What Are the Classes of Property?
Assessors in Massachusetts assign all real property according to its use. The four classes are: Residential, Open Space, Commercial, and Industrial. Personal Property constitutes a separate class. (See "
What is Personal Property?")
Residential
All real property used or held for human habitation containing one or more dwelling units including rooming houses with facilities assigned and used for living, sleeping, cooking and eating on a non-transient basis, and including a bed and breakfast home with no more than three rooms for rent. Such property includes accessory land, buildings or improvements incidental to such habitation and used exclusively by the residents of the property or their guests. Such property shall include: (i) land that is situated in a residential zone and has been subdivided into residential lots, and (ii) land used for the purpose of a manufactured housing community, as defined in Chapter 140, §32F. Such property shall not include a hotel or motel.
Open Space
Land which is not otherwise classified and which is not taxable under the provisions of Chapter 61, 61A, or 61B, or taxable under a permanent conservation restriction, and which land is not held for the production of income but is maintained in an open or natural condition and which contributes significantly to the benefit and enjoyment of the public.
Commercial
All real property used or held for use for business purposes and not specifically included in another class, including but not limited to any commercial, business, retail, trade, service, recreational, agricultural, artistic, sporting, fraternal, governmental, educational, medical or religious enterprise for non-profit purposes.
Industrial
All real property used or held for use for manufacturing, milling, converting, producing, processing, extracting or fabricating materials unserviceable in their natural state to create commercial products or materials; the mechanical, chemical or electronic transformation of property into new products and any use that is identical to or an integral part of such use, whether for profit or non-profit purposes; property used or held for uses for the storage transmitting and generating of utilities.