Real Estate & Personal Property Abatement Form
Abatement applications for tax bills must be submitted by February 1st in the Assessors office or US mail postmarked by February 1st.
Tax bills must be paid on time: filing an abatement does not stay the collection of your tax
An abatement is a reduction of the assessed value caused by an error. A taxpayer must apply for an abatement each year there is a dispute. The abatement application MUST be RECEIVED by the ASSESSORS office, not the Collectors office no later than the oficial office closing time on the day the tax bill is due. (This will be 2:30pm if the due date is a Monday, Wednesday or Thursday, or 8:00pm if is a Tuesday). It may be FAX'ed but the taxayer should follow up with a phone call to verify that the Assessors are in receipt of the fax. The only exception to this rule is that it may be MAILED to the ASSESSORS office and must bear a US Post Office date stamp on or before the due date of the tax bill. The Assessors are barred by Massachusetts statute from making any exceptions to this rule. These rules are printed on the back of the Abatement Application as well the Tax Bill.
Abatement applications cannot be accepted at any other time or for any previous years. For this reason, we strongly encourage all taxpayers to review their assessed value each year as soon as the the values are available.
The Actual values that care shown on your Fiscal Third Quarter (Q3) bill, eflect market sales from the prior Calendar year. Therefore assessment values are not current market values, they are 12 months old.
X: FY 2017 Values are the result of analyses performed on Calendar year 20015 sales.
Reasons for Abatement
- Overvaluation - The assessed value is greater than fair market value.
- Disproportionate Assessment - The assessed value of a class of property is assessed at a different percentage than the entire town or a single property is assessed differently than like properties. Disproportionate assessments are extremely rare since all assessments are based on computer models.
- Improper classification - Example: a residential building site is assessed as commercial.
- Exemption - The property meets the requirements to be exempt based on use.
Abatement Procedures
- Abatement applications must be received at the Assessors Office prior to close of business (see Town hall hours) on the day the first tax payment is due. Applications that are mailed must contain a US Post Office postmark on or before the due date. Massachusetts statutes prevent Assessors from granting an abatement unless the application is filed timely.
- Information Request - You should include all pertinent information on your abatement application, including the detailed reasons for your claim. The Board may ask for additional information from the taxpayer, or may ask to inspect the property. This information will allow the Board to determine the fair market value of the property. You must provide all the information requested and allow the inspection within thirty days. Failure to provide the information or allow the inspection will cause your application to be denied and will bar any appeal.
- Action by the Board of Assessors - The Assessors have 3 months to act on your application. If the Board fails to act, or chooses not to act, your application is deemed denied by law. The Assessors will send a notice after acting on your application. The notice will be either a denial notice or an abatement certificate. If an abatement is granted, your account is credited. Please refer to the abatement certificate for specific amounts and credits. If your abatement is denied, you will receive a denial notice.