As the Massachusetts Department of Revenue continues to review financial paperwork submitted by cities and towns across the state, the towns of Colrain, Leyden, and Northfield have had their tax rates certified for the 2026 fiscal year, allowing them send out tax bills.
While tax rates have decreased in all three towns, residents can expect higher tax bills due to increased property values.
Leyden
Property owners in Leyden will see their tax bills increase by 7.9% or $376 on average from last year. The average tax bill for FY26 will be $5,127.
During a tax rate hearing held last week, the Select Board approved a single tax rate of $14.69. While the rate is $0.59 lower than last year’s tax rate, Board of Assessors Chair Bob DePalma told the Selectboard that tax bills will increase, due to rising property values. For the 2026 fiscal year, the value of the average single-family home in Leyden is $349,037, approximately $39,000 higher than last year.
“Property valuations across town went up 8-10%,” DePalma said.
He explained that when property values rise, the town is able to lower the tax rate and still raise at least the same amount in tax revenue. However, the rate is never lowered so much that tax bills are the same amount as the year before, in order to accommodate increases to the town budget.
In June, voters approved a $2.2 million operating budget, representing a 5% increase from the prior fiscal year.
“It’s down, but that’s because valuations went up $10 to $11 million,” DePalma said of the tax rate.
The total value of all property in Leyden is $96.7 million. The average value of a single-family home has risen 52% over the past 10 years.
Colrain
In Colrain, the Select Board approved issuing a single tax rate for all residential, commercial, industrial, and personal property, which was certified by the Department of Revenue at a rate of $17.82 per $1,000 of assessed value.
The rate is 44 cents less than last year’s tax rate; however, due to an 11.5% increase in property values, property owners can expect their tax bills to rise by $370 on average. The average tax bill for a single-family home for FY26 will be $4,791, representing an 8.3% increase from last year, and a 38.3% increase over the past 10 years.
Northfield
The Northfield Select Board also opted for a single rate for all residential, commercial, industrial, and personal property at the recommendation of the Board of Assessors, which said the town does not have enough businesses for a split tax rate to be beneficial. The tax rate for 2026 will be $13.28 per $1,000 of assessed value.
“If the board should decide to do a split tax rate, it lessons the burden on residential property; and commercial, industrial and personal property would have a higher rate,” Assessors Clerk Bethany Walker said during a tax rate hearing held last week. “Municipalities with large commercial bases tend to have a shift in the tax rate. Historically, Northfield’s always been a single rate, and the assessors continue to recommend a single tax rate.”
The $13.28 tax rate is $0.56 less than last year’s rate. Over the past five years, the rate has fluctuated slightly within a few cents, but remained at an average of $13.62. While the tax rate has remained relatively stagnant, property values in town — and with it the average tax bill — have risen.
For FY26, the average value of a single-family home in Northfield is $341,634, and the tax bill for such is $4,537. These represent increases of 7% and 2.7% respectively. Walker said property valuations are calculated annually based on sales data in town, and properties are selling above the asking price, resulting in higher property values.
“It’s derived on market value, and houses are still selling well above,” Walker said. “So it keeps going up, and the state won’t let you artificially lower your values.”
She added that while property values play a large role in what residents’ tax bills are calculated to be, the largest driver of increases is the town budget. Whatever increases to the budget that voters approve will need to be raised through taxes.
“What really drives the tax rate is what gets voted on at a town meeting for your budget, and then you have your values, and it’s just mathematically one gets divided into the other, and that’s how you get your tax rate,” Walker said. “We vote on the budget at the spring Town Meeting, we’re using an estimated tax rate and this is the time of year where everything gets locked and locked down.”