Use-value assessment taxes farm or timber land on current use, not on development value. The roll treats the acre as working land, not as a future subdivision.
Use-value assessment, which varies by state, taxes farm or timber land on what the land produces in its current use, not on what a developer would pay to build on it. The roll treats the acre as working land. A neighboring house lot can still sit at a sale-price idea. This page names the method, not a signup rule.
What is use-value assessment versus market value?
The IAAO glossary defines value-in-use as the value of a property as measured by its current use, regardless of highest and best use. Use-value farmland laws tell assessors to appraise as though the land had to stay in the present use. A development sale next door does not automatically rewrite that farm line.
Example: a 40-acre field might trade for $400,000 to a builder, yet print at a $80,000 use value. Ten mills on $80,000 is $800, not $4,000. Those round numbers are an example, not a county's agricultural schedule.
Look up if you are overpaying.
Is use-value assessment the same as a property tax appeal?
No. Use-value is a valuation method on qualifying land. A property tax appeal is a challenge to a printed number. The two can both exist on one farm. The property tax glossary keeps current use next to fair market value. FairAppeal reviews your property and decides whether to file, and there are no upfront costs with Fair Appeal.