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The town’s overall real property value is expected to fall by 18 percent after the latest revaluation, Board of Finance Chairman Warren Serenbetz Jr. said Wednesday.
“Taxpayers can estimate whether their taxes will rise or fall due to a valuation based on how their valuation change compares to the overall valuation decline," Serenbetz told a small crowd at a special public information session at the Wilton Library. The rates for higher-priced homes may rise less than those of more moderately valued homes, he said.
The decline in value includes a 20 percent drop for residential properties and a 9 percent decrease for commercial properties. The changes will mean the mill rate will rise, Serenbetz said, but it's too early to say by how much.
The exact tax bill for each resident won’t be determined until after voters approve the town and Wilton Board of Education budgets later in the year. The finance board will meet with school officials next month to discuss the school budget and with the Board of Selectmen in March to review the town’s budget requests.
Resident Grant Curtiss was not happy to hear that his rates might jump. Tax rates should not rise as much given the level of services residents have received, he said. “Our taxes have almost doubled,” said Curtiss, an 11-year resident. “For the services we get, I don’t see that being that reasonable.”
Curtiss said he’ll attend more meetings to follow the budget process closely.
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