But wait! That doesn’t mean similar tax bill increases

New property assessments are landing in residents’ mailboxes this week and the increases are big – the average increase for residential property owners is up 45 percent from 2020. That looks scary but the new assessments tell only half the story.

The other part of the equation is whatever the new tax rate turns out to be and we won’t know that until May, when Town Manager Andy Nota presents his proposed 2024-25 budget. 

In fact, the town is telling residents NOT to multiply their new assessment by the current tax rate ($21.85 per $1,000 assessed value), worrying about sticker shock.

“With such strong value increases … we can anticipate a significant reduction in the tax rate, into the teens, but cannot provide any added guidance or specificity until much later in the budget process,” Nota said via email Tuesday. 

The reason the tax rate will drop is because by state law the town is prohibited from exceeding a 4 percent increase over the tax levy from the prior year. If property taxes were to increase by 45 percent, East Greenwich would violate that 4 percent cap by a whopping margin – and be in violation of state law.

The Town Council will decide what that percent increase will be – in past years the increase has been lower than 4 percent. 

But there will be some property owners who end up with a much larger increase than others, depending on their neighborhood. Neighborhood property values go up and down, so if your neighborhood is on the upswing (so to speak), you can anticipate that your property tax bill will be higher than your friend who lives in a neighborhood that is not as “hot.”

While property owners are going to need to wait until June to get the actual rate – the Town Council must approve next year’s budget by June 10 – you can get an idea of where you may fall by calculating your assessment’s percentage increase. If your property has increased by 45 percent, then your bill will probably go up roughly by whatever amount the Town Council approves (4 percent or less). If your percent increase is higher than 45 percent, your tax bill will go up more, potentially a lot more. Conversely, if your percent increase falls below 45 percent, your tax bill might even be lower than this year’s bill.

The bottom line: if your house is of higher value in the town overall, your tax bill will reflect that.

The new assessments are a reflection of the substantial increase in the price of real estate in East Greenwich in recent years coupled with the town’s desire to align assessments more closely with the market. According to Nota, residential assessed values were only 64 percent of sale prices; the new assessments close the gap considerably – they are 92 percent of sale prices. 

You can look at all the new assessments at Northeast Revaluation HERE. 

If you think your new assessment is incorrect or does not reflect the market value as of Dec. 31, 2023, you can make an appointment for an informal hearing at Town Hall. Schedule an appointment at www.nereval.com and click the “book now” button – make sure you have the username and password as presented on new assessment letter from the town. You can also call (401) 737-0300 between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m. Appointments must be scheduled by March 8; hearings will be conducted through March 15.