With home values taking a jump as a result of citywide reassessments, Concord City Council just vastly raised its elderly tax exemption to keep pace.
Tax exemptions aren’t a direct subtraction from tax bills. They work by reducing the value of the taxpayer’s property, so the tax rate is only applied to a portion. To qualify, a taxpayer must fall into a certain category – such as seniors, veterans and people with disabilities – and have less than a certain amount in income and financial assets.
With these subtractions, many people end up with a $0 tax bill. The city aims to keep roughly the same number of people with full exemptions year to year. Last year, just under 100 seniors in Concord had $0 property tax bills.
When a property value goes up, however, it can mean someone who previously saw their full home value subtracted might now have to pay taxes on it.
If the deduction held steady after the revaluation, according to city assessor Jonathan Rice, the number of seniors paying no taxes under the exemption would fall from 98 to 48.
So, as they have done in previous revaluations, city officials raised the exemption amount.
Previously, the home value subtraction amounts for qualifying seniors were as follows:
- ages 65-74: $80,000
- ages 75-79: $131,000
- ages 80+: $223,000
Under the changes, those amounts will increase by a little less than 50%. Now they are:
- ages 65-74: $155,000
- ages 75-79: $250,000
- ages 80+: $375,000
With this adjustment, Rice reported, the number of seniors paying a $0 property tax bill will increase from 98 to 102.
There are people who would qualify who aren’t yet receiving the benefit, Rice said at Monday’s City Council Meeting. The process includes an examination by the city of someone’s income and assets to determine whether they fall under the cap.
Officials encouraged more residents to apply for exemptions, though notably the window to apply for the first time is between January and April.
“We want to encourage taxpayers to apply,” Rice said. “If we can qualify you, you will qualify.”
