What is the difference between BPAAR and the Board of Viewers in Allegheny County?
What is the difference between BPAAR and the Board of Viewers in Allegheny County?
In Allegheny County, BPAAR is the first-level Board of Property Assessment Appeals and Review that hears your initial appeal; if you disagree, you have 30 days to appeal to the Board of Viewers, which rehears the case de novo before any further appeal goes to the Court of Common Pleas.
Allegheny County uses a distinctive two-board structure before court, so knowing which body you're in front of matters.
Level 1 — BPAAR (Board of Property Assessment Appeals and Review). This is where every Allegheny appeal starts. You file your annual appeal with BPAAR during the county's filing window (July 1–September 2, 2025 for the 2026 tax year), present your market-value evidence, and BPAAR issues a decision. BPAAR sets the assessment by applying the Common Level Ratio (50.14% for 2026) to your property's market value, as required by 53 Pa.C.S. §8842(b). File through Allegheny County.
Level 2 — Board of Viewers (BOV). If BPAAR's decision doesn't satisfy you (or any taxing body), you have 30 days from the mailing date to appeal to the Board of Viewers by filing with the Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas, which assigns the case to the BOV. The Board of Viewers is a quasi-judicial body within the Fifth Judicial District that conciliates and hears residential and commercial assessment appeals from BPAAR. Critically, the BOV hears the case de novo — it starts over, taking fresh evidence and expert testimony to determine the correct base-year fair market value. Nothing from the BPAAR hearing binds it.
Level 3 — Court of Common Pleas. Board of Viewers decisions may be appealed to a judge of the Court of Common Pleas, and from there up the appellate chain.
Practical takeaway: because the Board of Viewers reviews everything fresh, a weak BPAAR showing isn't fatal — but the 30-day deadline to escalate is strict. If your BPAAR result is wrong, calendar the escalation date the day the decision arrives.