By Northern Value Consultants · Published
If you own a home in Manchester, you may have opened a letter this fall with a new assessed value that made you look twice. The city did its required revaluation this year, its first since 2021, and the new numbers are meant to reflect market value as of April 1, 2026 (Manchester Ink Link). Hudson and Nashua are on different timelines, but the rules for questioning an assessment are the same across New Hampshire. Here is a plain-language guide.
Why assessments are changing
New Hampshire requires every city and town to reassess property at least once every five years (Town of Hudson). Meanwhile, home prices have kept climbing. New Hampshire REALTORS reported a statewide median single-family sale price of $569,900 in September 2026, up 6.5 percent from a year earlier (NHAR).
Manchester: Revaluation done for 2026. City officials expect the 2026 tax rate to be significantly lower than last year's, but it will not be final until November, and individual bills may go up or down (Manchester Ink Link).
Nashua: No revaluation in 2026. The city expects the next one in 2028 (Nashua Ink Link).
Hudson: A revaluation is planned for the 2027 tax year, based on sales generally from April 1, 2025 through April 1, 2027 (Town of Hudson).
A higher assessment is not automatically a higher bill
As Hudson's assessing page explains, when values rise across town, the tax rate is adjusted downward (Town of Hudson). The real question is whether your home is assessed fairly compared with similar homes.
The deadline to remember: March 1
If you think your assessment is too high, you can file an abatement application with your city or town. If your final tax bill is mailed on or before December 31, the deadline is March 1. If it is mailed after December 31, you have two months from the bill date (NH BTLA). For the 2026 tax year, that usually means March 1, 2027 (NH Municipal Association). Keep paying your taxes as billed while you wait. If an abatement is granted, the state form says you get a refund with interest (BTLA abatement form).
What you will need to show
The state's abatement form asks you to show what your home was worth on the assessment date, and that your "equalized assessment" is higher than that value. To find it, divide your assessment by your town's equalization ratio. For example, Nashua's 2025 ratio was 90.4 percent (City of Nashua). The form notes that market value can be supported with an appraisal or with sales of comparable homes (BTLA abatement form).
Simple steps to take now
Check your property record card. Look for wrong square footage, bedroom or bath counts, or condition. Errors in the physical description are a recognized reason for an abatement (NH DRA).
Look at recent nearby sales of homes like yours.
Note the date your final tax bill is mailed so you know your deadline.
Consider an independent appraisal valued as of the assessment date, usually April 1.
We are here to help
Northern Value Consultants is based right here in Hudson and works with homeowners across Southern New Hampshire and Northern Massachusetts. If you would like a clear, independent opinion of your home's value as of the assessment date, we would be glad to help. Learn more about our tax abatement appeal appraisals, or order an appraisal and we will take it from there.