Page 184 of Amesbury's adopted FY27 budget book has a short table titled "Historic Tax Rate + Bills." It covers ten fiscal years. Apart from one uptick in FY21, the rate column falls every year, from $19.95 per $1,000 in FY17 to $15.05 in FY26. The column beside it tracks the yearly change in the average single-family tax bill, and every entry in it is an increase.
So a lower rate has not meant a lower bill. This matters if you're comparing Amesbury with Newburyport, Salisbury or Merrimac and the listing's $15.05 rate makes Amesbury look expensive. In Amesbury the rate is the output of a formula. What goes into that formula, and how much room the city has left under its cap, tells you far more about what you'll pay.
Ten years of a falling rate and a rising bill
The city's own figures, published in the FY27 budget book:
| Fiscal year | Tax rate per $1,000 | Change in average single-family bill |
|---|---|---|
| FY17 | $19.95 | +$101.35 |
| FY18 | $18.99 | +$122.28 |
| FY19 | $18.37 | +$144.91 |
| FY20 | $17.18 | +$34.60 |
| FY21 | $18.25 | +$757.69 |
| FY22 | $17.69 | +$351.42 |
| FY23 | $16.34 | +$470.01 |
| FY24 | $15.64 | +$607.38 |
| FY25 | $15.30 | +$472.13 |
| FY26 | $15.05 | +$285.52 |
| FY27 estimate | $14.71 | +$162.99 |
The Massachusetts Division of Local Services puts the actual dollar amounts on that pattern. Amesbury's average single-family bill was $9,583 in FY2025 and $9,868 in FY2026. Over the same period the average single-family assessment rose from $626,318 to $655,694. The city's table lists a slightly different FY25 average value of $636,218, so the state's figures are used here.
The FY27 row is still an estimate. The city's budget projects a $14.71 rate on an average home valued at $681,921. That works out to a bill of roughly $10,031, which would make FY27 the first year the average Amesbury bill tops $10,000, even as the rate drops again.
The rate is calculated last
Massachusetts towns don't start by picking a tax rate. They start with a levy, which is the total dollar amount the city will raise from property taxes. Proposition 2½ limits how much that levy can grow. Amesbury's budget book spells out the rule: each year the levy limit can rise by 2.5% of the prior year's limit, plus "New Growth," a dollar amount based on new construction and other additions to the tax base. The Division of Local Services describes the same limits statewide.
Once the levy is set, the rate is just the levy divided by the total assessed value of property in the city. When values climb faster than the levy, the rate has to fall. Amesbury's average single-family value went from $454,107 in FY22 to $655,694 in FY26, and over the same years the rate fell from $17.69 to $15.05.
Amesbury also uses a single rate for every property class. At the FY26 classification hearing, the City Council unanimously adopted a residential factor of 1 and voted against a residential exemption, a commercial exemption and an open space discount, according to The Daily News of Newburyport. The state explains that a single rate divides the levy in proportion to each class's assessed value, while a split rate can move some of the burden from homes onto commercial and industrial property. With a single rate, your bill depends on two things: how fast the levy grows, and how your assessment compares with everyone else's.
Why the November 2025 vote matters more than the rate
The levy can grow faster than the Proposition 2½ formula allows only if voters approve it. On November 4, 2025, Amesbury voters turned down a $6 million operating override for the city and schools, 3,113 to 2,211, according to the state's override vote records.
The FY27 budget was built around that result. In her budget letter, Mayor Kassandra Gove wrote that "affordability and living within our means remained central priorities" after the failed vote. She proposed a 0.56% overall increase, $471,355 on a general fund of $84,704,738. According to the budget summary, most of the estimated increase to the average bill comes from the school budget and employee benefits. Amesbury Public Schools' appropriation rises by $563,037, which the budget estimates at $89.85 on the average bill.
Two other lines in the budget matter for anyone planning beyond next year:
- Excess levy capacity. The budget estimates $159,879 of unused room under the levy limit, a small cushion for an $84.7 million budget.
- One-time money. The budget proposes using $1,000,000 in Free Cash to balance FY27, and the mayor's letter says plainly that "the use of one-time funds is not a sustainable long-term strategy."
The budget book's Proposition 2½ page explains the pressure: operating budgets that rise "by 3%, 4%, 5% and higher" are outrunning a levy that can grow 2.5% plus new growth, and the city "will need to start decreasing services to stay in the levy."
For a buyer, this is the more useful forecast. Amesbury is taxing close to its limit and spending one-time reserves to stay there. Each year, then, the average bill should rise about as fast as the levy limit allows, regardless of what happens to the rate. A bigger jump would take an override or debt exclusion, which voters would have to approve. The October 27, 2026 City Council agenda included a resolution on a ballot question, but it was about statewide Question 8, not a local override.
Comparing towns by the bill
Because the rate is a ratio, comparing two towns' rates also compares their home values. Amesbury's budget book includes a FY26 peer table that shows all three numbers together:
| Municipality | FY26 average single-family value | FY26 average single-family bill | FY26 residential rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| Newburyport | $1,106,755 | $10,249 | $9.26 |
| Georgetown | $749,549 | $10,314 | $13.76 |
| Amesbury | $655,694 | $9,868 | $15.05 |
| Danvers | $730,510 | $7,780 | $10.65 |
| Salisbury | $616,951 | $6,126 | $9.93 |
Newburyport's rate is about 40% below Amesbury's, yet its average bill was $381 higher in FY26. The rate is lower because the average Newburyport home is assessed at roughly 1.7 times the Amesbury average. Georgetown's rate is lower than Amesbury's too, and its average bill was higher still. Salisbury is the one town in this group where both the rate and the average bill come in well under Amesbury's. That's a real difference of about $3,700 a year on an average home.
Merrimac fits the same pattern. Its FY2026 average single-family value was $665,511, close to Amesbury's, and its average bill was $8,778, according to the Division of Local Services. The Town of Merrimac's tax collector page lists its 2026 rate as $13.19 per $1,000. Comparing rates works between towns with similar home values, as it does here, and falls apart once their values diverge as widely as Amesbury's and Newburyport's.
Reading a listing's tax line this November
The FY27 rate hasn't been certified yet. As of October 29, 2026, the state's tax rate table still showed Amesbury's FY2027 entry as blank. The city's budget calendar puts submission of the tax recapitulation to the Department of Revenue in November. For FY26, the Board of Assessors presented its recommendations to the council at a November 18 meeting, the Budget and Finance Subcommittee reviewed them, and the council voted at a later classification hearing. Here's how to read a tax figure on a listing in the meantime:
- Treat $15.05 as the FY26 rate. For FY27, the city's own estimate is $14.71, and that number could still change when the rate is certified.
- Multiply by the home's assessment, not its asking price. The state calculates the average bill from average assessed value times the certified residential rate, and an individual bill works the same way.
- Expect the bill to grow even if the rate keeps falling. The city projects a 4.00% increase in average home value for FY27 and a $162.99 increase in the average bill.
- Compare towns by bill on a similar house. The peer table above is a good starting point.
Short FAQ
Will Amesbury's tax rate go down again for FY27? The adopted budget estimates $14.71, down from $15.05. That figure is a projection until the state certifies the rate.
Has Amesbury used a split rate to lower homeowners' share? No. For FY26 the council adopted a residential factor of 1 and voted against the residential exemption, the commercial exemption and the open space discount.
Is there an override on the ballot this fall? The October 27, 2026 council agenda included a ballot resolution, but it concerned statewide Question 8, not a local override.
This post is general information about how property taxes are set, not tax, legal or financial advice. Please confirm your own situation with the Amesbury assessors' office or a qualified professional.
When we price a home or put together an offer, we start from the assessed value and the expected tax bill. The rate alone doesn't tell you what you'll pay. If you'd like to see how a specific Amesbury property's taxes compare with a similar home in Newburyport, Merrimac or Salisbury, The Barnes Team can work through those numbers with you. Get your instant home valuation to see where your own property stands.
