Pima County Property Tax Records: Search, Valuation, and Appeals

Pima County property tax records are free to search online through two county offices: the Assessor at asr.pima.gov for ownership, valuation, and classification data, and the Treasurer at to.pima.gov for billing, payment history, and any balance owed. Together they cover more than 434,000 real property parcels, and you can pull a record by parcel number, street address, or owner name without an account.

Which Office Holds What

The split matters because searching the wrong portal will show you only half the picture.

Pima County Assessor

The Assessor’s Office discovers, classifies, and values every taxable parcel in the county to establish the tax base.¹ On asr.pima.gov you can look up a parcel’s physical description, legal classification, full cash value, limited property value, and any exemptions applied. Contact this office for valuation questions, property descriptions, or corrections to a record.

Pima County Treasurer

The Treasurer’s Office handles billing and collection. Its site shows the current tax bill, payment history, and any outstanding balance. You need the parcel number (state code) to search. The portal covers the current tax year; for prior-year information, call the office at (520) 724-8341.²

GIS Mapping Portal

Pima County also runs a Geographic Information Systems portal at gis.pima.gov with interactive maps tied to parcel data. Beyond basic lookups, the GIS system includes FEMA flood insurance rate maps, zoning overlays, aerial photography, and riparian habitat maps.³ Buyers doing due diligence will find the flood zone data particularly useful since it directly affects insurance requirements.

How to Search for a Parcel

The parcel number, sometimes called the Assessor’s Parcel Number or state code, is the fastest route to the right record. In Pima County it’s a nine-character code: eight digits followed by one letter or number, formatted like 117-11-001B.⁴ You’ll find yours on a prior tax statement, your recorded deed, or the Notice of Value the Assessor mails each year.

If you don’t have the parcel number, search by street address. The county’s GIS portal recommends entering just the street number first, then selecting from the results, which avoids formatting problems with abbreviations like “St” versus “Street.” You can also search by owner name. Enter it last-name-first (for example, “doe john”), matching the name on the recorded deed. Partial entries work, so “doe j” pulls up all matches.⁴

Reading the Valuation Figures

A Pima County property record shows several valuation numbers that build on each other to produce the tax bill. The math is more straightforward than it looks once you understand the two key values.

Full Cash Value and Limited Property Value

The Full Cash Value (FCV) is the Assessor’s estimate of market value. It can rise or fall without a cap, tracking actual market conditions.⁵ The Limited Property Value (LPV) is the number that actually drives most of the tax bill. Under Arizona’s Proposition 117, in effect since tax year 2015, the LPV cannot increase more than 5% over the prior year’s LPV, and it can never exceed the FCV.⁶ In a rising market, this cap can create a meaningful gap between what a home is worth and what it’s taxed on.

Assessment Ratios

Arizona doesn’t tax the full LPV. An assessment ratio is applied first to produce the “assessed value,” which is the base the tax rate hits. Owner-occupied homes (Class 3) and rental residential properties use a 10% ratio. Commercial property (Class 1) is assessed at 15.5% for tax year 2026.⁷ A home with an LPV of $300,000 has an assessed value of $30,000; a commercial building at the same LPV would be assessed at $46,500.

Primary and Secondary Taxes

The record breaks the bill into primary and secondary levies. Primary taxes fund day-to-day operations of the county, cities, towns, and school districts. Secondary taxes cover bonded debt, special district levies, and voter-approved overrides of statutory tax limits.⁸ The LPV calculates primary taxes; the FCV calculates secondary taxes. Each taxing jurisdiction that overlaps the parcel (school district, fire district, community college district, and others) appears as a separate line item showing exactly where the money goes.

The record will also reflect any exemptions. Widows, widowers, people with total and permanent disabilities, and veterans with service-connected or non-service-connected disabilities may qualify for a reduction of up to $4,188 off assessed value under ARS 42-11111.⁹ A separate Senior Valuation Protection Option can freeze the LPV for qualifying homeowners 65 or older who meet income limits. Both programs are administered by the Assessor.

Checking Payment Status

The Treasurer’s portal shows whether a parcel is current. Pima County property taxes are payable in two installments: the first half is due October 1 and becomes delinquent November 1 at 5:00 PM, and the second half is due March 1 and becomes delinquent May 1 at 5:00 PM. If the total annual tax is $100 or less, the full amount is due October 1.² A record pulled mid-year will show one installment paid and one still owed, which is normal.

What a Delinquent Record Means

If you’re reviewing records on a property you own or are considering buying, delinquency has real consequences and shows up in the record.

Interest starts the day a payment is late: 16% per year, prorated monthly at 1.333%. The full monthly charge applies whether you’re one day or thirty days into that month. If taxes remain unpaid through January of the following year, an additional penalty of $5 or 5% of the amount due, whichever is greater, is added.²

Unpaid taxes are then sold at the county’s annual tax lien sale, a public auction held each February under ARS 42-18126. The 2026 sale is scheduled as a one-day online auction on February 26.¹⁰ Investors bid down the interest rate they’ll accept, starting at 16% and dropping in 1% increments. The winning bidder pays the delinquent taxes and receives a Certificate of Purchase that accrues interest at the bid rate.

Once a lien holder has held the certificate for three years, they can file a foreclosure action in Superior Court.¹⁰ If the court finds the lien valid and unredeemed, it will foreclose the owner’s right to redeem and direct the Treasurer to issue a deed to the lien holder. All legal and equitable interest in the property is lost at that point. Partial payments on delinquent tax liens are not accepted by law; all delinquent taxes, interest, penalties, and fees must be paid in full to clear the lien.²

Fixing What the Record Shows

Mailing Address

If your mailing address on the record is wrong, the Assessor’s Office handles the update, not the Treasurer.² Update in person at 240 N. Stone Ave. with a driver’s license or state-issued ID, or submit a notarized change form by mail, fax, or email.¹¹ The ID or notarization requirement prevents someone from redirecting tax bills without your knowledge. A wrong address means statements go unreceived and missed payments pile up at 16% interest without warning.

Factual Errors in the Record

If the record shows incorrect square footage, a wrong construction year, a garage that doesn’t exist, or other factual mistakes, contact the Assessor with supporting documentation such as a building permit, survey, or appraisal. Correcting these matters because they feed directly into the valuation. The same errors also strengthen a valuation appeal.

Ownership Changes

Ownership changes (sale, inheritance, adding a spouse to title) run through the Pima County Recorder’s Office, which is separate from both the Assessor and Treasurer. The Recorder cannot help prepare legal documents or advise on which type of deed to use, so consult an attorney before filing anything that changes title.¹²

Appealing the Valuation on the Record

If the Assessor’s valuation looks too high, you can file a Petition for Review of Valuation. The deadline is firm: within 60 days of the date the Assessor mailed the Notice of Value.¹³ The postmark counts as the filing date, but don’t push it to the last day.

The petition must state your opinion of the property’s full cash value and back it up with one of three valuation methods:

Market approach: the sale price of at least one comparable property in the same area, or your own recent purchase price.
Cost approach: an estimate of the cost to rebuild plus land value.
Income approach: for rental or commercial properties, income data showing the Assessor’s market value estimate is too high.

Appeals most often succeed when the owner can show factual errors in the property record or demonstrate that the FCV sits above what comparable properties have actually sold for within the past three years. An arm’s-length sale of your own property that closed below the Assessor’s FCV is strong evidence. A distressed or family sale is not. Appeal forms are on the Assessor’s website under the forms section.¹⁴

1
Pima County Assessor. Pima County Assessor
2
Pima County Treasurer’s Office. Pima County Treasurer’s Office
3
Pima County, AZ. GIS Maps
4
Pima County Geographic Information Systems. Pima County – Parcel Search
5
Arizona State Board of Equalization. Property Valuation
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Arizona Department of Revenue. Assessment Procedures Limited Property Value
7
Arizona Legislature. Arizona Code 42-15001 – Assessed Valuation of Class One Property
8
Arizona Department of Revenue. Arizona Property Taxation
9
Arizona Legislature. Arizona Code 42-11111 – Exemption for Property Widows and Widowers Persons With a Total and Permanent Disability Veterans With a Disability Definitions
10
Pima County Treasurer’s Office. Tax Lien Sale Information
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Pima County Assessor. Pima County Assessor Change of Mailing Address Request
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Pima County Recorder’s Office. Recording Requirements
13
Arizona Legislature. Arizona Code 42-16051 – Petition for Assessor Review of Improper Valuation or Classification
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Pima County Assessor. Appeals