A New Milford property tax bill used to depend on the house. Since July 2026 it also depends on the person who lived in it. The town's homestead exemption takes 10% off the assessed value of an owner-occupied primary home. So when a seller who lives in the house quotes their annual taxes, that number has the exemption built in. A buyer who closes after October 1, or who plans to use the house as a weekend place or a rental, may not get the same bill.
The exemption has gone through one tax cycle. About 6,000 homeowners claimed it, assessor Brian Lastra told CT Insider in October 2026. The town had mailed roughly 10,000 applications to owners of single- and two-family homes. Filing for the next cycle closes December 31, 2026, about eight weeks after this post goes up. Anyone buying or selling in New Milford this winter is dealing with that calendar whether they know it or not.
The Date That Decides It Is October 1
The town's 2026 homestead application is clear about timing. To claim the exemption on the October 1, 2026 grand list, you must have owned the property and made it your permanent residence on or before October 1, 2026. You must also file by December 31, 2026. Bills for that grand list go out on or about July 1, 2027. If you miss the December 31 deadline, the town treats it as a waiver of the exemption for that year.
That date has real consequences for anyone closing this fall. On the published rules, a buyer who takes title on November 15, 2026 wasn't the owner on October 1. They don't qualify for the 2026 grand list. On the town's annual cycle, their first chance comes with the October 1, 2027 grand list.
| Your situation | First grand list you could claim | Filing deadline | First bill that could reflect it |
|---|---|---|---|
| Owned and lived in the home by Oct. 1, 2026 | Oct. 1, 2026 | Dec. 31, 2026 | About July 1, 2027 |
| Close and move in between Oct. 2, 2026 and Oct. 1, 2027 | Oct. 1, 2027 | Dec. 31, 2027 | About July 1, 2028 |
| Buying as a second home or investment property | Not eligible | Not applicable | Not applicable |
The second row is worked out from the town's annual October 1 and December 31 cycle described on the assessor's homestead page. If you're closing in that window, confirm your own timing with the Assessor's Office at (860) 355-6070.
What the Gap Is Worth
The town's average figures give a sense of scale. Lastra told CT Insider that the average New Milford home is assessed at about $317,000. The 10% exemption cuts that by $31,000, which works out to about $725 in average savings at the town's 23.5 mill rate.
Using those rounded numbers, a home at that average assessment would owe about $7,450 a year without the exemption and about $6,720 with it. For a buyer who closes after October 1, 2026, the exemption in their own name could first appear on the bill due about July 1, 2028, provided they file on time in 2027. The July 2027 bill is set on the 2026 grand list, which reflects who owned the home on October 1, 2026. A second-home buyer pays the higher figure every year, because the ordinance applies only to primary residences, not second homes or investment properties, as Mayor Pete Bass told CT Insider when the council approved it in September 2025.
The mill rate behind those numbers is new too. New Milford's 2025 revaluation pushed the grand list from $3.1 billion to $4.3 billion, an increase of nearly 30%, according to CT Insider's March 2026 budget coverage. Bass said the revaluation shifted tax burden from businesses toward residential taxpayers. Tax Collector Nancy McGavic told CT Insider that officials lowered the mill rate from 30.96 to 23.5 for the bills due in July 2026. She also said properties didn't all change by the same percentage, which varied with commercial or residential classification, location and building style. A lower rate on a higher assessment can move any given bill either way. The exemption is one more variable on top of that.
The Exemption Covers Less of the Property Than the Bill Does
According to the application, the 10% applies to the assessed value of the lot, up to 1 acre, and the primary dwelling. The town's FY27 Property Tax Estimator says it more plainly: extra land and accessory structures don't qualify.
On a house with a few acres, a detached barn or a separate studio, the savings will be well under 10% of the full assessment. The $725 average fits a typical lot. It won't fit a small farm on Route 7. The estimator compares current taxes with projected ones and comes with its own disclaimer about precision. It's still the closest thing the town offers to a property-specific number.
You may have seen the exemption described as taxing primary homes on 60% of value rather than 70%, which is how Bass put it in CT Insider's March coverage. The town's application sets it as 10% of assessed value, and the assessor's average-savings math follows that version.
Who Qualifies, and What Resets It
The town's eligibility rules go beyond simply living in the house. By October 1, the application requires you to:
- Be a permanent resident of Connecticut and of New Milford
- Own the property and make it your permanent residence
- Hold no other residency-based property benefit in another state or Connecticut town, such as a Florida Homestead or New York STAR or Enhanced STAR
The application asks for a Connecticut driver's license or ID number, the plate of the vehicle you mainly drive and confirmation that your DMV tax town is New Milford. CT Insider reported that the first round of screening checked whether claimed homes matched applicants' driver's licenses and Motor Vehicle Department records. Buyers coming from New York should expect the town to look at where their car is registered and whether a STAR benefit is still active elsewhere.
After approval, the exemption renews every year as long as you still qualify. Several changes require a new filing. Moving to another house within New Milford does, and so does any deed change: adding or removing a name, or putting the property into a trust or life estate. That catches long-time owners as well as buyers. An owner who moves the house into a trust as part of estate planning has to reapply. Knowingly and willfully giving false information on the application can mean revocation, plus the extra tax and interest.
Applications go to the Assessor's Office by mail or in person. Determinations for the current cycle arrive as a Notice of Assessment in February 2027.
A Sale Mid-Year Is Where the Rules Run Thin
The state law behind the ordinance, Connecticut General Statutes §12-81oo, lets towns exempt between 5% and 35% of assessed value for owner-occupied primary residences of no more than two units, condominiums included. The statute doesn't say what happens when a home sells partway through a tax year. New Milford's application deals with transfers only by requiring the new owner to file their own application.
So how a July 2027 bill is split between a seller who held the exemption and a buyer who closed in, say, March 2027 is something to raise with your closing attorney and the assessor before the contract is signed, not after.
For sellers, it's a matter of presenting the numbers clearly. If your annual tax figure includes the exemption, say so, and know your gross figure as well. A buyer looking at a second home in Gaylordsville or a rental near Candlewood Lake is comparing the number on your listing with a bill they will never actually receive.
New Milford Chose the Low End of the Range
At 10%, New Milford sits near the bottom of the 5% to 35% range the statute allows. That helps explain why the savings are modest and why the burden shifted onto non-qualifying property is limited. Other towns are looking at much larger versions. Stratford's Town Council adopted a 35% homestead reduction to replace its assessment phase-in starting in 2027, according to the CT Post. The same report said the shifted burden falls on some multifamily owners, landlords who don't live on site, and commercial and industrial property, and that officials raised concerns about rent increases. In Woodbridge, a subcommittee looked at a 15% scenario that would raise the mill rate from 33.99 to about 39.19, as the town's own August 2026 report on the discussion shows.
That's useful context if you're comparing New Milford with other towns. Wherever a homestead exemption exists, the mill rate is set for a smaller taxable base. Owners who don't qualify pay that rate on their full assessment. The larger the exemption, the larger that gap gets.
Questions Buyers Ask
If the seller has the exemption, does it transfer to me? No. The application requires a new filing after any change in ownership, and you have to meet the October 1 ownership and residency test yourself.
I'm closing in December 2026. Should I file by December 31? The 2026 application requires ownership and permanent residence on or before October 1, 2026. Confirm your situation with the Assessor's Office before you count on a filing.
Does the exemption cover my whole property? It covers the primary dwelling and up to 1 acre of the lot. Extra land and accessory structures are taxed without it.
I'm keeping a New York STAR benefit for now. Can I still apply? The application rules out applicants who hold another residency-based property benefit, and STAR is named specifically.
This post is general information about a local tax program, not legal, tax or financial advice. Confirm how the rules apply to your purchase or sale with the New Milford Assessor's Office, your attorney or your tax professional.
If a New Milford purchase or sale is on your calendar this winter, closing dates and the October 1 cutoff are worth discussing early. McGrath Realty can help you plan a contract timeline and a tax picture that match the way you'll actually use the house. Contact McGrath Realty.
