St. Petersburg, Florida – It is that time of year when property owners in Florida find tax notices tucked into their mailboxes. What many don't know is, both the market and assessed values of their property are subject to appeal, although there is a window of 25 days from the date the tax notice is received.

Yesner & Boss, P.L. (www.YesnerBoss.com), a Tampa Bay law firm with extensive experience in bankruptcy, foreclosures and short sales, suggests Florida residents learn what their TRIM (Truth in Millage) notices mean and act if they feel their property has been overvalued by their county's tax assessor.

"With the precipitous declines in property values in Florida mistakes in re-evaluating individual properties can occur," said Shawn Yesner, a partner in Yesner & Boss. "It isn't malicious, and there are mechanisms for appeal if people act quickly."

The "market value" and the "assessed value" of a property often are not the same. The market value is the assessor's estimate of the cash value of the property. The assessed value, the number that determines taxes, is often lower because of exemptions and a Florida law that caps tax increases at three percent a year, or the Consumer Price Index, whichever is lower.

"If you know that nearby foreclosures and short sales of comparable properties have been significantly lower than the market value assigned to your property, you should consider an appeal," Yesner said. "Or, if owners of nearby comparable properties are being assessed lower taxes than you are, a red flag should go up."

The first step is to appeal to the assessor's office in the county where the property is located. If a decision from that office doesn't address your concerns, a further appeal is possible to the Value Adjustment Board.

There were nearly 157,000 foreclosure actions initiated in Florida in the third quarter of 2009, nearly 30,000 of them in Pinellas, Pasco and Hillsborough Counties, according to RealtyTrac, a national foreclosure tracking company.

"The shift in property values has been tremendous, making it more imperative than ever for property owners to take a closer look at their TRIM notices," Yesner said.