Property (ad valorem) taxes are taxes on real and/or personal property. Real property includes land and improvements. Personal property refers to items which are movable or not permanently fixed to the land.

• Each taxpayer is required by Alabama Law (Code 40-7-1) to provide a complete list of all property which is owned.
• The person acquiring property is responsible for reporting to the Revenue Commissioner a complete legal description of the property and should at that time claim any exemptions for which he is eligible.
• The Revenue Commissioners Office should be furnished a correct mailing address for all properties.
• All assessments and bills are based upon ownership and status as of October 1 of each year.
• The Revenue Commissioner's Office is responsible for determining property value which must, by law, be set according to "fair and reasonable market value."
• Your property is probably not for sale but the local appraiser must set the value of the property as if it were "sold" in an "arm lengths" transaction between a "willing buyer and a willing seller," neither being under any pressure to buy or sell.