Town is tops in Vt for homestead rate, non-homestead rate; third for school rate
By Polly Mikula
Last Wednesday, July 3, the state Dept. of Taxes published the list of tax rates for all Vermont towns. Killington topped the 260 municipalities listed for education homestead tax rate ($3.1981) and non-homestead rate ($2.6571) — not a big surprise given the fact that the town has long been No. 1 for its gap between published Grand List values and actual market value, which is corrected for using a Common Level of Appraisal (CLA).
Killington’s CLA is now listed at 52.35% — meaning that the values listed on the town’s Grand List are roughly half the actual market value; i.e., taxed value.
A town’s CLA is applied to its school district rate to get the education tax rate. Killington is in the Mountain Views School District, which has the third highest rate at $1.6742 — a result of its $16,552 per pupil spending. (The district rate is calculated by pupil spending divided by $9,893 the statewide imposed property yield.)
As a result, Killington’s current state education homestead tax rate of $3.1981 is 29.4% higher than the $2.4713 it was assessed last year.
In addition to education tax, a property tax bill includes municipal tax.
Killington’s current municipal homestead tax rate is $0.5969 — up 9.6% over last year.
So the total homestead tax rate is $3.795 ($3.1981 education + $0.5969 municipal). A house on the Grand List for $500,000 will owe $18,975 in property taxes ($15,990.50 education + $2,984.50 municipal). That’s up $3,896, or 25.8%, over last year’s $15,079 ($12,356.50 education + $2,722.50 municipal).
Killington property owners saw similar increase last year as well.
“Killington was undervalued for decades, but this steep increase is really tough for residents and business owners alike,” said Selectman Jim Haff.
However, according to the state, most homeowners in Vermont (68%) pay an income-sensitized property tax, meaning their total property tax bill is reduced by a property tax adjustment, which can be up to $8,000 ($5,600 towards education property taxes and $2,400 towards municipal taxes). The CLA applies only to property. Education taxes that are paid based on household income are not affected by the CLA.
The non-homestead tax rate is $3.254 ($2.6571 education + $0.5969 municipal). A business or second home on the Grand List for $500,000 will owe $16,270 ($13,285.50 education + $2,984.5 municipal).
Killington’s 2024 tax bills will be mailed out next week, July 15, with the first installment of three due Aug. 15.
Reappraisal 2025
Because the town’s CLA is 52.35%, well over the state threshold, a townwide reappraisal is mandated and will begin this year. An informational presentation about the reappraisal process will be held Tuesday, July 23 at 7 p.m. at the Public Safety Building and via Zoom.
