Tax Assessed Value vs Property Value

[Ana Coello]

Hello Everyone!

This might be a silly question but I’ve been looking at many properties on Zillow, Homesnap, Realtor, etc. and when it comes to looking at the property taxes (I know I should be more thorough but for now is a rough estimate) I see that they usually give a “tax assessed value” for the home. What does this mean? How does whoever arrive at that number? Should I care about it? Any input is welcome. Thank you!

[Seth Ferguson]

@Ana Coello The rate at which taxes are levied in no way represents fair market value. You're actually hoping for a lower tax assessment. Forget about this number.

Focus only on fair market value, which is what a buyer is willing to pay for the property today. Throw automated valuations out the window and work with true comparable sales.