Why is the previous property owner's name on my tax bill?

Massachusetts towns operate on a fiscal year that begins July 1st and ends June 30th.  The assessment date for a given fiscal year is the preceding January 1st.  Taxes for the fiscal year are assessed to the owner of record on the assessment date, but may note a subsequent owner.

For example, July 1, 2020 was the first day of Fiscal Year 2021; June 30, 2021 will be the last day of Fiscal Year 2021.  The assessment date for Fiscal Year 2021 was January 1, 2020.  If Ebenezer W. Peirce purchases a house from John M. Deane after January 1, 2020, then tax bills for Fiscal Year 2021 will be made out to "John M. Deane C/O Ebenezer W. Peirce".

We are often asked to remove a prior owner's name, or to remove the name of a spouse after a divorce.  We cannot remove a name until after the new assessment date.