Do Indiana's 1%/2%/3% tax caps mean I can't save by appealing?

No. The 1%/2%/3% circuit breaker caps your tax bill as a percentage of gross assessed value — it's a cap on the bill, not on your assessed value. Lowering your assessed value through an appeal still reduces what you owe, so the caps don't block your savings.

Can Indiana raise my assessment when I appeal?

Yes. By statute the county board (PTABOA) and the Indiana Board of Tax Review decide the correct value, which may be higher or lower than your assessment (IC 6-1.1-15-20). One protection: if your assessment rose more than 5% over last year, the assessor carries the burden of proof. File only when your comps clearly support a lower value.

State Guide

How to Appeal Your Property Taxes in Indiana (2026 Guide)

Q: What is the property tax appeal deadline in Indiana?

You file a Form 130 appeal with your county or township assessor by June 15 of the assessment year if your Form 11 assessment notice was mailed before May 1; otherwise it's June 15 of the year your tax statement is mailed (IC 6-1.1-15-1.1). Check your Form 11 date and file by the deadline.

Published July 12, 2026

white and red concrete building near body of water during daytime — Photo by Gabe Pierce on Unsplash

If you own a home in Indiana, your township or county assessor sets its assessed value, and that number drives your tax bill. Every year you have a window to challenge it — and in Indiana that value is supposed to equal your home's market value-in-use, so a good comparable-sales case can move it.

The Indiana deadline: June 15

Indiana's appeal deadline is June 15. Specifically, you file a Form 130 appeal with your county or township assessor by June 15 of the assessment year if your Form 11 assessment notice was mailed before May 1; otherwise the deadline is June 15 of the year your tax statement is mailed (IC 6-1.1-15-1.1). The date turns on your Form 11 notice, so check it and count from there.

Filing the Form 130 starts an informal step with the assessor. If that doesn't resolve it, the ladder is the county Property Tax Assessment Board of Appeals (PTABOA) — you'll get a Form 115 decision — then the Indiana Board of Tax Review (Form 131), and finally the Indiana Tax Court.

How Indiana assesses your home

Indiana assesses your home at its "true tax value." The state's assessment manual defines that as market value-in-use — the value of your home for its current use (50 IAC 2.4) — which for a typical owner-occupied home tracks closely with market value. So it is not a fractional-assessment state, and comparable sales are the evidence you build on. (One legal nuance: Indiana's statute expressly distinguishes true tax value from strict fair market value — IC 6-1.1-31-6 — but for an ordinary home the two sit close together.)

Category	Indiana
Assessment basis	True tax value = market value-in-use for current use (50 IAC 2.4; IC 6-1.1-31-6)
Appeal deadline	June 15 (Form 130), keyed to your Form 11 notice (IC 6-1.1-15-1.1)
Where you file	County/township assessor → PTABOA → Indiana Board of Tax Review → Tax Court
Assessment cap	None on value — the 1%/2%/3% "circuit breaker" caps your bill, not your assessment
Can the board raise your value?	Yes — the value "may be higher or lower" (IC 6-1.1-15-20)

The point that confuses many Indiana owners: the famous 1%/2%/3% "circuit breaker" caps your tax bill at a percentage of your home's gross assessed value — it is not a cap on the assessed value itself or on how fast it grows. So a successful appeal that lowers your assessed value still lowers what you owe; the caps don't get in the way of your savings.

Building your case

Because the standard is your home's market value-in-use, the winning evidence is recent, nearby comparable sales — homes like yours in size, age, and condition — not listing prices or online estimates. Three or four solid comps with clear adjustments carry far more weight than a complaint that the number "feels high."

One Indiana-specific note: the PTABOA and the Indiana Board of Tax Review decide the correct value on the evidence, and by statute that value "may be higher or lower" than your current assessment (IC 6-1.1-15-20) — so an appeal can raise your value. There's a real protection, though: if your assessment jumped more than 5% over last year's, the assessor carries the burden of proof, and if neither side proves its case the value reverts to last year's. Still, file only when your comps clearly support a lower value.

Filing at the county level

Every Indiana county runs its own assessor and PTABOA, and the mechanics — where to submit your Form 130, the informal-review process, and hearing schedules — vary across all 92 counties. We're building out county-specific guides with the filing office and local notes for each. In the meantime, use PROppeal to pull licensed comparable sales for your address and confirm your filing logistics with the county assessor.

Get your case built

You don't need to wait on a county-specific guide to start. PROppeal pulls licensed comparable sales for your address, values your home against Indiana's market value-in-use standard, factors in that the circuit-breaker caps your bill (not your savings), and gives you a straight answer on whether your assessment is out of line — before June 15 arrives.

Sources

Property tax rules and deadlines vary by jurisdiction and can change — verify with your county before relying on this.

See if your Indiana assessment is too high

PROppeal checks your case against real, recent comparable sales and gives you an honest verdict — then builds the board-ready letter to file, all in one price.

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