Property Tax Appeals in Madera County, California
Madera County's Assessment Appeals Board page states that a Hearing Fee of $200.00 must be submitted with every application unless the property is an owner-occupied single-family dwelling with a homeowner's exemption allowed in the year appealed and the applicant is the property owner representing themselves at the hearing, in which case no Hearing Fee applies. A separate $500.00 deposit is charged for applications that request Written Findings of Facts. The page describes filling out the Assessment Appeal Application online, printing and signing it, then mailing or hand-delivering the original paper application with a copy of the property tax bill to the County of Madera Assessment Appeals Board; it does not describe an online e-filing system. FairPath can organize a comparison table, condition photos, and a filing checklist. It does not file the application, choose the owner's opinion of value, pay any fee, or communicate with the Assessor's Office on the owner's behalf.
Assessment context: Begin with the Assessor's parcel record and confirm whether the dispute concerns the January 1, 2026 lien-date value on the regular roll, a supplemental assessment, or a roll change, escape, or calamity reassessment. Madera County spans the flat, irrigated San Joaquin Valley floor around the city of Madera and Chowchilla, where almond and pistachio orchards, vineyards, and dairies dominate land use, and rises eastward into Sierra Nevada foothill and mountain communities such as Oakhurst near the southern approach to Yosemite National Park. A parcel a few miles away can sit in a different water district, orchard-versus-timberland zoning, or elevation band, so land use, irrigation access, and site conditions should be confirmed against the Assessor's record rather than assumed from a map.
Filing process: Fill out the Assessment Appeal Application available on Madera County's Assessment Appeals Board page, save it, print it, and sign it. Mail or hand deliver the original paper application with an original signature to the County of Madera Assessment Appeals Board, along with the required filing fee and a copy of the property tax bill, during the July 2 through November 30 regular filing window. The page states that a Hearing Fee of $200.00 is required with every application unless the property is an owner-occupied single-family dwelling with a homeowner's exemption and the applicant will represent themselves; applications missing a required fee are returned unprocessed. A $500.00 deposit applies to any application requesting Written Findings of Facts. Property taxes remain due while an appeal is pending.
Evidence to review: Madera County's page directs applicants to its Local Rules of the Assessment Appeals Board for procedural detail and does not describe an online exchange-of-information portal, so prepare a written record to submit or present with the application. A comparable-sales table listing sale date, price, parcel, community, lot size, living area, age, and condition is a neutral way to organize evidence, weighted toward sales near the January 1, 2026 lien date. For orchard, vineyard, or dairy parcels, document irrigation-district membership, crop or planting age, and any soil or water-availability limitations with dated photographs or inspection notes. For foothill and mountain parcels near Oakhurst and the Yosemite approach, note access, terrain, or wildfire-related site conditions. FairPath organizes owner-provided facts into a packet; it does not select the claimed value or submit anything to the county on the owner's behalf.
Current deadline guidance: 2026 regular assessment appeals: July 2 through November 30, 2026. Madera County's Assessment Appeals Board page states that Regular Assessment appeals must be filed between July 2 and November 30, with a mailed application postmarked by the next business day deemed timely if November 30 falls on a Saturday, Sunday, or legal holiday, consistent with the California State Board of Equalization's certified 2026 county filing-period table. Supplemental, Roll Change, Escape, or Penalty Assessments instead run on a 60-day clock from the mailing or postmark date of the notice or tax bill, whichever is later, and Calamity Reassessment appeals run on a 6-month clock from the mailing of the assessment notice.
Madera County's Assessment Appeals Board sets the same July 2 through November 30 regular filing window each year, consistent with the Board of Equalization's 2026 certified county table.
A $200.00 Hearing Fee applies to every application unless the property is an owner-occupied single-family dwelling with a homeowner's exemption and the applicant represents themselves at the hearing.
The Assessment Appeals Board page describes mailing or hand-delivering a signed paper application rather than an online e-filing system.
Madera County spans irrigated San Joaquin Valley orchard and dairy land around the city of Madera and rises into Sierra Nevada foothill communities such as Oakhurst near Yosemite's southern approach.
Official filing authority: Madera County Assessment Appeals Board (Clerk of the Board). https://www.maderacounty.com/government/assessment-appeals-board
Source: Madera County Board of Supervisors, Clerk of the Board, Assessment Appeals Board, https://www.maderacounty.com/government/assessment-appeals-board. Reviewed 2026-09-22.
Source: Madera County, Assessor's Office, https://www.maderacounty.com/government/assessor. Reviewed 2026-09-22.
Source: California State Board of Equalization, Letter to Assessors 2026/023: 2026 Assessment Appeal Filing Periods, https://boe.ca.gov/proptaxes/pdf/lta26023.pdf. Reviewed 2026-09-22.
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