Real Estate and Personal Property Tax Abatement
About Abatements
- Abatements are issued on value merits only
- Your belief your taxes are too high is not a value merit
- Taxes are a factor of the Town's budget and are separate and distinct from the valuations that are applied to each parcel
It is Important to Pay the Assessed Taxes
- Filing an Application for Abatement does not stay the collection of taxes
- To avoid any loss of rights or additional charges, you should pay the tax as assessed
- If an abatement is granted and you have already paid the full tax, a refund will be issued to you
Determine Your Reason for Abatement
- Data error: There was a data collection or data entry error on the property record card
- Overvaluation: Your property is overvalued or has a disproportionate assessment
If Reason is Overvaluation
Find at Least 3 Comparable Sales
- Should have occurred in the prior 2 years
- Must be classified as Arms Length (a sale without duress on either party)
- Must be on like or similar styles, square feet, land area, use and neighborhoods
Determine Your Opinion of Value
Market value can be estimated by three approaches:
- Sales comparison
- Cost
- income
Sales Comparison Approach
Relies on sales of similar properties and relates best to the valuation of residential homes and single occupant commercial properties.
Income Approach
Relies on the conversion of market rent to an indication of value. It relates best to valuing multi-tenanted commercial and residential buildings.
Cost Approach
Relies on the anticipated cost to build new, less depreciation from all sources: physical, functional and economic obsolescence. It relates best to parcels with improvements that are new or nearly new, or to special-purpose properties such as utilities.
Complete the Application for Abatement fully
- Most of the information that is required can be found on the Actual Tax Bill (2nd half)
- You must include a day time telephone number so that we can schedule an internal inspection and full measure of the property
- If you are filing due to a Data Collection or Data Entry Error on your property record card, clearly state the data error and we will contact you to schedule a visit
- State your opinion of value from above
- State the method you used to arrive at that value from above
- Attach any documents that you feel would help to support your proposed value
Incomplete Applications
Incomplete Applications may either be:
- Returned for additional information
- Denied by the Assessors for failure to provide the information necessary for the Board of Assessors
Questions?
If you require any additional information, please feel free to contact this office.