Tax assessment

Tax assessment, or assessment, is the job of determining the value, and sometimes determining the use, of property, usually to calculate a property tax. This is usually done by an office called the assessor or tax assessor.

Governments need to collect taxes in order to function. Federal, state and local governments impose tax assessments against real property, personal property and income. The word tax assessment is used in different ways but often refers to a tax liability owed by a taxpayer.

In the case of property, a tax assessment is an evaluation or an estimate of value that is typically performed by a tax assessor. The assessment leads to an “assessed value,” which is a base number used in the calculation of the property tax.