Politics & Government

Aldermen Approve New Tax Rate, Average $138 Increase

The average home tax bill will increase by $138 this coming year.

The Melrose Board of Alderman approved a $138 hike on the average Melrose home tax bill next year at Monday night's meeting when they effectively set the tax rate.

The aldermen set the tax rate by unanimously approving a "residential factor." Under state law, the aldermen have the option of using a split tax rate and taxing commercial, industrial and personal property at a higher rate than residential property—an option that city has usually taken—by selecting a residential factor.

This year, as generally the case in previous years, the aldermen can choose to tax commercial properties up to 50 percent more than residential properties.

Find out what's happening in Melrosewith free, real-time updates from Patch.

On Monday night, the aldermen approved a residential factor that results in a "shift" of 1.48, meaning that commercial properties would be taxed 48 percent more than residential properties, the same as this past year.

Through selecting the 1.48 shift, the residential tax rate will be $12.76 per $1,000 of value, an average increase of $137.99 and resulting in an average residential tax bill of $5,093,38.

Find out what's happening in Melrosewith free, real-time updates from Patch.

The commercial rate will be $19.48 per $1,000 of value, with an average increase of $262.58.

Having already heard a and during a meeting of the Appropriations Committee, which is comprised of the full board, the aldermen approved the tax rate Monday night without any further discussion.

Melrose Average Single Family Tax Bills, 1992-2011

This information is taken from the state Department of Revenue's Division of Local Services. The High-Low Rank in the last column is based on 339 cities and towns for 1992-1993; 340 cities and towns for 1994-2005; 338 in 2006; 339 in 2007; 336 in 2008; 337 2009 and 2010; and 338 in 2011.

Year Tax Rate Average Single Family Bill Increase Over Previous Year Bill High-to-Low Rank 1992 11.42 $2,087 N/A 81 1993 14.39 $2,530 $443 53 1994 14.79 $2,597 $67 58 1995 15.85 $2,704 $107 59 1996 16.42 $2,811 $107 58 1997 16.34 $2,924 $113 60 1998 16.51 $3,035 $111 58 1999 15.72 $3,103 $68 68 2000 14.03 $3,293 $190 63 2001 13.65 $3,401 $108 70 2002 13.01 $3,515 $114 78 2003 12.25 $3,618 $103 85 2004 11.52 $3,755 $137 95 2005 9.74 $3,926 $171 93 2006 9.63 $4,078 $152 97 2007 9.83 $4,259 $181 94 2008 10.43 $4,409 $150 97 2009 11.36 $4,601 $192 94 2010 12.07 $4,770 $169 93 2011 12.46 $4,955 $185 92 2012 12.76 $5,093 $138 N/A


Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here