1. WHAT DOES THE ASSESSOR DO?

2. WHAT THE ASSESSOR DOES NOT DO.

The Assessor does not raise or lower taxes. The Assessor does not make the laws which affect property owners. The Massachusetts Constitution requires that direct taxes on persons and property be proportionately and reasonably imposed. In addition, the Declaration of Rights, Part I, Article 10, requires each individual to bear his fair share of the public expenses.

The Board of Assessors is required to annually assess taxes in an amount sufficient to cover the state and local appropriations chargeable to the Town. These taxes assessed will include state taxes which have been duly certified to the Board, and Town taxes voted by the Town (including Proposition 2 1/2).

The Assessors Office has nothing to do with the total amount of taxes collected. The Assessor’s primary responsibility is to find the "full and fair cash value" of your property, so that you may pay only your fair share of the taxes. The tax rate is determined by all the taxing agencies within the Town, and is the basis for the budget needed or demanded by the voters to provide for services, such as schools, roads, law enforcement, etc. Tax rates are simply those rates which will provide funds to pay for those services.

3. WHAT IS PROPOSITION 2 1/2?

Proposition 2 ½ places constraints on the amount of the levy raised by the Town and on how much the levy can be increased from year to year by the Town. It provides the Town with annual increases in their levy limits of: 1) 2.5 percent, and 2) an additional amount based on the valuation of certain new construction and other allowable growth in the tax base that is not the result of property revaluation ("new growth"). In no event may the levy limit exceed the levy ceiling of2.5 percent of full and fair cash value.

Wit Proposition 2 ½, an average 2.5 percent tax increase can be expected each year.

4. HOW IS YOUR ASSESSMENT DETERMINED?

To arrive at "full and fair cash value" for your property, the assessors must know what "willing sellers" and "willing buyers" are doing in the marketplace. The Assessor also must collect, record and analyze a great deal of information about property and market characteristics in order to estimate the fair market value, including keeping current on cost of construction in the area and any changes in zoning, financing and economic conditions which may affect property values. The Assessor uses the three nationally recognized appraisal approaches to value: cost, income and market. This data is then correlated into a final value.

The object of the valuation program is to estimate "full and fair cash value" as of January 1 (known as the "assessment date") prior to the fiscal year. For example, the assessment date for Fiscal Year 1999 is January 1, 1998.

5. HOW CAN MY TAXES INCREASE?

When additional taxes are voted by the people, an individual’s property tax bill will increase. Also, when market value increases, naturally, so does the assessed value. If you were to make improvements to your existing property, for instance: add a garage, add an additional room, the "full and fail cash value" and, therefore, the assessed value would also increase. The Assessor has not created the value. People make the value by their transactions in the marketplace. The Assessor simply has the legal and moral responsibility to study those transactions and appraise your property accordingly.

6. WHAT IF I DISAGREE WITH THE ASSESSMENT VALUE OF MY PROPERTY?

If your opinion of the value of your property differs from the assessment value, by all means go to the office and discuss the matter. The staff will be glad to answer your questions about the reassessment procedures. When questioning the assessment value, ask yourself three questions:

Is my data correct?

Is my value in line with others on the street?

Is my value in line with recent sale prices in my neighborhood?

Keep in mind what’s important: recent sale prices, condition, neighborhood, building area and lot area are the most critical factors in the valuation process. There is a variety of information available to help you determine whether your assessment is fair and equitable. The staff will be happy to assist you, and no appointment is necessary.

If after discussing the matter with the staff, and researching the assessments of comparable properties within your area, a difference of opinion still exists, you may appeal your assessment to the Board of Assessors by filing an abatement application.

 

THE APPEAL WINDOW IS ONLY 30 DAYS. If an actual tax bill is sent to taxpayers, then the abatement procedure takes place in the Fall and the application is due 30 days after the Fall postmark date. If an estimated bill is sent to taxpayers, then the abatement procedure takes place in the Spring and the application is due 30 days after the Spring bill postmark date.

You are appealing you assessment, not your taxes.

You must pay your taxes pending your appeal.

Wish to appeal? The application is easy, but…Make a case…Give reasons. We do respond to your specific concerns and comparisons.

Have you refinanced or purchased the property within the last year? It may help quicken the abatement process to submit a copy of the appraisal report, usually done through the bank or mortgage company.

Once the application is time-stamped by the Assessor’s Office, it cannot be added to or changed or withdrawn – it is accepted as is, once it is stamped with the date, time and "Received by the Board of Assessors".

Please contact the Assessors Office as soon as you receive your bill; applications are not available until after the tax bills are mailed.

Abatement Denied

You will receive a notice indicating your application was denied.

You may appeal to the State Appellate Tax Board (ATB) within 90 days of the Assessor’s decision.

Abatement Approved

You will receive a letter indicating the amount of the abatement.

How much was your assessment reduced? Divide the tax abatement by the

tax rate.

Example:

Original Value: 300,000.00 ( 4,224.00 - .01408)

Abatement Allowed: 20,000.00 ( 281.60 - .01408)

Adjusted Value: 280,000.00 ( 3,942.20 - .01408)

Original Tax: 4,224.00 (300,000.00 x .01408)

(.01408 equals $14.08 per $1,000.00 value)

Your abatement will normally be credited toward your Spring tax bill.

If your abatement is granted after your Spring bill is paid, you will

Automatically receive a refund check.

ATTENTION: NEW HOMEOWNERS!

Keep in mind the assessment date (January 1) as it affects your ownership statue: The property is legally "assessed" to the previous owner, but make sure you get a bill!

7. WHAT TYPES OF EXEMPTIONS (REDUCTION FROM REAL ESTATE TAXES) DOES THE TOWN OF LEICESTER OFFER?:

A variety of exemptions is available to reduce property tax obligations for certain qualifying taxpayers: elderly persons, blind persons, disabled veteran, surviving spouse of orphaned minor child, and extreme hardship.

The qualifying date is July 1, the first day of the fiscal year. If an actual tax bill is sent to taxpayers, applications are due within 90 days of the Fall bill postmark date. If an estimated bill is sent, then applications are due within 90 days of the Spring bill postmark.

Because of the number and complexity of exemptions, the following table is intended only to give you a general idea of what is available. If you have the slightest suspicion you may be eligible or have any questions, call the Assessor’s Office to discuss details! Note that certain income limits include deductions (Clause 41C) and asset limits do not include the value of owner occupied condominiums, and 1, 2, 3 family houses (all, excluding Clause 18). Certain exemption applications will require a copy of the tax forms filed in the last calendar year, or a statement indicating that the applicant(s) does not file tax forms. The number of owners of the property also falls into the review of qualification, which may mean non-eligibility of the exemption, a pro-rated exemption, or a full exemption.

Also, in certain conditions, if two or more persons, whether or not related or married, own a single parcel and each qualifies for a different exemption, each would be entitled to receive the exemption for which he or she qualifies.

An additional qualification for most exemptions is the ownership and occupancy of the property.

In most cases, the applicant must have owned and occupied real estate property in

Massachusetts for five years (and owned and occupied the present property on July 1 in the year of application), and Massachusetts must have been the applicant’s place of domicile for the preceding ten years.

Basic Max. Max.

Clause Qualifications

Elderly:

17D Age 70 or older Exempt amount $175.00 Income none. Assets $40.000
41C Age 70 or older Exempt amount $500.00

Income $16,571.00 less social security allowance $13,000.00 Single
Income $20,357.00 less social security allowance $15,000.00 Married

Total Assets $28,000.00 Single
Total Assets $30,000.00 Married

Veterans:

No income requirement. Must be honorably discharged with a 10% disability or more.
Proof of disability is letter received from Veterans Administration in July.
Discharge papers are also need when applying first time.

Exemption amounts are determined at time of application.

Blind:

Legally blind requires certification from your Doctor and the Commission of the Blind.

Widow:

17D: Widow Surviving Spouse. Exempt amount $175.00 Income none. Assets $40.000.00

 

ATTENTION: OWNERS OF PROPERTY IN TRUST!!

Trust ownership arrangements may affect qualification for a statutory exemption. As a general rule, an applicant must be a trustee and a beneficiary and submit:

1. A copy of a recorded trust instrument, including amendments;
2. A copy of the schedule of beneficiaries.

Consult your attorney if these requirements affect you!

MOTOR VEHICLE AND TRAILER EXCISE

THE EXCISE

The excise is imposed on the privilege of registering a motor vehicle and is not a property tax. It therefore applies to anyone who registers a motor vehicle in Massachusetts.

Each vehicle is taxed from the first day of the month in which it is registered for the balance of the year.

THE VALUE

The value of a motor vehicle for excise purposes is determined by the Commissioner of Revenue at varying percentages of the manufacturer’s list price in the year of manufacture as follows:

In the year preceding the designated year of manufacture 50%

In the year of manufacture 90%

In the second year 60%

In the third year 40%

In the fourth year 25%

In the fifth and succeeding years 10%

Condition and market value are not considerations in determining the value, nor is age after the fifth year.

The rate is $25.00 per thousand

ASSESSMENT

An excise is assessed on a motor vehicle or trailer by the assessors of the municipality in which the vehicle is customarily garaged. The excise is based on information furnished on the application for registration. Any correction of name, model, registration number, make or year of manufacture must be recorded with the Registry of Motor Vehicles.

ABATEMENTS

Filing for an excise abatement does not stay the tax.  The excise tax is still payable on the due date. 
Payment after the due date will include interest and additional cost. 

In order to process your motor vehicle excise application, the following information is needed. 

Please see below. 

_____ A signed application for abatement. 

_____  A copy of the cancelled plate receipt. What was done with the vehicle?
Was the vehicle sold, traded or junked. 

_____  A copy of the new registration, if the plate was transferred to a new vehicle.
            And what was done with vehicle.

_____  A copy of the proof of registration in another state and the proof of cancellation
of registration in Massachusetts. 

_____   If the vehicle was stolen, local police authorities must be notified within 48 hrs of theft.
The surrendering of the registration to the Registrar, not sooner than 30 days
subsequent to the date of the theft and obtaining a certificate setting forth the facts.
A copy of material is needed. 

           _____ Incorrect place of garaging requires a copy of the registration for the year the bill in questions. 

     
 Abatement applications will now be timely, if filed within three years after the excise was due,
or one year after the excise was paid, which ever is later. 

      No excise may be reduced to less than $5.00.
No abatement of less than $5.00 will be made. 

     If you were a resident of Leicester on the 1^st of the excise year
(ex. January 1, 2005) and moved during that year, within Massachusetts, you owe excise to the town of Leicester. We do not prorate excise between towns. 

     You are not entitled to abatement if you keep ownership of your vehicle.
Information is also on the back of you excise bill.