Davis County Property Tax: Deadlines, Appeals, and Relief

Property tax in Davis County, Utah is due November 30 each year, and if your home is your primary residence you pay tax on only 55% of its market value. The county assessor sets each property’s market value as of January 1, then your city, school district, county, and special service districts each apply their share of a combined certified rate. For 2025 that combined rate ran from about 0.0076 to 0.0111 per dollar of taxable value, depending on where in the county you live.¹ Several programs can lower or defer the bill, but each one requires a separate application with a firm deadline.

How Your Bill Is Calculated

The Davis County Assessor determines fair market value for every parcel as of January 1 each year under Utah Code 59-2-103.² Market value is what a reasonable buyer would pay a reasonable seller in a normal transaction.

A primary residence then receives a 45% exemption under the Utah Constitution, so you are taxed on 55% of market value.³ A home valued at $500,000 has a taxable value of $275,000. Commercial and industrial property gets no such exemption and is taxed on full market value.

Your tax equals that taxable value multiplied by the combined certified rate for your tax district. Applied to a $275,000 taxable value, the 2025 district rates produce a bill somewhere between about $2,090 and $3,053 before any relief program is applied.

The Deadlines That Matter

Four dates run the Davis County property tax year:

Late July, around July 23: the county mails valuation notices showing your assessed market value and estimated tax.⁴
September 1: application deadline for most relief programs, including the blind exemption, active military exemption, and elderly deferral.⁵
September 15, or 45 days after your notice was mailed, whichever is later: deadline to appeal your valuation to the Board of Equalization.⁶
November 30 at 5:00 PM: payment due. If November 30 falls on a weekend, the deadline shifts to the next business day.⁷

The appeal deadline is the one most owners miss. Late appeals can still be filed, but the Board of Equalization has discretion to reject them.⁸

What Happens If You Pay Late

Miss the November 30 deadline and the penalty is 2.5% of the delinquent amount or $10, whichever is greater. The penalty drops to 1% (or $10) only if you pay the entire balance by January 31.⁹ On a $3,000 bill, that is $75 versus $30.

If you still haven’t paid by January 31, interest kicks in retroactively to January 1. The rate equals 6% plus the federal funds target rate as of that January 1, with a floor of 7% and a ceiling of 10%, and it compounds annually on top of the penalty.⁹

If taxes stay unpaid for four years, the county can sell the property at a public tax sale held in May or June.¹⁰ The treasurer files the delinquent list with the county auditor after March 15 of the year the four-year window closes.¹¹ You can redeem the property any time before the auction by paying all delinquent taxes, penalties, interest, and administrative costs to the treasurer. After the auction, the property is gone.

Appealing Your Valuation

If the market value on your notice looks too high, you have until September 15 or 45 days from the mailing date, whichever is later, to appeal to the Davis County Board of Equalization.⁶ Applications can be mailed to Tax Administration, PO Box 618, Room 101, Farmington, UT 84025.⁸

Your evidence decides the appeal. A professional appraisal carries the most weight, followed by closing papers from a recent purchase or refinance. Without either, pull comparable sales from your neighborhood for properties similar in size, age, and condition. All evidence should reflect value as of January 1, the statutory lien date.

Your application must include a signed statement explaining what evidence supports your estimate of fair market value. The Board considers the total property value, not individual components, so an argument that only the land portion is overvalued won’t go far without addressing the whole. After review, the Board mails its decision.⁸

Relief Programs That Can Lower What You Owe

Davis County administers several abatement, exemption, and deferral programs. None apply automatically. You have to apply, and in most cases reapply every year.

Circuit Breaker Low-Income Abatement

The Circuit Breaker reduces property tax for low-income homeowners who are 67 or older by December 31 of the current year, and for qualifying widows and widowers of any age. You must document income for every person living in the household, either with full federal returns or with W-2s, 1099-Rs, 1099-SSAs, and similar statements. Income counted includes wages, Social Security, pensions, and retirement distributions.¹² To request an application, contact Tax Administration at 801-451-3331 or taxadmin@daviscountyutah.gov.

Blind Exemption

A legally blind owner can exempt the first $11,500 of taxable value, and the exemption extends to an unmarried surviving spouse or minor orphan. First-time applicants must submit a signed statement from a licensed ophthalmologist confirming vision of 20/200 or worse in the better eye when corrected, or a visual field of 20 degrees or less. The deadline is September 1, extendable by the county to December 31 for good cause.¹³

Disabled Veteran Exemption

Veterans with a service-connected disability of 10% or greater can exempt up to $521,620 of taxable value on their primary residence, scaled by disability percentage. A veteran rated 50% disabled gets half the maximum. First-time applicants must submit a VA Summary of Benefits letter showing the rating.¹⁴ Unmarried surviving spouses can also qualify by providing the VA letter showing the veteran’s disability percentage at death along with a death certificate.

Active Military Exemption

Active or reserve members of the U.S. Armed Forces who served on active duty outside Utah for at least 200 days in a continuous 365-day period starting in the prior year can exempt the full taxable value of their primary residence. Apply by September 1 of the year after the qualifying service with military documentation, and reapply each qualifying year.⁵

Elderly Property Tax Deferral

If you are at least 75, you may be able to defer your property tax rather than pay it. Your 2024 household income must have been $85,246 or less, the home must be a single-family primary residence, and you cannot have delinquent taxes. The home’s assessed value must be at or below the county median unless you’ve owned it for at least 20 continuous years. Deferred taxes accrue interest at half the normal rate and come due when you sell, transfer ownership, or stop reapplying. The deadline is September 1 each year.⁵

How to Pay

The Davis County Treasurer accepts payment online by electronic check at no cost, or by Visa, MasterCard, American Express, or Discover with a card-company processing surcharge that typically runs 2.25% to 2.50%.⁷ On a $3,000 bill, that surcharge is roughly $68 to $75. You can also mail a check or money order to the Treasurer’s office in Farmington or pay in person at the county building during business hours.

If your mortgage includes escrow, your lender may pay the bill directly. Don’t assume it. Mortgages get sold and transferred, and billing addresses fall through the cracks, especially after a refinance or servicer change. Confirm with both your lender and the Treasurer that the bill is being sent to the right place. You are responsible for making sure the tax is paid by November 30 no matter what the escrow arrangement looks like.⁷

Business Personal Property

Property tax in Davis County isn’t limited to real estate. Business owners must declare personal property such as furniture, computers, equipment, and tools on an annual filing statement. The county mails statements before March 1 with a return deadline of May 15.¹⁵

For 2026, business personal property with a total fair market value of $30,100 or less qualifies for a full exemption, but the exemption is not automatic.¹⁶ You must claim it by signing and timely filing the statement. Late filings forfeit the exemption, all accounts under the same EIN are aggregated when testing the threshold, and any outstanding balances from prior years must be cleared by May 15.¹⁵

1
Davis County. Tax District Rates 2025
2
Utah Legislature. Utah Code 59-2-103 – Rate of Assessment of Property – Residential Property
3
Utah State Tax Commission. Primary Residential Exemption
4
Davis County. Real Property
5
Utah State Tax Commission. Abatement, Deferral and Exemption Programs for Individuals
6
Utah Legislature. Utah Code 59-2-1004 – Appeal to Board of Equalization
7
Davis County Treasurer. Davis County Treasurer
8
Davis County, Utah. Appeals
9
Utah Legislature. Utah Code 59-2-1331 – Delinquent Tax – Penalty and Interest
10
Utah Legislature. Utah Code 59-2-1346 – Redemption of Property Before Tax Sale
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Utah Legislature. Utah Code 59-2-1343 – Listing of Property Subject to Tax Sale
12
Davis County. Low Income Abatements
13
Utah Legislature. Utah Code 59-2-1106 – Blind Exemption
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Davis County. Abatements – Tax Relief Programs
15
Davis County. Personal Property
16
Utah State Tax Commission. Personal Property Valuation Guidelines