When Emily Calandrelli purchased her new home on Chapin Road late last year, she was expecting to pay $13,299 in property taxes.

But last month Ms. Calandrelli received a "notification of property value change" from the town's tax assessor. The notice stated that her home's assessment had been adjusted and her tax bill had increased to $18,291.

"I was astounded," said Ms. Calandrelli. "Barrington has good services. But I can't justify over $18,000 for good garbage pickup."

The longtime resident went to Barrington Town Hall and met with the tax assessor, Michael Minardi, to learn more about the assessment change.

"They just said it was a Supreme Court ruling," said Ms. Calandrelli. 

Mr. Minardi said a ruling issued by the Rhode Island Supreme Court in May 2018 allows municipalities the opportunity to update property assessments at the end of each year, and not just every three years with the town-wide revaluations. The changes are a result of "either a transfer of your home, or recent building permits…"

Mr. Minardi said he altered assessments for about 450 properties in town and notified the owners shortly after the May 22 financial town meeting when the new tax rate was set. Mr. Minardi said he received calls from less than a half-dozen residents regarding the altered assessments.

For Ms. Calandrelli, the change was completely unexpected. She purchased the home in Oct. 2018 for $910,000, which was more than $200,000 higher than the property's assessment which was $682,000. 

In years past, the assessment would remain the same until Barrington conducted a revaluation. But now, Mr. Minardi is able to update the assessments annually. 

"It is part of my job to correct those assessments. They were wrong," said Mr. Minardi. "The market is a perfect animal."

Shocked

Ms. Calandrelli said she was prepared to see some tax increases prior to the reval, depending on the annual financial town meeting. But the arrival of the "Notification of Property Value Change" was a shock.

"I had no idea," said Ms. Calandrelli. "The realtors had no idea. No one had forewarned me about this. If someone had, I never would have looked in Barrington."

Ms. Calandrelli stopped into the local Residential Properties office to discuss the situation with agents there. 

"After I spoke with Mr. Minardi, I went to Residential Properties, their jaws dropped," she said. 

Ian Barnacle is the manager for the local Residential Properties office. He said Barrington is the only community in Rhode Island that has implemented the assessment change. He said local Real Estate offices and agents were not notified in advance of the change.

"It's been a negative for a lot of our clients," said Mr. Barnacle. "The (Barrington) market is still doing well, but this is going to be a factor."

Mr. Barnacle said the new approach to assessments could impact the number of people who qualify for a mortgage. He said qualification depends on the mortgage loan amount, the taxes and the insurance. 

"We haven't had deals fall through yet," said Mr. Barnacle. "So far, families have been able to absorb this."

The real estate office manager said he knows of a few homes for sale that could be impacted negatively by the town's new approach to assessments. One home, he said, is listed on the market for $800,000, but its assessment is $550,000.

Mr. Barnacle said the town should have educated people about the upcoming change.

Ms. Calandrelli said that if she had known about the new approach to assessments, she would not have purchased her home on Chapin Road. Now, she feels that she has no choice but to sell her home and move to a different town.

"I've lived here for more than 25 years… All my friends are here," she said. "I'm really sad. I'm sad that I have to leave.

"I would like to know, did Mr. Minardi do this on his own? Did the town council have to approve this?"

Mr. Minardi said he did not seek, nor did he need to seek, approval from the council. He also said other towns would be foolish to not do the same and change the assessment process. 

Ms. Calandrelli said she feels the town has made the change so it can collect more tax revenue. 

"It's about money. It's about getting more and more money," she said. 

"I'm extremely frustrated. I'm angry that I have to move again. I'm really sad I have to leave my community," Ms. Calandrelli said. "Mr. Minardi said I should get a smaller house… I don't think it's up to him to tell me what size house to live in.

"I'm just really sad I have to leave. If the town has this attitude of I don't care or entitlement, then I don't think I belong here anymore. That's not how I think."