More than 50 percent of property in the city of Boston — state buildings, church grounds, college campuses, etc. — is tax exempt. These charts, stats, and graphs illustrate Boston’s property tax addiction: rising costs, a declining real estate market, and state restrictions on how much cash the city can collect.

beantown counter[FIGURE 1]

Who oWns What

[FIGURE 6]

hoW mUch boston can lEvy

[FIGURE 2]

Who Pays What

[FIGURE 3]

hoW mUch cItyEmPloyEEs cost

[FIGURE 4]

hoW mUch PRoPERty Is WoRth

[FIGURE 5]

hoW mUch boston sPEnds

Residences account for most of Boston’s land value.

Boston could face trouble if it needs to collect more property taxes than it is entitled to by state law.

Businesses pay the bulk of the property taxes.

Boston’s total budget is on the rise, but the amount of money the city can raise through property taxes is limited.

Residential

65%$56.6 billion

Residential

39%$601 million

total PRoPeRty value$86.8 billion

total PRoPeRty taxes$1.54 billion

2003$1.86 billion

2001$29.23 billion

2004$44.31 billion

2007$59.29 billion

2011$56.53 billion

2011$30.2 billion

2007$27.22 billion

2004$21.83 billion2001

$21.27 billion

2004$1.2 billion

200416,055

200917,277

2001116,277

2008$1.5 billion

2011$1.6 billion

2007$2.19 billion

2007$2.16 billion

2009$2.26 billion

2011$2.17 billion

2007$1.27 billion

2009$1.38 billion

2011$1.54 billion

2009$2.4 billion

2010$2.3 billion

2012$2.39 billion

business

35%$30.2 billion

business

61%$938 million

The price of city workers is skyrocketing, even though the city has slashed jobs to cut costs.

The residential property market has leveled off and is in decline — casting a shadow over the city’s primary revenue source.

numbeR of city woRkeRs

business

How mucH boston can collect

How mucH boston collects

Residential

DATA fRoM BosTon MunicipAl Rese ARch BuRe Au AnD The ciT y of BosTon; GR Aphic By TAyloR ARGenZio

cost of city woRkeRs