Residents in Town may have noted that the tax amounts on their personal property and/or motor vehicles have risen this year. The Winchester Assessors' Office would like to share information with you about what may contribute to changes on your tax bill.
Personal Property: Taxable personal property is tangible property other than real estate and registered motor vehicles, as described in Sections 12-41 & 71 of the Connecticut General Statutes. Examples include, but are not limited to: non-residential (owned by business) furniture, fixtures, equipment, computer equipment, tools, machinery, horses, mobile offices or storage trailers, signs, leasehold improvements, leased equipment and non-registered motor vehicles. Please note that personal property such as residential, owned by an individual and NOT a business, furnishings, clothing and jewelry is not taxable. Thus, there are some home businesses that are on record as existing with the Town that may see personal property tax fees this year.
Motor Vehicles: In Connecticut, motor vehicle taxes are based on values provided by the National Automobile Dealers Association (NADA). The assessed value that you are taxed on is based on the average value of that make, model, and year of your vehicle as reported by the NADA. Used car values increasing dramatically over the past year or so are not unique to Connecticut as this is a nationwide trend. The New York Times recently reported that between May 2020 and May 2021, used car and used truck prices went up an average of 29.7%. For every car that has seen steady value or decreasing value, there are some used vehicle values that went up over 50%. Tax bills are generated based on this value and therefore, fluctuations are not uncommon.
Please feel free to contact the Assessors' Office with any questions about motor vehicles or personal property taxes at (860) 379-5461. More information about these assessments can be found here.
Please see links below for additional information:
https://www.caranddriver.com/news/a35716231/car-dealers-profitable-2020-...
https://www.marketwatch.com/story/this-is-exactly-how-much-car-prices-ha...)
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/09/07/business/used-cars-pandemic.html
https://www.wsj.com/articles/car-sales-are-down-almost-20-but-prices-are...
https://www.cnbc.com/2020/12/29/how-to-find-a-good-end-of-year-deal-if-i...
https://www.npr.org/2020/10/28/927971920/a-pandemic-sticker-shock-used-c...