Pittsfield Tax Rate Drops, But Bills May Rise
PITTSFIELD, Mass. — The administration has presented a split rate that would increase the average single-family home's annual bill by about $220.
On the agenda for Thursday's City Council meeting is a hearing for the fiscal 2026 tax rate: $17.50 per $1,000 of valuation for residential property and $36.90 for commercial, industrial, and personal property. This rate uses a residential factor of 0.8299 at a shift of 1.75.
While the rate is 44 cents cheaper than the year before for residential properties and more than a dollar cheaper for commercial properties, bills will rise.
The FY26 levy limit of $119.5 million includes more than $2 million in new growth, and there is about $389,000 in excess level capacity. Pittsfield's real and personal property valuation is $5,650,879,534, more than $380 million higher than the previous year.
The average single-family home has increased by more than $20,000 from $295,291 last fiscal year to $315,335 in FY26, and with the proposed tax rate, would pay $5,518.36 in taxes per year. This represents a $220.84 increase.
The median home price increased at a similar rate, from $256,500 in FY25 to $275,150 in FY26. Commercial property increased by more than $15,000, the median property valued at $224,250 in FY25 and $239,500 in FY26. The median commercial property would see a $327.42 annual increase in its tax bill.
According to the Massachusetts Department of Revenue, there are 11,330 single-family homes in Pittsfield this fiscal year, four new parcels added from the previous year, and the assessed value of this property type rose by $226,274,900, totaling $3,572,750,000. There are 1,733 two-family homes, four fewer than the previous fiscal year, and that property type is assessed at $387,638,100.
There are 712 commercial properties with a total value of $428,856,000, 242 industrial properties with a total value of $139,218,000, and 15 industrial power plants.
In FY26, 16,374 of the city's properties are residential, 818 are commercial, 260 are industrial, and 1,820 are personal property.
Tags: fiscal 2026, pittsfield_budget, property taxes, tax classification,
