Reduced Assessment for Farmland

Land devoted to agricultural or horticultural use may be assessed for property tax purposes or its value. It can also be assessed for its productivity rather than on the market value of the land for any other use.

Qualifications

The land must be a minimum of five acres devoted to agriculture or horticulture for at least two consecutive years prior to the tax year and must continue so until the end of the tax year from which the claim is made.

The land usage must result in product sales or anticipated sales totaling at least $500 per year for the first five acres, plus $5 per acre for each acre over five. This excludes woodland or wetland where the minimum income must be 50 cents per acre for any acreage over five.

The reduced assessment must be applied for on Form FA-1 annually on or before August 1 of the year prior to the tax year. Applications are available at your local tax assessor's office.