Author: Bureau of Local Assessment
For communities to send out annual property tax bills, the local board of assessors must report annual valuation changes to the Bureau of Local Assessment (BLA) and meet statistics that conform to the Commissioner’s minimum assessment standards. An assessment is the value placed upon all real and personal property for the purpose of local property taxation. An analysis of market conditions along with the assessment level and uniformity must be performed annually as of January 1st.
Assessors shall consider the market, cost, and income approaches in the valuation of all vacant and improved parcels using the computer assisted mass appraisal system (CAMA) in place in the community. Once market sales have been identified and verified, the assessors should undertake a statistical analysis to determine both the level and uniformity of existing assessments and to identify the source(s) of any existing inequities. If there has been a change in market conditions which warrant property valuation adjustments, property values must be adjusted in a fair and equitable manner to reflect full and fair cash value as of January 1st.
The Board of Assessors in each community annually signs the statement in Gateway (our municipal finance software) to state that they have reviewed all property and locally maintain sufficient documentation for the values submitted each year.
Board of Assessors
We, the undersigned, have reviewed all classes of property and agree that the valuation adjustments result in fair and equitable assessments both within and between all classes of property. Sufficient documentation has been developed to support all valuation adjustments and will be retained for 5 years.
In Fiscal Year 2025, there are 73 communities that are currently in certification out of the 352 jurisdictions in Massachusetts. BLA’s certification process consists of a data quality review, a statistical ratio studies review, and a valuation review to ensure that proper appraisal methodology was utilized while uniformly and equitably applied to all property. BLA also requires a Revaluation Workplan for certification years to be completed and submitted prior to the start of the five-year revaluation. A carefully prepared workplan is a tool by which the assessors can define the specific tasks required, manage their staffing and financial resources, and monitor the progress of the program, thereby ensuring the timely and satisfactory implementation of the new valuations.
Assessors must annually adjust valuations to reflect changes in the tax base due to new construction, alterations, or demolitions. Years between five-year certification are called Interim and assessors should undertake in a valuation adjustment to reflect full and fair cash value in those years as well. For more information about assessment requirements for your community, please visit our website to view the Certification Standards (Informational Guideline Release 24-13). To view a complete of communities and their certification cycles, please see the following certification cycle schedule.
The submissions for FY 2025 assessments started on July 1st and should wrap up around the beginning of December in order for communities to send out timely FY 2025 tax bills. As of the end of November, we have over 310 of the 352 communities through the assessment process.
As of late November 2024, overall valuations have changed 5.6% statewide with single-family valuations changing at 5.6%. If you'd like to follow the assessment process for the state values, please see our BLA Data Visualizations website.
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Editor: Dan Bertrand
Editorial Board: Tracy Callahan, Sean Cronin, Janie Dretler, Emily Izzo, Christopher Ketchen, Paula King, Jen McAllister, Jessica Sizer and Tony Rassias
| Date published: | December 5, 2024 |
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