HomeMy Public PortalAboutFISCAL YEAR 2016 PUBLIC DISCLOSURETOWN OF WATERTOWN
FISCAL YEAR 2016 REVALUATION
PUBLIC DISCLOSURE
Monday, November 16, 2015 through Friday, November 20, 2015
The Town of Watertown is required by the State to revalue all of its properties in
Fiscal Year 2016 and to have the new values Certified by the State's Department of
Revenue, Division of Local Assessment. The result of this State mandated revaluation
that has been conducted over the past several months by the Board of Assessors is the
new value of your property. This new value pending the Department of Revenues
approval represents market value as of January 1, 2015.
The new values were determined by an extensive study of calendar year 2014
sales, and by an on -going inspection process conducted by the staff of the Board of
Assessors.
Should taxpayers wish to compare their values with the values of other properties,
they will have access to valuation books at the Assessors' Office in the Administration
Building. Valuations will also be displayed on the Town web page (www.watertown-
ma.gov), simply open Departments, Assessor and link Revaluation Fiscal Year 2016. The
Public Disclosure period lasts five working days from the date of this notice. After
researching and comparing values, a taxpayer may dispute their value with Town's
Assessor Frank Golden. Should a hearing not resolve a taxpayer's issue with value, then
the Abatement process on receipt of the first actual bill due February 1, 2016 is the legal
alternative. Abatement forms are available at the Assessors Office.
The Board of Assessors asks all taxpayers to respect the public disclosure process
and be considerate of others in viewing these publically displayed values.
The Watertown Board of Assessors would like our property owners to be aware
of the percentage increases in value by property type. The residential and commercial
markets in calendar year 2014 and into the first half of 2015 have been equally strong in
Watertown and the immediate Greater Boston area.
There has been an increase residentially in all uses. Single family and
condominium values increased on an average of 6.5%. The multifamily uses have shown
the greatest amount of appreciation with two families appreciating 18%, three families
22%, four to seven units 14%, and eight and greater units 60%...Please note the average
increase of eight and greater units is skewed by the recent development and sales of
several large big box apartment buildings on Pleasant Street, Summer Street, Repton
Circle, and Woodview Way. This large increase in big box apartment value has caused
the residential rate to diminish from a $15.03 in Fiscal Year 2015 to a proposed $13.67 in
Fiscal year 2016. If the proposed residential rate with a 20% Residential Exemption is
approved, nearly 70% of the Town's single family and 94% of our condominium's that
are owner occupied will experience a tax reduction in Fiscal Year 2016.
Commercially, Watertown is experiencing an average increase of 4.6%, up .20
percent from a year ago. Please note Watertown's median value for commercial property
is 690,000, which is considerably lower than our average assessment of 1,726,233. The
proposed Commercial — Industrial — Personal Property, (CIP), Rate at a 1.75 Shift is
$25.39 for Fiscal year 2016, this is $2.48 less than Fiscal Year 2015's (CIP) Rate of
$27.87. The purchase of several Industrial sites and commercial properties over the last
eighteen months has increased our C&I land values and improved our overall commercial
appeal specifically in the Arsenal corridor.
The proposed Residential and CIP tax rates are subject to change, because all
values are pending the Department of Revenue (Bureau of Local Assessment) approval.
The Public Disclosure Period, starts on Monday November 16, and runs through Friday
November 20. All property owners are encouraged to review their respective values on
the Town Web site or physically at the Assessor's Office.