A Rutland apartment property tax bill for fiscal year 2027 is built from two rates applied to the building’s assessed value: a city municipal rate of $2.3194 per $100 and a state education rate of $2.0027 per $100 for non-homestead property, for a combined rate of $4.3221. Apartment buildings pay the non-homestead rate, and the education portion of that rate depends on how closely the city’s assessments track market value, which is why the city’s ongoing reappraisal matters so much to owners.
This guide explains each piece of the bill, how Vermont’s statewide system sets the education rate, what the reappraisal underway in Rutland City means, how owners can challenge an assessment, and which state-level changes are scheduled over the next few years. All figures refer to the City of Rutland, which is a separate municipality from the Town of Rutland next door, with its own assessments and its own rates.
Rutland City at a glance
Rutland City sits in Rutland County and is governed separately from the Town of Rutland. The Census Bureau’s QuickFacts profile shows 15,807 residents at the 2020 Census and an estimated 15,363 on July 1, 2025. The owner-occupied housing rate for 2020–2024 was 54.9%, meaning roughly 45% of occupied homes in the city are rented. Median gross rent over the same period was $995, and the median value of an owner-occupied home was $185,500.
Those numbers frame the tax question. With modest rents, property tax is one of the largest expenses in a Rutland apartment building’s budget, and small changes in the rate or the assessment can move net operating income noticeably. A building that rents for less than $1,000 a unit has less room to absorb an increase than a building in a higher-rent market.
The two rates on a Rutland apartment property tax bill
The City of Rutland’s FY2027 tax rate page lists the rates for the fiscal year that began July 1, 2026, per $100 of assessed value:
- City municipal rate: 2.3194 for both homestead and non-homestead property.
- State education rate: 1.6422 for homestead property and 2.0027 for non-homestead property.
- Total rate: 3.9616 for homestead property and 4.3221 for non-homestead property.
The city’s page also lists a separate “SBD rate” of 0.5120 without explaining on that page what it covers or which parcels it applies to. Owners should ask the city treasurer whether that rate appears on their own bill.
Why apartments pay the non-homestead rate
Vermont splits property into two classes for education taxes. A homestead is the owner’s principal dwelling, declared each year. Everything else, including rental apartment buildings, second homes and commercial property, is non-homestead. In Rutland City, the difference in FY2027 is about 36 cents per $100 of assessed value: 4.3221 versus 3.9616.
A worked example
Using the FY2027 rates, an apartment building assessed at $500,000 would owe:
- Municipal tax: $500,000 ÷ 100 × 2.3194 = $11,597.
- Education tax: $500,000 ÷ 100 × 2.0027 = $10,013.50.
- Total: $21,610.50, before any other charges that apply to the parcel.
The same arithmetic works for any assessment. What makes Rutland unusual is the gap between assessed value and market value, which the next section explains.
How Vermont sets the education rate
The education portion of the bill is set through a statewide formula. The Legislature sets a uniform statewide non-homestead rate each year, and each town’s rate is then adjusted to account for how its assessments compare with market value.
For FY2027, Act 169 of 2026, signed on June 18, 2026, set the statewide non-homestead rate at $1.643 per $100 of equalized education property value. The same act set the property yield and income yield that drive homestead rates.
The CLA and the statewide adjustment
Each town’s rate is adjusted using its Common Level of Appraisal, or CLA, which measures assessed values against recent sale prices. Since FY2026, under Act 183 of 2024, every town’s CLA is divided by a single statewide adjustment, a change the Department of Taxes explains on its page about the statewide adjustment method. The department explains that the non-homestead rate is “a uniform, statewide rate” and that “each of these rates is then adjusted by the town’s CLA.”
The Department of Taxes’ FY2027 education property tax rates by town shows how this works for Rutland City:
- CLA: 57.70%.
- Statewide adjustment: 70.33%.
- CLA divided by the statewide adjustment: 0.8204.
- Statewide non-homestead rate: 1.643.
- Rutland City non-homestead rate: 2.0027, which is 1.643 divided by 0.8204.
A CLA of 57.70% means that, on average, properties in Rutland City are assessed at a little under 58% of what they sell for. Because assessments are low relative to market value, the education rate applied to them is higher than the statewide rate. The tax collected is roughly what it would be if properties were assessed at full value and taxed at a lower rate.
For contrast, the same table shows Rutland Town with a CLA of 60.64% and a non-homestead rate of 1.9056. Two buildings with the same market value on either side of the city line can carry different assessments and different rates.
How the rate moved from FY2026
Local reporting by the Rutland Herald put Rutland City’s non-homestead education rate at $1.93 in FY2026, rising to $2.00 in FY2027, and its homestead education rate rising from $1.61 to $1.64. The Department of Taxes’ annual tax rate letter, issued on December 1, 2025, had projected that education property tax bills would rise by a statewide average of 11.9% for FY2027 before the Legislature set the final rates.
The citywide reappraisal and what it means for owners
Rutland City’s low CLA reflects how long it has been since the last full reappraisal. According to the Rutland Herald’s July 2025 report, the city last reappraised all properties in 2006. In July 2024, the state Department of Taxes notified the city that its coefficient of dispersion, a measure of how uneven assessments are from one property to another, required a reappraisal. The city hired New England Municipal Consultants for what the city assessor described as a three-year process that involves visiting every property.
Vermont’s standard is set out in 32 V.S.A. § 4041a. The Department of Taxes’ 2026 annual report on property valuation explains that a municipality must keep its education grand list at a coefficient of dispersion of 20% or below, and that beginning January 1, 2025, a full reappraisal is required every six years unless the state approves a longer period.
What changes after reappraisal
When the reappraisal takes effect, assessments will move much closer to market value. That does not mean every bill rises by the same percentage. Two things happen at once:
- Assessments rise overall, because the city’s CLA will move toward 100%.
- The education rate falls, because a higher CLA reduces the adjustment that currently pushes Rutland City’s rate above the statewide rate. The municipal rate also tends to be recalculated against a larger grand list.
The owners most affected are those whose properties are currently assessed further below market than the city average. A building that has been under-assessed relative to similar properties will see a larger share of the tax burden after reappraisal, while one that has been over-assessed may see relief. Owners can prepare by comparing their current assessment with recent sales of similar buildings and by reviewing the property record card for errors in unit count, square footage or condition.
Grieving and appealing an assessment
Vermont’s appeal process runs in stages, and each has a short deadline.
- Grievance with the assessor. Under 32 V.S.A. § 4111, listers send change-of-appraisal notices by first-class mail at least 14 days before the grievance hearing. Objections must be filed in writing on or before the day of the grievance meeting.
- Board of Civil Authority. Under 32 V.S.A. § 4404, an owner who disagrees with the assessor’s decision may appeal in writing to the city clerk within 14 days after the date of notice of that decision, stating the grounds briefly.
- State appraiser or Superior Court. Under 32 V.S.A. § 4461, an owner may appeal the Board of Civil Authority’s decision to the Director of Property Valuation and Review, where a hearing officer often called the state appraiser hears the case, or to Superior Court, within 30 days after the board’s decision is entered.
The appeal sections of chapter 131 carry notes that they are repealed effective January 1, 2031, under a 2026 law, so the process is scheduled to change. Owners planning a challenge in the next few years should check the current statute before filing.
For apartment owners, the strongest grievances usually rest on documented income and expenses, recent comparable sales and corrections to the physical description of the building. A reappraisal year is when these grievances matter most, because the new values will carry forward until the next reappraisal.
Vermont’s coming changes under Act 73
Vermont’s 2025 education finance law, Act 73, includes provisions that could change how apartment buildings are taxed. According to the Legislature’s Act 73 of 2025 summary:
- A new non-homestead residential class. “As contingently effective July 1, 2028, this act creates a new property tax classification for nonhomestead residential properties.” The summary adds that the class is repealed on July 1, 2028 if the General Assembly does not create a new tax rate multiplier for it.
- Regional assessment districts. “As contingently effective January 1, 2029, this act creates regional assessment districts for the purpose of full reappraisal of grand list properties in a designated region.”
Both provisions are contingent, and neither has a final rate attached yet. For apartment owners, the residential classification is the one to watch, because it could separate rental housing from commercial property for education tax purposes.
Other state taxes and filings that touch Rutland apartments
A few other Vermont rules affect owners at purchase, during ownership and at sale.
Landlord certificates
Under 32 V.S.A. § 6069, the owner of each rental property must file a landlord certificate with the Department of Taxes on or before January 31 of each year, listing each renter, the number and types of units and any accessible units. The department’s page on Vermont landlord certificate requirements notes that tenants no longer need a copy, that landlords with more than five tenants (not counting children) must file online through myVTax, and that non-filers may be fined for each property.
Property transfer tax
Vermont’s property transfer tax under 32 V.S.A. § 9602 is generally 1.25% of the value transferred. A 2026 amendment added a 3.4% rate for residential property fit for year-round use that will not be the buyer’s principal residence and for which the buyer will not be required to file a landlord certificate. Because a buyer of an occupied apartment building will be filing landlord certificates, that purchase generally stays at the 1.25% rate. The statute treats a landlord certificate filed without a genuine landlord-tenant relationship as subject to the higher rate.
Land gains tax
Vermont still has a land gains tax. The Department of Taxes says that land gains tax returns “must be filed for every sale or transfer of land,” and the tax applies to land that was purchased and subdivided by the seller fewer than six years before the sale. Most long-held apartment buildings will fall outside the tax, but owners who bought recently, or who split off a parcel, should confirm whether it applies. The department also lists an exemption for land in a designated downtown district.
The Renter Credit and tenants’ tax filings
Vermont’s Renter Credit is a tenant benefit, not an owner tax, but it explains why the landlord certificate matters. Renters claim the credit on Form RCC-146, and the Department of Taxes says it is based on household income and 10% of HUD’s fair market rent. Claims for the most recent year were due April 15, 2026, with October 15 as the last day the department accepts them. Accurate landlord certificates support those claims.
Inspections at sale and turnover
Rutland City’s building department requires a certificate of occupancy inspection for “all real estate transactions and changes of tenancy within the City.” That is not a tax, but it is a recurring cost and a scheduling step that owners should build into every unit turnover and every sale.
What Rutland owners should do now
The current system and the changes ahead point to a few practical steps:
- Budget at the non-homestead rate. Use 4.3221 per $100 of assessed value for FY2027, and confirm whether the SBD rate applies to your parcel.
- Prepare for reappraisal. Gather rent rolls, expense statements and recent comparable sales now, and review the city’s record of your building for errors.
- Watch both rates, not just your assessment. After reappraisal, a higher assessment will be paired with a lower education rate. The net effect depends on how your building compares with the city average.
- Track Act 73. A separate non-homestead residential class could take effect in 2028 if the Legislature sets a multiplier.
- Model taxes for a buyer. A buyer will underwrite taxes based on post-reappraisal values, not the current bill. Our guide to rent control and property tax by state compares Vermont’s approach with other states.
Owners weighing their options can find local context on our page about selling an apartment building in Rutland, and statewide context on our Vermont market page.
The Rutland tax picture in short
Rutland City apartment owners pay a FY2027 non-homestead rate of $4.3221 per $100 of assessed value, made up of a $2.3194 municipal rate and a $2.0027 education rate. The education rate is higher than the statewide $1.643 because the city’s assessments sit at about 58% of market value, a gap the reappraisal now underway is designed to close. Between that reappraisal, a grievance and appeal process scheduled to change in 2031 and Act 73’s contingent new tax class, the next several years will reshape how Rutland apartment buildings are valued and taxed. Owners who understand each piece of the bill will be better placed to plan for those changes and to recognize when an assessment deserves a challenge.
