Property Taxes
How Utah property taxes are assessed, calculated, and paid — the 45% residential exemption, Truth-in-Taxation, appeals, and escrow.
A Utah-specific walkthrough of how a property tax bill is actually built: how county assessors set January 1 market values, why a primary residence is taxed on only 55 percent of value, how certified rates and Truth in Taxation hearings constrain revenue, how to read the summer valuation notice, how to appeal to the county Board of Equalization before the deadline, which relief programs require an application, and how an assessment change flows into an escrowed mortgage payment.
Utah property taxes are calculated by multiplying taxable value by the combined rates of every taxing entity that overlaps your parcel. Owner-occupied homes get a 45% residential exemption, which is why most Utah homeowners pay roughly 0.5%–0.9% of market value per year — but only if the exemption is on file, the assessment is accurate, and escrow is projected correctly.