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Locals Keep the Lights On
Locals Keep the Lights On
Local residents are the bedrock of our town: they teach our children, provide our health care, improve and maintain our homes, run our mom and pop shops, maintain public safety, put out fires, plow our streets and maintain our infrastructure. They volunteer in town government, work in our banks and and handle our legal affairs. Others are retirees; others are young families. Many have long, stable histories here. The work and spirit of these residents are visitor and second-home owners want to be here. And we welcome them as neighbors and key contributors to our town.
A Growing Trend
A Growing Trend
To support their year-round resident property owners, 21 Massachusetts municipalities have adopted the Residential Tax Exemption, a local choice option under Massachusetts state law. We want to join these communities in bringing relief to our valued full-time resident homeowners.
The RTE is a tool that allows municipalities to shift a portion of the property tax levy from lower- and middle-income properties to second-home and high-value year-round properties.
Rural Town Challenges
Rural Town Challenges
Rural communities have a special challenge as they aspire to offer excellent but increasingly costly local services with a small tax base. Small towns like Great Barrington have grown highly desirable as vacation and second home destinations, raising the cost of housing.
As home prices rise, so do assessed residential values throughout town. Local homeowners struggle to pay two-and three-fold tax hikes in recent years -- they feel these impacts the most.
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