Mission Statement
Board of Assessors
David J. Baird, MAA – Chairman
Francis X. Boyce
Marc S. Iacobucci – Clerk
Under the provisions of Massachusetts General Laws, Chapters
fifty-eight to sixty-five C, the Board of Assessors fall under the
jurisdiction of the Commissioner of Revenue who may revise rules,
regulations, and guidelines, as deemed necessary to establish
minimum standards of assessment performance.
In Massachusetts, the property tax is an ad valorem (based on value)
tax. In the late 1970's, the Massachusetts Supreme Court in the
Sudbury Decision ruled that property values would be based upon 100%
full fair cash market value. Full and fair cash value is the amount
a willing buyer would pay a willing seller under no special
circumstances and given a reasonable exposure to the market.
Assessors must use accepted Massachusetts’ appraisal techniques to
value property.
In order to determine market value, a sales verification process is
started by members of the assessing staff. The Assessors must
determine if a sale is of an Arms Length Nature to determine if
there were special circumstances involved in the sale and to
determine the condition of the property on the date of sale.
Property measurements and current conditions of property are then
updated on all sales. A complete statistical analysis is performed
and must meet Department of Revenue standards to satisfy the
Commissioners Standards of Performance in order to meet annual and
triennial certifications before tax bills may be mailed.
The property tax levy is the revenue a community can raise through
real and personal property taxes. Under Proposition 2 ½, there are
limits on the amount of the levy raised by a city or town and on how
much the levy can be increased from year to year.
Assessors annually classify all real property into one of four real
property classes either residential, commercial, industrial, or
personal. The Town may then allocate the tax levy among the classes
of real property within prescribed statutory limits. The tax rate
applicable to commercial, industrial and personal property may be
higher than applied to residential properties. Approximately 100
communities in Massachusetts opt each year to shift the tax burden
from residential to commercial, industrial, and personal property
classes rather than to apply the same rate to all classes of
property.