Rochester's assessment roll touches tens of thousands of properties — from the East End and Park Avenue to the South Wedge, Corn Hill, and the industrial corridors along the river. Many owners now carry assessments that don't reflect actual market conditions, income performance, or the specific condition of their property.
An assessment is an opinion, not a final number. Duffy & Catlin PLLC represents commercial, industrial, and residential owners across Rochester and Monroe County in challenging assessments that don't hold up — at no upfront cost.
When City of Rochester builds its assessment roll, properties are valued in bulk using broad market models. Those models lean on neighborhood-wide trends — not your building's condition, your block, your actual rent roll, or the most relevant comparable sales.
In a city shaped by its optics, imaging, and healthcare economy — and by decades of shifting commercial demand downtown and along the East Main and University corridors — a mass model can badly misjudge what a specific property is really worth. New York law gives you the right to challenge that value, but only within the strict annual window set by the city's charter.
Commercial and industrial properties are especially vulnerable to over-assessment in a mass revaluation. The income, cost, and sales-comparison approaches each require proper application — and a mass model doesn't always get Rochester right.
Downtown towers, East End and Park Avenue storefronts, NOTA mixed-use, and suburban retail are frequently assessed without proper regard for real vacancy, lease terms, or market income. We apply the correct methodology to challenge inflated values.
Warehouses and manufacturing space along the river and the legacy industrial parks — including the vast Eastman Business Park footprint — carry functional obsolescence and thin comparable sales that mass appraisals routinely miss.
Homes in Park Avenue, the South Wedge, Browncroft, the 19th Ward, and Rochester's deep stock of doubles all benefit from review. Even modest increases compound into real tax liability over an assessment cycle.
New York calculates an equalization rate for every municipality — the ratio of assessed value to full market value. When Rochester and Monroe County market prices rise faster than assessments are updated, that rate falls, and the State treats your property as worth more for purposes of county tax apportionment.
The result is a larger share of the Monroe County levy landing on your bill — with no change to the assessment roll and no formal notice. If your assessment was already excessive, the compounding effect is even greater. A timely challenge corrects both problems at once.
Request a Free Review →Send us your assessment notice. We evaluate whether your Rochester property has been over-assessed and advise you honestly on the strength of a challenge — at no cost and no obligation.
Rochester's assessor often allows a brief period to engage before the formal deadline. Early contact gives us the most time to build a complete, well-supported case.
We file your grievance with the Rochester Board of Assessment Review before its charter deadline. Rochester's date differs from the town Grievance Day — we track the correct one for your property.
We represent you at every hearing. Approved reductions appear on your school tax bill in late summer and your Monroe County bill issued the following January.
From the first case review to any formal hearing or court proceeding, we manage every step of your Rochester appeal — so you don't have to.
Call or submit the form. We review your Rochester assessment notice and tell you honestly whether the evidence supports a viable challenge — no cost, no obligation.
For commercial property we examine income data, local comparables, cost approaches, and property-specific conditions to build a documented, credible case for reduction.
We prepare and submit every document — informal review applications, City of Rochester BAR petitions, and supporting exhibits — correctly and before every deadline.
We manage all communication with the assessor's office and appear on your behalf at any BAR hearing, SCAR proceeding, or Article 7 court case. You stay informed without attending.
Don't see your municipality? We file across all of New York State. If you own property anywhere in the region — city or town, commercial or residential — contact us and we'll confirm the correct deadline and process for your location.
Tell us about your property. Whether you're in Rochester, the Monroe County suburbs, or anywhere in New York State, we'll review your assessment and advise you honestly at no cost.
No obligation. No upfront fees. We typically respond within one business day. Attorney advertising.
Duffy & Catlin PLLC
505 Ellicott Street, Suite 500
Buffalo, NY 14203