‘Time of new expansion’

Wilton’s grand list jumps by 28.5% to $5.7 billion

WILTON — The town saw tremendous growth in its new grand list after conducting a revaluation due to higher-than-typical increases in residential and commercial property values, according to town officials.

The value of the personal, motor vehicle and real estate properties owned by residents and businesses in town added up to $5,701,971,931 — up 28.5 percent from 2022, according to documentation Hearst Connecticut Media acquired through a Freedom of Information Act request.

“We are living through a time of new expansion,” First Selectwoman Toni Boucher said in a recent statement.

The sharp increase in the grand list will allow the town to significantly reduce its mill rate, Boucher said.

The $5.7 billion grand list comprises the net value of $258,652,405 in motor vehicles, $308,113,352 in personal property, and $5,135,206,174 in combined residential and commercial real estate, the data shows.

The real estate category makes up 90.1 percent of the net assessed value of all Wilton’s property, according to the data.

The new grand list shows the large increase in real estate values in Wilton since the town’s last revaluation and since COVID-19, when home prices and sales soared. The grand list serves as the basis for the budget and tax rate in town.

The confluence of rising property assessments, a $130 millionplus needed repairs and maintenance to Wilton’s school and municipal buildings, and Moody’s credit rating agency requiring more capital reserves for AAA rating seems like “everything is hitting at once” in Wilton, Boucher said in the recent newsletter.

“In many cases, it’s not that these enormous bills are appearing from nowhere, but that during a long period of restriction, so many needs were deferred, until now, when putting them off is no longer possible,” she said.

Real estate

In January, Boucher said she was certain that property values would increase pending the town’s revaluation. “There will be increases in people’s home values, no question,” she said two weeks after the new year.

The $5.1 billion real estate slice of Wilton’s total property reflects significant increases in the town’s 6,982 residential and commercial properties — representing the vast majority of the grand list.

Wilton residents’ homes increased by an average of 37 percent, while commercial properties increased by about 15 percent on average, according to the town.

At the top of the town’s grand list is ASML’s facility at 77 Danbury Road, with a net assessed value of $62.5 million.

Also, 553 properties saw complete net assessment exemptions; at the top of that list was Wilton’s Town Hall, which had a gross assessment of over $63 million but a net assessment of zero.

There were 1,072 properties with a net assessment at $1 million or more each, and 21 properties with a net assessment of $10 million or more each.

Motor vehicles

Wilton residents’ motor vehicles accounted for 4.5 percent of the town’s grand list.

There were 15,589 assessed motor vehicles in Wilton in 2023, which netted $258,652,405. The most expensive vehicle in town in 2023 was a 2019 Ferrari 488 Pista, valued at $353,640.

The oldest car in town in 2023 was a 1920 Ford Model T with a net assessment of $500. Last year, it was one of 40 vehicles made in 1950 or earlier and one of 818 vehicles made before 2000.

Personal property

Personal property accounted for 5.4 percent of the town’s grand list. Of the 1,084 personal property items tallied in the town’s grand list, the highest assessed net value belongs to a $144,589,460 in equipment belonging to Connecticut Light and Power Co., doing business as Eversource.

There were 15 items of personal property with a net assessed value of $1 million or more — representing 1.4 percent of the assessed net value of all personal property in Wilton.

Finance board Chair Matt Raimondi said in January that personal property usually is the lowest of the three categories on the grand list.

The finance board held public hearings on the Board of Selectmen’s budget and on the Board of Education’s budget earlier this month.