Marchetti Defends Pittsfield Tax Rates in Advance of FY25 Budget

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Mayor Peter Marchetti defended the city's tax rate on Tuesday, asking residents to look at all of the figures before making a judgment.

While Pittsfield ranked the highest tax rate countywide in fiscal 2024, the average bill ranked 10th. The administration also provided data showing that there has been a 37.9 percent increase in the value of single-family homes from FY20 to FY24 and a 6.4 percent decrease in the residential tax rate during this period.

"When we continue to hear about how we're comparing to other communities and we've heard it several times that jeez, we're the highest tax bills in Berkshire County, I think using the data from (the Department of Revenue) and (the Division of Local Services) we can prove that that is not necessarily the case," Marchetti said during a joint City Council and School Committee meeting.

In FY24, the residential tax rate was $18.45 per $1,000 of valuation and the average home was assessed at $268,000, making the average tax bill nearly $5,000 annually. The mayor plans to submit a proposed FY25 budget to the council on May 14.

Early in the term, the City Council supported a petition from Councilor at Large Kathy Amuso requesting a budget that is "close to level-funded" due to concerns about tax increases. Marchetti said even if the administration were to provide a level-funded budget, he would still be standing in front of the body in December asking for a tax increase.

The potential impact of a level-funded budget would be:

• the city not being able to renew its Massachusetts Municipal Association membership.
• the closure of a fire station on a rotating basis due to a reduction in overtime
• a loss of 11 police officers due to a reduction of overtime
• a reduction of five Highway Department employees and two Parks Department employees
• a reduction of the building inspector's administrative assistant
• the reduction of one full-time librarian and the Berkshire Athenaeum closing earlier on Thursdays

He has asked each department to provide three spending plans: a level-funded, a level service-funded, and a wish list — though essentially no wish list items have been expressed. A level service-funded budget is the goal.

Amuso reported the high volume of calls she gets from residents about the "astounding" and "alarming" tax bills, explaining "I do not want to dismantle departments but we can do better." She doesn't see taxes being reduced but would like the city to explore all options to lessen the burden on taxpayers as much as possible.

"Although I didn't really appreciate a petition on day seven that said, 'Hey, you need to do these,' we took your petition seriously, we went through the exercise," Marchetti said.

Ward 1 Councilor Kenneth Warren asked that the administration look at the average income of Pittsfield residents as compared to the tax bills, speculating that residents have lower incomes than other communities.

To date, the city has collected $11.5 million for local receipts, or 90 percent, and $53.4 million for state aid, or 73 percent.  Of the $109.3 million appropriated budget, it has expended nearly $84 million.

The "not ideal" school budget is seeing a $3.7 million gap in funding largely due to the sunsetting of Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief funds and a dramatic decrease in Chapter 70 funding due to what the administrators said is a technical error.

After showing a decrease in the percentage of low-income students, the district is being docked $2.3 million after missing the cutoff for a higher reimbursement group by 0.04 percent.

The City Council supported a resolution calling for legislative change to fully reflect recent inflation in the Chapter 70 definition of the foundation inflation index for fiscal 2025 and to eliminate the cap in future years to restore the purchasing power of district Foundation budgets to reflect the intended resource allocations of the Student Opportunity Act.

Marchetti said he will share some "hopeful positive news" in the near future but that Superintendent Joseph Curtis, Assistant Superintendent for Business and Finance Kristen Behnke, and himself have been working diligently with the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education and the Legislature to resolve the issues.

The school is anticipating the reduction of more than 100 staff members to bridge the $3.7 million gap.

"I do want to note that these reductions we are making aren't ideal, are not, and I don't think anyone here believes they are ideal cuts at all," School Committee member William Garrity said.

Berkshire Market Continues to Defy Broad Headlines

By Sandy CarrollGuest Column
02:59PM / Friday, July 24, 2026

The good news — residential sales rose countywide 7 percent, dollar volume rose 14 percent. 

If there's one takeaway from our full 2026 Q2 Market Watch Report, it's this: all real estate is local.

National economists can provide context, but they rarely tell the full story of what's happening here in Berkshire County. In fact, this year's numbers reinforce just how important it is to look beyond countywide trends and into individual communities.

After a slower first quarter, the market found its footing. Through the first six months of 2026, residential home sales increased 8 percent while dollar volume climbed an impressive 14 percent, reaching nearly $257 million in closed sales. Median sale prices also continued their steady upward trend, reaching $360,000 countywide.

The strength of the market, however, wasn't evenly distributed.

Middle and South Berkshire led the way with gains in both sales and dollar volume, while North Berkshire experienced a modest decline in residential activity overall. Yet even within those regions, individual towns told very different stories. Some communities experienced significant growth while neighboring towns slowed considerably — another reminder that real estate decisions should always be based on local market knowledge rather than broad assumptions.

 As our inventory levels shift, and in some months our absorption rates look to be heading toward a more balanced market, it is important to look at the price ranges where listings are selling, versus where we have a lot of inventory. The steady pace of the second quarter has created a very hectic market in the field, with agents running non-stop to manage their client demands. With a slightly lower pending sales rate heading into the third quarter but still a frenetic pace in the market, it's hard to project what the third quarter will bring.  It's also important to dig into town trends, as that is definitely an interesting and varied part of the market that this generalized data doesn't easily reveal.

Outside the single-family market, conditions remain mixed. 

Condominium and multifamily sales softened compared to last year, commercial sales remained modest, while land sales showed encouraging improvement after several challenging years. Mobile homes also continued to provide an important affordable housing option and posted solid gains during the first half of the year.

 

Perhaps one of the most encouraging trends is inventory. While still well below historical norms, available housing continues to improve gradually. Berkshire County remains a seller's market, but additional listings are creating more opportunities for buyers than we've seen in recent years.

Nationally, economists expect housing activity to strengthen during the second half of 2026 as inventory grows and mortgage rates stabilize. Whether those forecasts fully materialize remains to be seen, but locally we've already witnessed how quickly market conditions can change from one quarter to the next.

As always, this summary only scratches the surface. Our complete Market Watch includes town-by-town statistics, historical trends, appreciation data, and detailed reports for every major property type. Whether you're buying, selling, investing, or simply keeping an eye on the market, those local details often tell the most important story.

Full PDF Editions: 2026 Q2 Market Watch Report

Sandy Carroll is CEO of the Berkshire County Board of Realtors.