Assessing

Local property taxes are a cornerstone of municipal finance in Massachusetts, funding essential public services like schools, police, fire, infrastructure, and general government. The assessor’s department prepares the annual property tax assessment roll and plays a vital role in ensuring that the system is fair, equitable, and transparent for all taxpayers.

To do so, the department creates and maintains an extensive database for each property in the community and reviews it annually for changes.

Each year, assessors must identify all taxable real and personal property, including ownership, fair market value, and usage classification as of January 1.

Included in the annual tax assessment are any municipal fees, charges, and assessments which are liens on the property.

Motor vehicles, farms, and boat excise taxes are assessed annually and administered by the assessor’s department.

The office is overseen by an appointed board and is responsible for approving valuations, reviewing abatement applications, processing property tax exemptions, managing the overlay account, and providing new growth estimates during the budget process.

Acting as revenue experts within the municipal finance team, the department collaborates with other local officials to determine annual property tax rates and participates in local tax policy decisions.

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