City officials were expected to endorse a plan to invest $7 million into tax relief at the City Council Monday night – a plan that would allow residential tax bills to decrease by about 3.5 percent on average despite double-digit value increases in those same properties.
Based on the estimated rates, single-, two- and three-family owner-occupied homes will all see average reductions of 3-4 percent on their tax bills. This despite the fact that assessments on one-, two- and three-unit properties increased between 10 percent and 11percent for FY 2020 – reflecting continued strength in the real estate market.
On Monday, Nov. 25, Mayor Carlo DeMaria and his finance team were expected to present recommendations regarding the tax rate, which included the use of available funding sources, the Minimum Residential Factor (MRF) and the Residential Exemption.
Everett, along with many nearby cities and towns, adopts a split tax rate, shifting the larger percentage to the city’s industrial and business sector, and thereby reducing the MRF, effectively easing the burden on residential taxpayers. This does not change the total tax levy for the community; however it simply determines the share of the levy to be borne by each class. In addition, state law allows cities and towns to offer a discount to owner occupied residential properties.
Based upon his recommendations, the estimated rate for FY 2020 would be $10.64 (per thousand) for residential and $24.72 (per thousand) for commercial, both decreases from last year. The tax bill is figured out by applying the above tax rates to the total value of the property, per thousand, to find the amount owed in tax.
The Mayor recommended utilizing $7 million in Free Cash to reduce the burden on taxpayers and shifting the Minimum Residential Factor by 1.75 percent, the maximum allowed by the law and the most beneficial to residential taxpayers.
In addition, Mayor DeMaria proposed a 25 percent residential exemption. The Mayor is an advocate of the exemption noting the need to keep residents invested in their homes, neighborhoods and city.
“The homeowner exemption is a great way for the city to keep good people in Everett,” said Mayor DeMaria. “With more owner-occupied property, we’ll have less absentee landlords and more hard working people proud to invest back into their community.”
The Mayor and his administration were able to achieve these great results through strong leadership, conservative budgetary management, responsible financial forecasting, and ensuring fiscal responsibility.