Assessors

Pelham has a Board of Assessors comprised of three elected members. They are required by Massachusetts General Law to list and value all real and personal property. The valuations are subject to ad valorem taxation on the assessment roll each year, meaning that all property should be taxed "according to value". Assessed values in Massachusetts are based on "full and fair cash value", or 100 percent of fair market value.

Assessors are required to submit these values to the State Department of Revenue for certification every three years. In the years between certification, Assessors must also maintain the values. The Assessors review sales and the market every year and thereby reassess values each year. This is done so that the property taxpayer pays his or her fair share of the cost of local government, in proportion to the amount of money the property is worth, on a yearly basis rather than every five years.

Assessors do not raise or lower taxes. They do not make the laws which affect property owners. Assessors are required to annually assess taxes in an amount sufficient to cover the State and Local appropriations chargeable to the town.

The local Assessor's Office has nothing to do with the total amount of taxes collected. The Assessor's primary responsibility is to find the "full and fair cash value" of your property so that the taxpayer may pay only his/her fair share of taxes.

 

Staff Contacts

Name Title Phone
Lori Turati Assistant Assessor (413) 253-0734

Board Members

Name Title
Gwendolyn Hubler Member 2024
Robert Rowell Chair 2025
William Collins Member 2026