Alewife Area Assessed Value and Tax Revenue, 2013-2019

This report shows assessed value and estimated tax revenue from properties in the Alewife area, including the Triangle, Quadrangle, Discovery Park/Acorn Park, WR Grace, Fresh Pond Mall, and New Street.

Assessed value has increased significantly since 2013

Total assessed value in the Alewife area has more than doubled, from $1.20 billion in 2013 to $2.90 billion in 2019.

Assessed value ($ million)
Year	Commercial	Residential	Total
2013	$813	$383	$1,196
2014	$889	$454	$1,343
2015	$923	$648	$1,570
2016	$993	$811	$1,804
2017	$1,211	$996	$2,208
2018	$1,329	$1,183	$2,512
2019	$1,427	$1,469	$2,896

Tax revenues have increased 37% in six years

Tax revenue from properties in the Alewife area increased from $20.30 million in 2013 to $27.80 million in 2019.

Tax revenue ($ million)
Year	Commercial	Residential	Total
2013	$17.47	$2.80	$20.27
2014	$18.18	$3.23	$21.41
2015	$17.80	$4.64	$22.43
2016	$17.59	$5.22	$22.81
2017	$19.53	$6.03	$25.55
2018	$19.68	$6.98	$26.66
2019	$19.57	$8.23	$27.79

Tax rates have declined

Tax rates have steadily declined from 2014 to 2019.

Year	Residential Rate	Commercial Rate	Residential Exemption
2013	8.66	21.50	$1,755
2014	8.38	20.44	$1,807
2015	7.82	19.29	$1,873
2016	6.99	17.71	$1,943
2017	6.49	16.12	$2,046
2018	6.29	14.81	$2,132
2019	5.94	13.71	$2,232

Tax revenue increased more slowly than assessed value

The year-over-year percent change in assessed value is much greater than the change in tax revenue and greater than can be accounted for by inflation.

Location of properties

The map below shows the properties in the study area. Tooltips show estimated tax revenue for the selected year. Click on a property for more information.

Notes:

Commercial taxes are computed as valuation × tax rate.
Residential taxes shown account for the residential tax exemption but not for other exemptions such as senior, veteran, etc.
Residential exemptions for 2013 & 2015 were not availble; values were estimated from the 2014 & 2016 exemptions.
Tax-exempt properties are not shown.
Shelter CPI from Bureau of Labor Statistics is offset by one year to match the date of assessments.

Many thanks to the Cambridge IT Department, Cambridge Open Data, & Cambridge GIS for help with this report.

Parcel and assessment data is from the Cambridge Open Data Portal, Cambridge property tax bills and City staff. Details here.