Real Estate & Personal Property Tax

Why is my Real Estate and/or Personal Property tax bill still in the former owners’ name?
Massachusetts general law requires that the tax bills must be sent to the owner of record as of January 1st of the previous year. This means if your deed was recorded after January 1, 2017, the fiscal year 2018 tax bill would be in the former owner’s name since they were the owner of record as of January 1, 2017. In many cases this bill will be sent to or forwarded to the former owner if an in-care-of has not been added to the tax bill. All address changes are handled in the Assessor's Office. Please make sure the Assessor’s office has your correct mailing information.

Why was I charged interest and fees on my Real Estate and/or Personal Property tax?
Interest will be charged at 14% per annum from the due date on any Real Estate or Personal Property tax not received in the Collector’s Office by the due date. Per Massachusetts law, postmarks are not acceptable (the legal verbiage is clearly written in the center of your tax bill as required by law).  After the fourth quarter due date (May 1st), any outstanding balance will be demanded. A demand fee of $10.00 [MGL Ch. 60:15] will be added. Continued failure to pay in full will result in the securing of a tax lien on the property known as a tax taking. The final resolution would be foreclosure. Failure to receive your tax bill will not stay the collection. If taxes are not paid on time in Athol, you can be denied a permit from the various Boards within the Town until such time as your taxes are brought current. You must make sure the Assessors have your correct mailing information.