The Natick Select Board this past week voted to keep the town’s single tax rate, which means residential and business property owners pay the same rate. Technically, the Board voted on what’s called a residential factor, and the state’s Department of Revenue will have its say on Natick’s decision before new tax bills based on the new rate are issued.
The new tax rate is actually down 30 cents per $1,000 in assessed property value to $11.96. But with assessed values continuing to rise, the average and median annual tax bills will increase to the tune of $400 to $479, respectively (note that Natick offers assorted tax assistance and deferral programs).
Both the average ($878K) and median ($780K) single-family home values have risen more than 7% from fiscal year 2024, with overall assessed value at $12.2B, up about 6% from the previous fiscal year. The assessments are based on calendar year 2023 sales, though the town also takes into consideration what’s happening this calendar year.
Eric Henderson, Natick’s director of assessing, annually presents on the town’s tax rate classification before the Select Board (watch presentation and discussion starting about 11 minutes in to the Natick Pegasus recording).
The topic of single vs. split tax rates has been getting lots of attention regionally of late in light of Boston Mayor Michelle Wu’s plan to shift more of the property tax burden onto commercial property owners. But Natick isn’t Boston, and the town will stick with a single rate. A 2% decrease in the residential tax rate would necessitate a 10% boost to the commercial and industrial tax rate, and the Select Board wasn’t buying into that.
(See also: “Natick’s top 10 taxpayers”)
Among those speaking in support of the single tax rate was Paul Joseph, a former Select Board member now serving as interim executive director of the Natick Center Cultural District. Keeping the single tax rate demonstrates the town’s “business friendliness” to those outfits already operating in Natick and those that might fill spaces in the new mixed-use developments coming online soon.
More than 80% of Natick’s overall property and personal tax base comes from residential property, and that has inched up in recent years (though not due to lower commercial and industrial property values, Henderson pointed out). The town’s levy limit, or what it can tax, is based on the previous year’s limit, plus 2.5%, new growth (such as from new construction), and previously voted debt (such as for the newish fire station and Kennedy Middle School).
While housing values have been on a rapid rise for more than a decade, Henderson said we could be in for a change. “I do see that the market is leveling off, and I don’t see major revaluation changes next year,” he said.
The tax reclassification hearing comes ahead of the town possibly bringing a proposed override to voters in the spring that increase taxes even more. With the town facing what it refers to as a “structural deficit” based on expenses exceeding expected revenue as one-time revenue sources go away, an override may be needed in light of inflation and the provision of new services. The town last approved an operational override of $3.9M in 2008 for fiscal year 2009.
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Natick is becoming a very expensive place to live . With an override coming up in the spring and what I call bait and switch tax increase ( taxes go down but property values go up ) , we’re in for a large increase in paying actual monies to the town . I see no new services being provided and tons of buildings going up . Where is the revenue from those new buildings going ? We need to tighten up on the operational side of town management and fast !!
Natick is a badly mismanaged town. Between the mall, MathWorks and other large commercial entities we should be paying half of what we currently pay in taxes. The waste is astonishing. Time to cut the waste and focus the local government on its primary functions of providing emergency services, schools, roads and trash collection.