Property taxes,
town by town.

The rate is not the bill

Notice the inversion: Marblehead has one of the lowest rates on this table ($8.56) and one of the higher average bills, while Chelsea's rate is higher but its average single-family bill is the lowest on the list. That's because your bill is rate × assessed value — low-rate towns are usually low-rate because their home values are high. When you're comparing towns, compare the average bill and what the housing actually costs, not the rate alone.

Relief programs worth knowing

Massachusetts towns can adopt property-tax relief that surprisingly few owners use. Clause 41C gives qualifying homeowners 65+ a direct exemption off the bill; Clause 41A lets qualifying seniors defer up to 100% of their taxes at modest interest until the home is sold — powerful for staying put on a fixed income. And the state's Circuit Breaker credit refunds part of the property tax burden for eligible taxpayers 65+ through the income tax return. Income limits, amounts, and adoption vary town by town — your town assessor's office is the authority, and we're glad to point you to the right person.

The CPA surcharge column above is the Community Preservation Act — an add-on some towns adopted to fund open space, historic preservation, and housing. It applies after town-adopted exemptions (often the first $100,000 of value, plus low-income exemptions), which is why we show it as "up to."

Selling instead of buying? The state's deed excise tax — $4.56 per $1,000 of sale price in every North Shore county — is the line item most sellers forget. It's built into our Massachusetts seller net sheet.

Informational only, not tax advice. Rates: Massachusetts Division of Local Services, Municipal Databank, FY2026, retrieved 2026-07-31. Bills shown exclude CPA surcharges, exemptions, abatements, and betterments; confirm current figures with the town assessor before relying on them.