Across Milwaukee, property assessments are landing in mailboxes with news that values have continued to rise.
“We do study the real estate market, and we look at every sale of property that happens in the city, and we’ve seen the prices just continue to rise,” City Assessor Nicole Larsen said. “And our values are a reflection of what is happening in the real estate market.”
Citywide, residential property values increased by about 14.4% between the 2024 and 2025 assessments, according to the Assessor’s Office. Commercial properties increased in value by about 17% across the city.
However, valuations changed by different amounts across the 15 aldermanic districts.
Here’s what to know:
What are property assessments?
Property assessments are conducted by the city Assessor’s Office to establish a property’s value. This value is then used to determine the annual property tax bill, something that does not happen until the budget for the city — and other taxing units, such as the county and Milwaukee Public Schools — is set in the fall.
Which Milwaukee aldermanic district had the largest increase, percentage-wise, in its assessed value?
At 24%, the 15th aldermanic district in the central city had the largest increase in value, percentage-wise.
The average assessment in the district rose $21,041, from $87,642 last year to $108,683 this year.
Which Milwaukee aldermanic district had the smallest increase, percentage-wise, in its assessed value?
Milwaukee’s District 3 on the east side had the smallest increase percentage-wise, at 7.98%.
The average assessment in the district rose $28,526, from $357,478 last year to $386,004 this year.
(The largest increase in pure dollars between average assessments came in District 4, which encompasses downtown and the near west side. That average assessment increased by $39,390, from $380,584 in 2024 to $419,974 in 2025.)
The downtown Milwaukee skyline and Milwaukee condo condominiums and apartments housing on the Milwaukee River in Milwaukee, May 20, 2021. 24. About 85% of the original downtown and Third Ward segment of the RiverWalk is completed.
Why do the changes in assessed values differ across Milwaukee’s aldermanic districts?
Larsen said the range in the percent increase from 7.98% in District 3 on the low end to 24% in District 15 on the high end is a product of the different property values across those districts.
So while the average assessment in pure dollars in District 3 rose more than in District 15, because the property values tend to be higher in District 3 the percent increase is smaller.
She also noted the impact of the market.
“When you have that typical buyer, typical seller, those are the market forces that affect how we establish those values, or where the values are that we establish,” she said.
This was a ‘revaluation year’ for Milwaukee. What does that mean?
A “revaluation year” is when the city takes a fresh look at all 151,000 taxable properties in Milwaukee, Larsen said.
With 23 appraisers, it is impossible to visit each property to conduct an appraisal. The office uses a computer-aided mass appraisal system to look at actual sales in the market and build models off those sales to help establish values, she said.
In 2021 and 2023, the Assessor’s Office had what it calls “maintenance years,” meaning it carried the values forward from the prior respective years.
However, she said, the office doesn’t like to do that because it allows assessed values to get farther from the market values of properties.
How can you appeal your assessment?
To appeal assessments, property owners can reach out to the Assessor’s Office on its website or via phone (414-286-6565), email (assessor@milwaukee.gov) or in person until 4:45 p.m. on May 19, the statutory deadline to file objections.
How do assessments affect Milwaukee property taxes?
A home’s annual property tax bill is determined by multiplying the property assessment by the local tax rate.
The local tax rate is determined by dividing the total tax levy by total taxable property value in an area.
The city tax levy is the amount that will be set by the Common Council and Mayor Cavalier Johnson during the budget process this fall.
Once the levy is set, payments are spread across the overall value of taxable property in the city. Thus, how individual property owners fare depends less on their assessment and more on whether an increase was above or below the average change in assessments citywide.
Alison Dirr can be reached at adirr@jrn.com.
This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: What to know about 2025 Milwaukee property assessments
