Massachusetts Association of Assessing Officers

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Topics		Replies	Score	Author	Latest Post
	apportionment/split	0		K. Robbins	Good morning, History: A building was permitted as new construction in 2023 for a 104. Upon receiving the CO it was sold as condos. The office did not receive the deed for the sale of the first unit in 2023. When the second unit was sold, early 2024, the folks here did a full transfer not realizing it was now a condo. I first became aware of the matter after the preliminary bills went out but during a software conversion. I now have access to the software and can address this. Issue: I have been advised that to correct the matter, I need to do an apportionment of the preliminary billing and then do a spilt. I have also been told the matter will clear itself by only doing a split for the actual billing. Which is it or do both work at this point? This is new for me. Any advice, reading, resources would be greatly appreciated. Thank you. Kelli by K. Robbins Monday, October 7, 2024
	Upgrade to AP5 - server vs cloud-based storage	1		J. Gigliotti	Hello:The Town of Erving has switched to AP5 cloud. It seems to be working fine. It is a bit slower than regular AP5 and printing can be cumbersome but overall we are fine with it. If you have any questions, please reach out to me at the Town of Erving.Jacquelyn Boyden, MAAPrincipal Assessor Town of Ervingjacquelyn.boyden@erving-ma.gov by J. Boyden Tuesday, May 7, 2024
	Municipal Empowerment Act	0		T. Hoare	From the new Healey/Driscoll proposed Act. https://www.mass.gov/doc/municipal-empowerment-act-overview "Allow the creation of Regional Boards of Assessors: The bill will allow municipalities to create Regional Boards of Assessors to help streamline duties and reduce significant staffing challenges cited by many local leaders. " Thoughts? Do we foresee this as beneficial or do we predict it used as an excuse to spread us thinner and thinner without adequate compensation? Might we team up as assessors to form regional supergroups like the Travelling Wilburys? by T. Hoare Monday, January 22, 2024
	Residential Apartment Inspections	0		R. Conti	I found this posting in the Massachusetts Association of REALTOR very interesting. We ask all landlords filing for abatements to get us into the property and threaten them with a denial fo failure to do so. With this, I think we may change our policy. Q: Under what circumstances may a landlord access a leased property? A: The balancing act between a tenant’s right to quiet enjoyment and a landlord’s right to entry can be a delicate one. Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 186, Section 15B(1)(a) specifically allows the landlord to enter the leased premises under the following circumstances: 1) In accordance with a court order; 2) To make repairs; 3) To show the premises to a prospective tenant or purchaser; 4) If the premises appear to have been abandoned by the tenant(s); or 5) To inspect the property for damage within the last 30 days of the tenancy. In non-emergency situations, a landlord is required to provide a tenant with reasonable notice prior to accessing the property. The courts have generally found that 24-hours is considered reasonable notice. Recent updates to the State Sanitary Code, however, require landlords to provide 48 hours’ notice prior to accessing the property to effectuate compliance with the Code. Access for non-Code-related purposes, such as real estate showings, should be addressed in a written rental agreement. This should include the required notice period (not less that 24 hours) and the method of notice (text, email, phone call, etc.). Both landlords and tenants should be respectful of the other’s schedule and aim to work together to find a convenient time for the landlord to access the premises. A flat-out refusal to allow access to the landlord may result in the landlord needing to seek judicial intervention. Questions about the permissibility of landlord access in specific situations should be addressed with private legal counsel. ****************************************************************************** Written by: Justin Davidson, General Counsel; Catherine Taylor, Associate Counsel; Jonathan Schreiber, Legislative & Regulatory Counsel; and Kate Berard, Associate Counsel. Services pr by R. Conti Tuesday, January 16, 2024
	Eversource	11		J. Neas	Hopedale has an outstanding ATB case with NStar DBA Eversource for FY22 but they did not file in FY23. by C. Hanly Tuesday, February 21, 2023
	ATB Fast Food Rent	0		D. Zdonek	Does anyone recall the case where the ATB determined that a percentage of the gross sales of a fast food restaurant was a substitute for the rent between a franchisee and the franchisor? I looked through the ATB findings on their website and I could not find the case in the posted decisions. Thanks for any help, Dan by D. Zdonek Tuesday, February 21, 2023
	How to value exempt to taxable municipal buildings	2		J. Boyden	For the prorated billing you use the sale price regardless of the assessed value. by J. Steinberg Wednesday, February 15, 2023
	Preliminary Billings and Exemptions	1		J. Boyden	Hi Jacquelyn, We send out taxes twice a year. Preliminary taxes have 2 coupons for payment and Actual taxes have 2 coupons for payment. We too send out exemption forms in July for our previous applicants. We never apply exemptions to preliminary tax bills only to actual tax bills. If the application is approved prior to us running actual taxes we will enter them before the printing of the bills so the exemption is shown as a deduction on their actual bills. (We split the exemption between the 3rd & 4th quarter bills.) by J. Foley Friday, January 20, 2023
	Software Munis / Patriot AP5	0		J. Steinberg	I'm looking for a community that uses Munis for billing and AP5 software. Anyone? by J. Steinberg Thursday, December 29, 2022
	Veterans 22 E Exemption	3		V. Santaniello	Hi, Victor!If the veteran has 100% total disability, they do not need to prove that they are also unable to work, as I understand it. There are instances were the vet has a less than 100% rating but because of their inability to work, they are entitled to the 100% status. The bulletin J. Gallagher mentions above can be found here: https://www.mass.gov/doc/200919bpdf/download-Cheryl by C. Hanly Wednesday, November 9, 2022
	vendor recommendation	3		K. Keefe	Every few years, if I have a little extra money left in the budget, I have had some old large maps digitized through a local reprographics company. Depending on size and condition of maps they have either bound them onto a backing or scanned or photographed them. I get them as a digital file and keep the original in the vault. That way I have them available to view without handling or damaging the originals.This is through a local company and on a small scale - below procurement thresholds. We have gotten quotes for large scale town wide digitizing of records but it seemed to be cost prohibitive at the time. Especially if it was done department by department. by J. Gallagher Tuesday, November 8, 2022
	Boat Excise	5		J. LaBelle	We began to give our harbormaster our list of unpaid boat excise. The harbormaster will then not issue a mooring permit if the prior excise remains unpaid. It's a small step in the right direction. by J. Gallagher Tuesday, November 8, 2022
	Pharmacy Leases	0		J. Funk	Sharon has a pending ATB case with the owner of a CVS location. Can anyone provide lease info for comparable large pharmacies in your municipalities (CVS, Walgreens, RiteAid, etc) or any build-to-suit construction? Specifically calendar years 2019-2020. Also, any experiences with ATB (agreed cap, exp/vac ratios)? Thank you! Jeff by J. Funk Tuesday, March 15, 2022
	Sales Questionaires	4		R. Conti	Hi Rich, we use the standard Patriot questionnaire. I'll email it to you. by A. Williams Monday, January 31, 2022
	Verify large sale of apartments	1		R. Ball	Rich,I have had three sales of large complexes here in Taunton. I also have a CoStar subscription which could help you out. Let me know 774-406-4690Rick by R. Conti Monday, January 24, 2022
	Funding for vitrual inspections.	4		M. Reed	We were able to purchase NearMap using ARPA funding by M. Couture Rimbold Tuesday, November 16, 2021
	Exemption Clause 18 criteria?	0		T. Welch	Do any city's/towns have Clause 18 criteria they would like to share? I am interested in the aged, impoverished, and infirmed qualifications that you require. Thanks Thom by T. Welch Tuesday, November 2, 2021
	Above Ground Swimming Pools	2		R. Conti	Hi Rich, I have found that different towns value or don't value above-ground pools depending on what they think is the correct way to do it for their community. I have seen in many towns where the above-ground pool is connected to the house by a deck or patio. I have seen in many towns where the above-ground pool is not easily removed, say, for the winter. Both of those instances I would agree to adding the above-ground pools. Any a-g pool that can be easily taken down for the winter months and can easily be put up again in the spring should not be valued. I would, however, make a note, or list it with a zero value in the off-chance that they buy a "bigger and better" a-g pool in the future. Something to keep an eye on. Best, Ellen Blanchard - Town of Carver by E. Blanchard Tuesday, September 7, 2021
	Exemption supporting Financial Docs?	1		M. Rafiki (Thompson)	Hi Meredith,We request a full tax return. Without it, you will not know of any assets that the taxpayer did not include on the application. Income and tax return we look at are from the previous year, meaning for FY2022 we will be looking at income, social security, interest earned, etc. and tax returns from 2020. If these documents are not supplied, we ask for them. The application is not complete without all required documents. If they did not file a tax return, we request a Verification of Non-Filing from the IRS that can be obtain by the taxpayer via online request or phone call. Of course the bank statements we request as of July 1, 2021. When we mail out the applications, we include a cover letter and a checklist. That way, we are requesting the same information from all the residents to qualify. by T. Guarino Tuesday, August 31, 2021
	Exemption Applications Gross Receipts	2		L. Woekel	I received confirmation from DLS that all income, including unemployment compensation, with the exception of business income is the gross amount. by L. Woekel Tuesday, August 17, 2021