Amesbury Homeowners Property Taxes Upped by Invalid “Historic” Label

According to the Newburyport Daily News, homeowners in Amesbury were concerned when they saw their property taxes go up due to their homes be labeled as “historic” by the town assessor. Although the historic label increased some home values by as much as $20,000, it also increased annual property taxes a considerable amount.

Mary Marino, the town’s property assessor, tagged roughly 600 Amesbury residences with the “historic” label using a document that was found to be invalid for the process.  The document in question were said to be “windshield surveys,” and “were never meant to give the town anything other than an inventory of Amesbury's older homes, should historical districts ever be created in Amesbury.”  Marino stated the documents had already been in use in the department before she took the town assessor position.

In order for the many concerned residents to better understand the home assessing process, a town workshop was scheduled where they could ask Marino questions regarding home values and their influence on property taxes. It seems that most town officials have agreed that “open and transparent assessors meetings” are necessary.

Read the entire Daily News article.