TAX APPEAL APPRAISALS · NORTHERN ILLINOIS
Your Assessment Is Too High. We'll Prove It.
A professional appraisal is the strongest evidence the Board of Review accepts. One report can reduce your assessment, and that savings compounds every year until the next reassessment.
State-Certified Appraiser
Residential Appraiser
USPAP-Compliant Reports
Board-recognized standard
All 6 Northern IL Counties
Winnebago, DeKalb, Kane, McHenry, Boone, Lake
Flat Fee: No Contingency
You keep 100% of savings
When a Tax Appeal Appraisal Makes Sense
Your assessment went up. Your home did not, not to that number. Here are the situations where a certified appraisal turns your instinct into a documented argument.
The Evidence That Wins Tax Appeals, and What Happens Without It
Every year, the county assessor runs a computer model across thousands of properties in Winnebago, Boone, DeKalb, Kane, McHenry, and Lake counties. That model groups your home with statistically similar properties and applies neighborhood-level averages. It has never walked through your front door.
In Winnebago County alone, total assessed value hit a record high in 2025, up 10% in a single year. If your assessment moved with that trend, the number on your notice may have nothing to do with what your home would actually sell for today.
You have the legal right to challenge it. But the Board of Review sees hundreds of appeals. The ones that succeed are backed by professional documentation.
What the Board actually accepts: Illinois law explicitly lists a USPAP-compliant appraisal report as the highest-quality evidence for a property tax appeal. It carries more weight than a printed list of Zillow comparables. It carries more weight than a letter explaining your case. A certified appraiser applies professional methodology: a full inspection, adjusted comparable sales, and a documented value conclusion the Board is trained to evaluate.
The math: A professional tax appeal appraisal from VanEtten Appraisal costs $400 to $600. A $25,000 market value reduction on a Winnebago County property saves roughly $180 to $200 per year in taxes, and that reduction holds for the full reassessment cycle. That is four years of savings from a single report. For homes with larger overassessments, the return is proportionally higher. The appraisal pays for itself in year one or two, then saves money every year after that at no additional cost.
What happens without it: Homeowners who file without professional documentation face Boards that have no obligation to accept informal evidence. Denial rates are higher. Self-represented appeals based on neighbor comparisons and Zillow printouts rarely produce meaningful reductions. If your Board of Review appeal fails and you escalate to the Illinois Property Tax Appeal Board, a certified appraisal is effectively required to succeed.
You already feel the number is wrong. We document why.
Who We Work With
Homeowners
You got the notice. Your assessment is too high. We give you the documentation to challenge it.
Real Estate Attorneys
Your clients need certified appraisal evidence for Board of Review hearings and PTAB appeals. We deliver reports on deadline.
Tax Consultants
When your clients need a USPAP-compliant appraisal to anchor their appeal, we are the northern Illinois firm you call.
Property Owners
Commercial or residential: if your assessment does not reflect actual market value, we build the appraisal record to prove it.
How It Works
Three steps from your assessment notice to a board-ready report.
Review Your Assessment
Contact VanEtten Appraisal with your property details and your county's appeal deadline. We confirm the scope, provide a flat-fee quote, and schedule your inspection with your deadline in mind. The sooner you call, the more time we have to build a thorough report.
Inspect Your Property and Research Comps
A State-Certified appraiser visits your property and evaluates every factor the county's model cannot see: condition, deferred maintenance, functional issues, and property-specific characteristics. We research comparable sales and apply professional adjustments, the methodology the Board is trained to evaluate.
Deliver Your Board-Ready Report
You receive a complete, USPAP-compliant appraisal report formatted for Board of Review submission. The report documents the market value opinion, adjusted comparable analysis, and appraiser credentials. You file it with your appeal and let the evidence do the work.
“Scott was friendly and came out quickly to do the appraisal. I got the results back very fast and he did a really thorough job researching. The comps he chose were very close in location and condition and layout of my property. I'm very satisfied with the results and would definitely use him again if needed.”
Jaime | Google Review
“I’m a local Realtor in Lenawee County. Scott has done appraisals for both Buyers and Sellers of mine. He is as good as they come. He is everything you’d want in an Appraiser. Timely, professional and experienced, but most of all he is accurate and fair.”
Adam Keller | Google Review
“Scott will give you the honest and realistic truth along with accurate market trends and considerations; a rare gem in these unprecedented times of volatility and greed.”
BRYAN WINDER | Google Review
Tax Appeal Appraisal FAQs
Questions? Call (779) 207-6523.
Ready to Challenge Your Assessment?
A lower assessment saves you money every year until the next reassessment cycle. Tell us about your property and we will confirm your county's deadline and provide a quote.
- Fast communication, real answers. No waiting around.
- No obligation, just accurate information
- Serving all of Northern Illinois from 4 locations
- Reports accepted by all major lenders and courts