Peabody Average Single-Family Property Tax Bill To Rise $219 For 2023

PEABODY, MA — The property tax bill for the average single-family homeowner in Peabody will increase by about $219 in 2023 amid a historic surge in property values in the city.

The Peabody City Council unanimously approved the administration's recommendation that the city adopt the maximum 1.75-ratio shift of tax burden on commercial properties to help offset a sharp rise in residential property values compared to a modest rise in commercial property values.

Peabody residential properties continued what Mayor Ted Bettencourt called "an explosive level of growth that is unprecedented in our city's history" in values in recent years. The average Peabody single-family residence rose in value by 11.7 percent during the 2021 year on which the assessment was based, while condominiums rose in value by 7.4 percent and multi-family homes rose 9.7 percent.

Commercial rates rose as well at a 3.48 percent clip with the shift in burden meant to spread it out more equally among property sectors that experience different rates of increase or decrease.

Bettencourt told the City Council that commercial growth and local receipts came in higher than expected in the spring, allowing for the average tax bill increase to be reduced from a forecasted $239 to $219 for 2023.

The average Peabody single-family home's value rose to $527,500 in 2021 — the highest in city history — and is up 46 percent since 2018. The tax rate, in contrast, has risen at a far less aggressive pace with Peabody maintaining the second-lowest tax rate, next to Haverhill, among 33 Essex County cities and towns, according to figures presented from the Massachusetts Department of Revenue.

Bettencourt said in addition to the 1.75 residential/commercial split, he also recommended reducing the use of American Recovery Plan Act money to fund budget initiatives from a projected $3.5 million to $2.5 million for 2023. Doing so, he said, leaves Peabody with $7.9 million in ARPA funds that can be spent on one-time city projects that then do not have to be bonded with interest payments.

"I expect this to be a significant year of projects in our city," Bettencourt said.

Bettencourt also noted that city staffing is now back to pre-COVID-19 health crisis levels as the city recovers from what he called "a historic period of uncertainty."

(Scott Souza is a Patch field editor covering Beverly, Danvers, Marblehead, Peabody, Salem and Swampscott. He can be reached at Scott.Souza@Patch.com. Twitter: @Scott_Souza.)