Property Taxes Each year the City of Newton determines fair market value of properties as of the prior January 1. The Massachusetts Department of Revenue requires that assessments meet strict statistical tests to ensure that they accurately reflect the market and are applied consistently. Property taxes 1 is defined as “an assessment of ownership of real and personal property. An owner’s property tax is based on the assessment, which is the full and fair cash value of the property” by the Massachusetts Department of Revenue, Division of Local Services. In 1980, Proposition 2½ 2 was passed by the voters of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts which restricts how much a city/town can raise property taxes. The law requires that the annual increase of the tax levy for the City of Newton must not exceed 2.5% of the prior year’s tax levy, in addition to the total amount attributable to taxes raised from new real property growth and redevelopment. FY2025 property tax revenue is estimated to total $436.2 million, an increase of $17.1 million or 4.1%. This includes a 2.5% increase allowed by Proposition 2 ½ ($10.5 million), increased taxes from “new growth and redevelopment” ($5.3 million), and increased taxes to support newly issued bonds on projects approved by the Mayor and City Council.
The table below shows the City of Newton Property Valuations and tax rate 3
City of Newton: Property Valuations & Tax Rates
Category
FY19
FY20
FY21
FY22
FY23
FY24
FY25
Population
88,000 88,863 88,100 87,900 88,415 87,453
88978
Residential value
$27.4B $28.6B $28.9B $31.1B $33.7B
$37.1B
$38.6B
Commercial value
$2.4B $2.50B $2.54B $2.59B $2.65B
$2.59B
$2.56B
Industrial value
$202M $203M $212M $200M $215 M
$231M
$231M
Personal value
$459M $472M $483M $484M $505M
$581M
$608M
Total Valuation
$30 B $32B
$32B
$34B
$37B
$40B
$42B
Res. Tax Rate/$1000 Val $10.45 $10.44 $10.76 $10.52 $10.18 $9.76
$9.80
Com Tax Rate/$1000 Val $19.94 $19.92 $20.12 $19.95 $19.07 $18.33
$18.34
1 MA Municipal Property Taxes
2 Proposition 2 ½ & Tax Rate Process
3 City of Newton Property Tax Classification FY19-25
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