MAC: Taxes Rise, Home Values Drop

DID YOU KNOW …

The average assessed value for a house in the south shore suburbs, according to a recent study conducted by the Boston Globe for fiscal year 2013, is $362,117, down 15.7 percent from fiscal year 2007 ($429,396). Meanwhile, over that same period of time, the average property tax bill jumped 22.4 percent from $4,248 to $5,216. The town of Canton has bucked the trend on the assessed value of homes, losing only 8.3 percent, from an average of $507,748 in 2007 to $465,743 in 2013; but Canton’s property tax bill has skyrocketed from an average of $4,509 in 2007 to $5,729 in 2013. That’s 27.1 percent, one of the highest increases in the south shore. As comparisons in neighboring towns for fiscal year 2013, home values fell 23 percent in Stoughton ($272,752), over 29 percent in Randolph ($235,585), 15 percent in Sharon ($419,720), and 11 percent in Norwood ($365,363).

As one Massachusetts tax official said, “Because the tax levy goes up 2.5 percent every year, your tax bill is going to keep going up.” And because of what Canton voters have approved in recent years, including a school override, high school construction, a new library, and new elementary school additions, it leaves Canton taxpayers to shoulder higher property tax bills (a bill you recently received in the mail).

Governor Deval Patrick recently announced his support for the South Coast Rail Project that would run from Boston through Canton and Stoughton to points south, including Fall River and New Bedford. It is anticipated the project would run through 2021 at a cost of $1.8 billion.

In 2012, the Chinese invested a record $6.5 billion in American businesses. Believe it or not, China is still a relatively small player in the United States, accounting for less than 1 percent of the total foreign investment in the country.

The H.T. Berry Company at 50 North Street in Canton plans to add approximately 16,270 square feet to its existing building.

Democrat Elizabeth Warren and Republican Scott Brown together spent nearly $80 million in their hotly contested senate race. The race was the most expensive political campaign in Massachusetts history and the costliest U.S. senate race in the United States in 2012. There is money out there somewhere.

Canton High School’s Hockomock League rival Sharon High has been moved up from Division 4 to Division 3.

Plasticjungle.com, giftcards.com, and cardpool.com will pay you up to 92 percent of a gift card’s value. Some $1.7 billion of the $110 billion worth of gift cards bought in 2012 will go unused.

The Stoughton woman that struck and killed another woman from Stoughton while driving drunk and crossing over the center line on Route 138 in Canton was recently sentenced to only two and a half years in prison and five years of supervised probation. She was illegally in the United States, but had a legal driver’s license.

The federal government recommends that every person six months and older receive a flu vaccination. The city of Boston had over 700 confirmed cases of the flu this year. Last year, Boston had only 70 confirmed cases. The city has declared a flu emergency.

Governor Patrick has filed a bill to eliminate the 240 public housing authorities and replace them with six regional agencies controlled by nine board members appointed by the governor, three of whom would be nominated by local governments. Some legislators find Patrick’s plan too bold.

20252 is the personal zip code given to “Smokey the Bear” in response to the huge amount of fan mail he receives.

You will dig deeper into your pockets to pay for Medicare. Effective last month, the premium for Part B increased by $5 to $104.90. Medicare recipients spend an average of $4,500 a year out of pocket on health care, according to the nonprofit Medicare Rights Center.

The “Boomer Generation” are those Americans born between 1946 and 1964.

According to recent studies, a glass of wine, either red or white, and beer are good for the heart; but remember, the key to drinking either wine or beer is moderation (one glass for women and two for men).

Selectmen appointed Larry Bogue as the Recreation Commission representative to the Community Preservation Committee.

Two Canton residents, Tim Taylor and Zack Pearlstein, will become full-time Canton police officers after completing the classes at the Police Academy. They will fill the vacancies created by the retirements of Officer Bob Sykes and Sergeant Mark Ronayne.

Super Bowl ads sold for more than $4 million for some 30-second spots for this year’s game, up from $3.5 million last year.

Speaking about millions or billions, billionaire William Koch acquired the 26-acre property of Rachel “Bunny” Mellon, the 102-year-old widow of banking heir Paul Mellon, for $19.5 million. The Osterville waterfront estate on Nantucket Sound includes a 7,000-square-foot house with eight bedrooms and nine bathrooms. Also, from the Banker & Tradesman magazine, 15 Dan Road in Canton was sold to the John J. Flatley Company for $5,750,000.

And finally, UMass Dartmouth senior forward Colleen Moriarty of Canton recently scored a career- and game-high 35 points in a 76-39 win over Plymouth State. Colleen scored her 1,000^th career point in the game. Congratulations to Colleen from MAC.

The problems we face today are there because the people who work for a living are now outnumbered by those who vote for a living.

This is all for now folks. See you next week.

Joe DeFelice can be reached at manaboutcanton@aol.com.

Short URL: https://www.thecantoncitizen.com/?p=18962

Posted by Joe DeFelice on Feb 13 2013. Filed under Featured Content, Man About Canton, Opinion. Both comments and pings are currently closed.