AUBURN — City councilors say they must consider ways to help seniors and stabilize property taxes for homeowners in response to officials and city staff fielding calls and concerns regarding large increases in property tax bills.

During a council discussion this week, city staff attempted to explain the reasons why some property owners saw considerable increases this year, and officials believe a full revaluation could help reverse the recent tax burden shift onto homeowners.

City Manager Phil Crowell said market adjustments conducted this year added some $200 million in valuation to the city, meaning many property owners were taxed on a higher value — something that residents across the state are experiencing due to the red-hot housing market.

Market adjustments are done by assessing offices in order to keep a municipality in compliance with state rules. If properties are not assessed at 100%, the state penalizes municipalities by not awarding full Homestead Exemptions for homes and more.

Crowell shared a comparison of a tax bill from 2023 to this year, which showed the property owner’s valuation increasing by about $27,000. As a result, their tax bill increased by about $500, even as the property tax rate decreased by 50 cents.

Crowell said if the market adjustments weren’t conducted, the same tax bill would’ve been roughly $3 more due to a higher property tax rate and a reduced Homestead Exemption.

Finance Director Kelsey Earle said one reason the city has received a high number of calls is because of the state’s tax stabilization program from last year. She said last year, market adjustments were only done for multifamily properties, but anyone who applied for the state’s stabilization program wouldn’t have seen the tax increase. However, now that the program has lapsed, those property owners are seeing two years worth of increases. For some, that could be roughly $1,000, Crowell said.

One senior resident, who owns a multifamily property, told officials his taxes went up 40%. Single-family homes also saw market adjustments to valuations this year, but saw no change last year, Crowell said. Auburn also did an adjustment for single-family homes in 2022.

Councilors said they’re concerned for property owners seeing 20% to 25% tax increases over the past three years.

Councilor Leroy Walker said seniors on fixed incomes don’t suddenly collect another $500 to make up for increased taxes.

“At the end of the year, they can’t afford that, and some people have a much larger increase,” he said. “As councilors sitting up here, we’ve got to find a way to protect our senior citizens.”

Walker said city officials have been talking about protecting seniors from large increases since he was first elected, and now he’s one of them.

“We’ve taxed these people out of their homes, pretty much, over the last 10 years,” he said, adding that seniors are also seeing costs increase for food and medicine. “The golden years are only the years when you pee in the toilet bowl. That’s the only gold you ever see. I happen to be one of those senior citizens that’s getting poorer and poorer.”

Auburn officials have previously discussed starting a full revaluation in 2026, which would be implemented in 2029.

Mayor Jeff Harmon said he’s hoping a revaluation can help the assessing office get more accurate values for other property classes like commercial and industrial. He said without a full revaluation, the assessor is limited to the data on hand, and that data is derived from recent sales.

City Assessor Karen Scammon has previously said Auburn continues to see some homes sold for more than double their assessed value.

“The assessor does not have a lot of leeway in the way they apply this,” Harmon said, adding that he’s hoping a revaluation can “reverse the disproportionate shift onto homeowners.”

Crowell urged residents with concerns to reach out to City Hall, and staff can review an individual’s bill.

Auburn is not alone in the significant valuation changes that have taken place over the past few years as Maine real estate prices have ballooned. Residents in Lewiston this year voted on the school budget three times, with many residents stating they were voting against the budget because it was the only way to directly voice their opposition to property tax increases.

Lewiston is also in the middle of conducting a full revaluation. While the city has continually done market adjustments to maintain compliance with state rules, property owners enrolled in the Homestead Exemption only see a partial exemption.