The Edgartown select board this week approved a residential tax exemption that will shift some of the property tax burden from year-round residents to seasonal homeowners.
The board voted unanimously Monday in favor of enacting a 5 per cent residential tax rate exemption after holding hearings earlier this year. This is the first time that Edgartown has enacted the residential exemption, which has been employed by several other municipalities on the Island.
The decision was made Monday with the recommendation of the town’s board of assessors.
“We had two public hearings,” said Julia Tarka, a select board member. “I think it was overwhelmingly positive for folks at the time to adopt it.”
Enacted in 1979, the residential tax exemption is a local option available to Massachusetts municipalities that shifts a chunk of the tax burden from certain year-round homeowners to non-primary dwellings, such as vacation homes.
In Massachusetts, towns have been allowed to implement exemptions up to 35 per cent, but under the Affordable Homes Act, passed in 2024, the Vineyard towns and other seasonal communities can go up to 50 per cent.
Edgartown’s home stock largely skews toward seasonal use. According to a presentation given by the board of assessors earlier this year, there are 3,317 seasonal residential parcels and 1,311 year-round properties.
During the prior public hearings on the exemption this summer, officials gave rough outlines on how the exemption could affect tax bills.
A $1.5 million year-round home with a 5 per cent exemption would see a tax reduction of around $277 dollars annually; a seasonal home of the same assessed value would see its bill go up by $45.
On Monday, town administrator James Hagerty emphasized that the tax exemption doesn’t change the overall tax levy.
“Hypothetically, the town’s tax levy is $40 million,” he said during Monday’s meeting. “By implementing a residential exemption, the tax levy doesn’t go up to $41 or $42 or $43 million. It stays at $40 million. Just the distribution of who’s paying that $40 million changes.”
To qualify, a taxpayer must own and occupy the property as their primary domicile. Residents will need to apply for the exemption with the board of assessors, which has already started prequalifying people.
“It’s a pretty arduous process… You have to submit your driver’s license, and there’s a good amount of due diligence and a lot of work that goes into it,” Mr. Hagerty said.
Of the towns that have residential exemptions, Edgartown is on the low end. West Tisbury is at a 30 per cent exemption, Oak Bluffs is at 15 per cent and Tisbury has 22 per cent.
This article appears in November 13 2026.
West Tisbury should be ashamed to have voted the non resident home owners are on the hook for 35% more than resident home owners.
Obviously the town does not know how to budget expenses.
Passing additional expenses to non residents is a money grab as they do not use the schools or many other services..
The AMI of many residents is higher than many non residents.
How does figure?
Bad stewardship I may say.
And again and again.
Mike, the exemption doesn’t add expenses or increase the town’s total tax levy. It changes how that existing levy is distributed. West Tisbury’s exemption was 30% of the town’s average residential value; that isn’t automatically a 35% increase on every homeowner who doesn’t qualify. If you’re comparing particular tax bills, the properties and the calculation matter. And the fact that some year-round residents have higher incomes than some seasonal owners doesn’t, by itself, make the exemption bad stewardship. I support giving relief to people who make their homes here year-round.
I don’t get this. Property taxes are for services, and second homeowners do not use (the bulk of) services they pay for with their tax dollars. The formula was already working in the favor of islanders, and now town officers have decided to exploit the critical part-time population. A slippery slope indeed! So much for our “well run” town.
This is an unwise economic decision for Edgartown and will lead to higher taxes over time for everyone, both residents and non-residents. With the tax burden shifted to non-voters, those who can vote will choose for the town to spend more money as they are able to pass a disproportionate amount of the costs on to non-residents who cannot vote. Over time, spending will become out of control. This is exactly what happened with the SSA. The SSA board by law is composed primarily of MV residents, who pay fares subsidized by non-residents. The board votes to approve excessive spending knowing that the costs are disproportionately borne by non-residents, e.g., building a massive terminal in Woods Hole.
Slippery slope. Let’s see how long the new exemption stays at 5%. Disappointing that Edgartown elected to tax homeowners who are lightly using the town’s services at disproportionate rates. Bad message.
The 45 dollars wont kill my bank account. But its a slap in the face to those seasonal residents who already contribute the majority of the taxes while using a minimal amount of municipal services.