Brentwood staff explains five-year property revaluation and what it may mean for tax bills

A town staff member, speaking during a public information session, described Brentwood’s ongoing property revaluation work, explained how the equalization ratio relates to — but does not set — residents’ tax rates, and advised homeowners how to check the data used in their assessments.

The staff member said the town contracted reappraisal work to KRT (listed on the contractor’s page at artappraisal.com/dist/brentwood) and that the process follows a multi‑phase timeline. “Right now, for anyone that goes there, we are just finishing up with phase 5, which is those informal hearings before they go out to do phase 6, which is a full measure and list, where they're gonna go out to every property,” the staff member said. The full measure-and-list visits are intended to confirm or correct the town’s property cards (the internal records of a building’s size, rooms, and features).

Why this matters: the town’s operating budget — the total dollars voters approved in March — does not change because of the revaluation, the staff member said. Instead, the tax rate is calculated by dividing the approved appropriation by the total valuation of all properties. “The operating budget was voted on by the taxpayers in March, and, that number has not changed,” the staff member said. The Department of Revenue administration (referred to in the meeting as the DRA) provides revenue and valuation figures the town uses; staff said the tax rate is typically set in mid to late October.

The staff member distinguished the state equalization ratio from the tax rate. “The equalization ratio actually doesn't have anything to do with the tax rate,” the staff member said. The ratio, they explained, is the state’s estimate of how town assessments compare with market values — e.g., a 50% equalization ratio suggests assessments are about half of market value; about 100% would mean assessments align with market value. The staff member noted towns aim to be near 100% and said the town is required by law to perform a revaluation at least every five years.

On how individual bills may change: the staff member relayed a guideline from KRT about average valuation changes in town and what that could mean for homeowners. Using KRT’s suggested townwide example of a 60% average increase in valuations, the staff member said homeowners whose individual valuations rose less than that average (for example, 55%) would probably pay less in total taxes in dollars; those whose valuations rose about the average would see little change; and those whose valuations rose more than the average (for example, 65%–70%) would likely pay more in dollars once the new rate is set. “If your individual property went up by 55%, because that's lower than 60, you're gonna pay less in tax dollars than you did before,” the staff member said. The staff member emphasized they could not provide exact figures because the town has not yet finalized the revaluation or the tax rate.

What residents can do: the staff member advised homeowners to request a copy of their property card from the town office to verify features used in the assessment (finished basement square footage, garage size, number of bathrooms, etc.). The staff member said residents can also raise concerns during the informal hearings or when data collectors visit during the full measure-and-list stage; the town plans to notify residents in advance (postcards and letters) and said data collectors will carry town identification letters. For property-specific questions or to request details on sales dates used in calculations, the staff member directed residents to email the town assessor at assessing@h.gov and said the assessor’s name is Adrienne. The staff member also said Jillian in the town office can print property cards on request.

Process and contractor selection: the staff member said the town issued a request for proposals (RFP) for revaluation services and selected KRT; they said KRT may have been the only respondent to the RFP. The staff member described the steps posted on the contractor site — sales data collection, validation and market analysis, field review, hearings (phase 5), then the full measure and list (phase 6).

No formal action was taken during the session; the remarks were informational and staff said they will continue to monitor questions submitted by email.

The session included staff reminders that the revaluation is intended to make the town’s property records accurate and that not all changes in assessed value will translate directly into changes in the dollar amount of a homeowner’s tax bill.