MANATEE COUNTY, FLORIDA · 2026

When is the Manatee County property tax appeal deadline?

Manatee County TRIM notices mail Monday, August 17, and the Value Adjustment Board must receive petitions by Friday, September 11. From the mailing date, Florida law gives you 25 days to petition, or the assessment locks in for the year.

Check my assessment free →30 seconds. No signup.
Manatee County
Add to calendar
Manatee County petitions due Friday, September 11 · 30 daysTRIM notices expected to mail Monday, August 17
Not ready to check an address?
Email me the day my county's TRIM notices mail. Nothing else, ever.

What is a TRIM notice?

The Truth in Millage notice is the letter every Florida property owner gets in August. It shows your proposed market value, assessed value, exemptions, and the taxes each authority plans to charge. It is not a bill. It is the one moment the number is still contestable.

How does the 25-day window work in Manatee County?

The clock starts on the mailing date printed on the notice, not the day you read it. Your petition (form DR-486) must be received by the Manatee County Value Adjustment Board by day 25, Friday, September 11. The filing fee in Manatee County is $50 per petition.

For the full statewide process, cited to the statutes, read how to appeal your Florida property tax assessment: the deadline, the petition, the hearing, the 75 percent payment rule, and when Save Our Homes means you should not appeal at all.

How to file your appeal in Manatee County

  1. Optional: call for an informal review first

    Property Appraiser: 941-748-8208. Walk them through your comparable sales. Many assessments are corrected here, before a petition is ever needed.

  2. Complete Florida form DR-486, field by field

    This is the statewide petition to the Value Adjustment Board. Petition type: real property value. Your evidence packet is the attachment.

  3. File on the county portal and pay the $50 filing fee

    manatee.fl.equitybridgepro.com. The VAB must receive it by Friday, September 11, not merely have it postmarked.

  4. Exchange evidence 15+ days before your hearing

    Upload your packet to the portal and request the appraiser’s evidence in return. This exchange is what puts your comps on the record.

Informational only. This is the public process; we never file for you. Verify every step and date against your county before you file.

FOUR TRAPS THAT COST FLORIDA APPEALS
TRAP · THE CLOCK DOES NOT PAUSE
An informal review does not extend your 25 days. File the petition anyway, then settle informally if you can.
TRAP · RECEIVED, NOT POSTMARKED
The VAB must physically have your petition by the deadline. A petition mailed on the last day, but received later, is late.
TRAP · PAY AT LEAST 75% ANYWAY
Florida law (§194.014) requires you to pay at least 75% of the assessed taxes before they become delinquent, or the VAB dismisses your petition.
TRAP · THE 15-DAY EVIDENCE EXCHANGE
Miss the window to exchange evidence before your hearing and your strongest comparable sales can be excluded.
FILING IN MANATEE COUNTY2026 DEADLINE ANNOUNCED

The Value Adjustment Board must receive petitions by by Friday, September 11 · 30 days.

File online through the county portal, or by paper form DR-486 with the clerk.

The filing fee is $50 in this county. County portal: manatee.fl.equitybridgepro.com (live now).

Verified against the county on Monday, July 20 · official source. Always confirm deadlines with your county.

Is your assessment actually too high?

Most are not, and many homesteads are protected by the Save Our Homes cap, where an appeal cannot lower the bill at all. The free check reads Manatee County's own records and qualified sales and tells you honestly, either way, in about 30 seconds.

Check my assessment →Free. No signup. Also see the Save Our Homes cap calculator.

See every county on the Florida appeal season guide, or start from the Appeal Season home page.