the date that the board's order is mailed to you.

Accommodations for Persons with Disabilities

The Marion County Property Value Appeals Board (PVAB) is committed to providing such accommodations as may be necessary to assist petitioners with disabilities. Specific arrangements for any accommodations should be made with the County Clerk or board clerk well before any scheduled hearing.

Disclaimer

The information and data included on the Marion County Property Value Appeals Board web site has been put together by the Clerk's Office staff. The information is subject to change without any given notice. The Clerk's Office staff makes no warranties or representations whatsoever regarding the quality, content, completeness, or adequacy of such information and data.

Any officially printed publication of Marion County Clerk's Office takes precedence over this web site.

Petition Forms

You must have Adobe Acrobat Reader to download the forms to your computer. They may be printed, filled out and filed with the county clerk.

NOTE: The forms are also available in a fillable format and can be completed online. Please review the fill-in forms instructions for detailed instructions. Use the tab key or curser to navigate the "fillable" forms once it is open. The completed forms may then be printed, signed and delivered to the County Clerk's Office. Don't forget to attach your evidence.

PVAB Real Property Petition Use this form to appeal the value of your real property land and buildings, manufactured structures, or industrial machinery and equipment.