What are property taxes?
Property taxes are known as an “ad valorem” tax which means they are based on the value of a property rather than the ability of the property owner to pay. Property taxes are collected to pay the town’s expenses. Money raised from property taxes is referred to as the Tax Levy.
When and how is property valued?
Assessments, by law, must be at market value or, “full and fair cash value” as of January 1 of each year. Every five years the Department of Revenue – Bureau of Local Assessment (DOR-BLA) certifies that assessments are at market value by reviewing arms-length sales data within the town. After assessed values are approved by the DOR-BLA the “burden of proof” lies with the taxpayer to prove an assessment is excessive. DOR – BLA overview is designed to ensure that values are equitable and uniform. The level of assessment is measured by how closely they approximate market value. That is, are assessments close to what the property would sell for in an “arms-length” transaction?
Assessment uniformity refers to the way in which all properties are valued using similar criteria and similar methodology. Questions of overvaluation and/or disagreements with an assessment are managed through the abatement application process.
Who are the Assessors?
The Williamstown Board of Assessors consists of three individuals appointed by the Town Manager. The Principal Assessor performs the day-to-day functions and duties required to operate the office. The remaining two members are both certified by the DOR-BLA to classify property and assist the principal assessor as needed, but function primarily as “review“ members. They’re responsible for deliberating and voting on real and personal property abatements and motor vehicle excise tax abatements. They also deliberate on the merits of statutory exemption applications for Veterans, Elderly, Blind and Hardship cases. Board members are also responsible for verifying and signing a multitude of documents submitted to the DOR-BLA in support of the Town’s annual valuation and tax rate approval.
When and where does the board meet?
The Board of Assessors meet periodically throughout the year on an as needed basis. Meetings are held in the Assessor’s office located on the second floor of Town Hall. Meeting agendas are posted on the Town’s website and in other locations approved by the Secretary of State. All meetings are open to the public with those in attendance given the opportunity to address the Board during Citizens Speak time. However, when the Board enters Executive Session for the purpose of deliberating on abatement and exemption applications, the public is dismissed from the meeting.
What are the Assessors’ responsibilities?
Assessors are the chief tax officials in the community. They administer tax policies and procedures established at the State level by Legislators and by extension, the DOR-BLA. They also administer local tax policy established by the Select Board. Assessors are primarily responsible for discovering, listing and valuing all real and personal property in the community including those properties deemed tax exempt. The Assessors track changes in ownership, maintain and update the Computer Aided Mass Appraisal (CAMA) database and provide statical analysis to the DOR-BLA for their review. Additionally, the Assessors maintain and administer motor vehicle excise taxes.
What is Market value?
Market value is the major focus of most real property appraisals. Usually included in the definition is the price that a motivated buyer will pay a motivated seller, as of a specified date, allowing for a reasonable exposure time in the market. However, the sale price of a property is not necessarily its market value. Also, sales of several comparable homes may be a better indicator of market value than the price paid for a specific, neighboring property. Distress sales (due to personal circumstances) or excessively overpriced homes with extended marketing time may also be suspect as market sales.
Key Dates and Values
The fiscal year in Massachusetts begins July 1st and ends on June 30th of the following year. For example, fiscal year 2026 began July 1, 2025, and ends June 30, 2026. The effective date of assessment for real and personal property in Massachusetts is January 1 in the calendar year preceding the fiscal year. For fiscal 2026, January 1, 2025, is the date of assessment. For valuation analysis purposes, the DOR – BLA requires assessors to analyze a full calendar year of arm’s length sales to help in determining values. Therefore, to establish fiscal year 2026 assessed values, calendar year 2024 arm’s length sales were reviewed. Real and personal property bills are issued on a fiscal year basis while motor vehicle excise bills are issued on the normal calendar year. Because Williamstown is a quarterly billing community, real and personal property tax bills for the current fiscal year are generated and mailed on or before October 1st with a due date of thirty days later. The second half fiscal year bills are mailed on or before April 1st and due thirty days later.
How is the property tax rate calculated?
In Massachusetts, the tax rate is expressed in dollars per thousand of assessed value. An example using fiscal 2026 figures and the calculation is as follows:
Tax Levy of $21,883,996 ÷ Taxable Assessed Value of $1,541,126,509 x 1000 = Tax Rate of $14.20 per $1,000 of assessed value.
The tax levy is approved by voters at the annual Town Meeting while the taxable assessed value is established by the Assessors and approved by the DOR-BLA subsequent to Town Meeting. The distribution of the tax levy is determined by the Select Board at the annual Classification Hearing when a vote is held to determine whether to maintain a single tax rate, impose a split tax rate (two separate rates; one lower rate for Residential property and a higher rate for Commercial, Industrial, Personal property owners (CIP) and Chapter Land enrollees or, implement a residential or small commercial exemption. Voting to split the tax rate shifts the levy burden away from the residential sector and onto the “CIP” owners. Voting for a single tax rate ensures the proportionate sharing of the tax levy by all property owners with no preferential treatment afforded a specific use class.
What is Proposition 2½?
Proposition 2½ is the result of a 1980 Massachusetts voter ballot initiative petition that proposed a law limiting a municipality’s ability to raise its tax levy by an amount greater than 2½ percent over the prior year tax levy plus new growth, debt exclusions, and overrides. It should be noted, Proposition 2½ does not restrict a tax bill from annually increasing by more than 2½ %.
Additionally, the total tax levy cannot exceed 2½ % of the total value of all taxable real and personal property thus, the tax rate cannot exceed $25.00 per thousand dollars of assessed value.
What do I need to know about motor vehicle excise?
According to the Department of Revenue, the motor vehicle excise is imposed for the privilege of registering a motor vehicle. It is an assessment in lieu of a personal property tax. However, unlike real and personal property, which is billed on the fiscal year calendar, motor vehicle excise tax is billed on the calendar year. Motor Vehicle Excise tax is one of the few sources of revenue that remains at the local level; it is not sent to the state for redistribution.
The Registry of Motor Vehicles (RMV) determines vehicle values and ownership. The RMV generates electronic bill files that are sent to communities on an “every other month” basis. Upon receiving the bill file the town converts it to paper invoices and mails them out. The vehicle owner is then responsible for remitting payment within 30 days of the bill date.
The amount of the excise due on a vehicle or trailer in a given registration year is calculated by multiplying the “value” of the vehicle by the motor vehicle excise tax rate of $25.00 per $1,000 in value. (The $25.00 rate is the same in all 352 towns and cities in Massachusetts. It does not change like the property tax rate.). The value of a vehicle for the purpose of determining excise is a percentage of the manufacturer’s suggested retail price (MSRP) for that vehicle based on the year of manufacture. That value is reduced annually and over a five-year depreciation schedule.
If a vehicle is disposed of either by a private sale, trade or gifting, or you register your vehicle in another state, an abatement on a portion of the excise tax may be due. A copy of the bill of sale or trade-in transaction documents together with a registration cancellation receipt from the RMV will be required as supporting documentation. Without evidence of the vehicle being disposed of, an abatement cannot be approved. For those who lease vehicles, abatements are applied for and granted to the leasing company. They, in turn, should refund the lessee once they receive a refund.