Wellesley, MA: town finances
Low debt and solid savings (13% of budget); almost no room under the tax cap; an override vote possible.
Budget grade
Better than 93% of MA towns · score 95 of 100
± Borderline: the score is within 2 points of the A/B cutoff, so a small change in the data could move the budget grade.
Ability to pay
Top 5% for income and property value
Shown separately; not part of the budget grade. Income per resident $111,798 (Census ACS 2020-24); property value (EQV) per resident $586,124 (DLS 2024).
Chance of an override vote
4 points on our 0-8 scale: Low 0-2, Medium 3-4, High 5+. It ranks towns; it is not a percentage.
The story in charts
Wellesley: deep reserves, but it taxes at the cap while enrollment falls 23%
The next chart estimates Wellesley's structural gap under Prop 2½: what it costs to keep running the town at its recent pace, against what it can raise without a vote. They are estimates, not reported deficits. Towns must balance their budgets, so a gap gets closed with cuts, reserves, fees or an override vote. Method and other towns
Wellesley's budget is on track to fall about $1,000 per home short by 2031
Wellesley also appears in: School budgets grew faster than 2.5% a year in all eight towns, even where students left · Cost per student rose 44–71% in seven of eight towns, while enrollment fell in six · The wealthiest big suburbs: fewer students, costlier schools, tax bills ahead of inflation
Key numbers
| Measure | Wellesley | Median MA town |
|---|---|---|
| Typical tax bill, FY2026 (average single-family) | $20,551 | $6,755 |
| Tax bill as a share of median household income | ≤8.2% | 6.4% |
| Tax bill growth per year, FY2016-26 | 3.93% | 3.95% |
| Override vote dates, last 5 years | No | 35% of towns had one |
| Savings (reserves), % of budget, FY2024-26 average | 13.3% | 7.3% |
| Debt, % of property value, FY2023-25 (voter-approved debt at half weight) | 0.76% | 0.70% |
| Debt payments inside the tax cap, % of budget | 2.3% | 1.3% |
| Unused room under the tax cap, FY2026 (% of max levy) | 0.07% | 0.34% |
| School enrollment, 5-year change | -11% | -2% |
| Students per teacher, 2025-26 | 10.5 | 11.4 |
| Median single-family sale price, 2024 | $2.3M (240 sales) | $614k |
| Single-family price change, 2019-24 | +48.1% | +52.8% |
| Median household income (Census, 2020-24) | $250,000+ (Census cap) | $113,750 |
| Population (DLS) | 30,524 | 10,585 |
Main school district: Wellesley. Shaded = worse than the median town on tax bill share or enrollment. Medians are across all 351 towns with data.
Why this budget grade
Budget grade A, excellent (95/100, near the A/B line; better than 93% of MA towns): reserves averaged 13% of budget over FY2024-26 (state median 7.3%); debt 0.76% of property value with voter-approved debt at half weight (1.23% before; median 0.70%); debt payments inside the tax cap 2.3% of budget (median 1.3%). 77% of debt payments are voter-approved and paid outside the cap.
Why this chance of an override vote
Chance of an override vote: Medium (4 pts): almost no unused room under the tax cap (0.07% of max levy, +3); voter-approved debt or capital increase passed since July 2021 (+1).
Context, not scored
Teacher jobs -1.7% last year; enrollment -12% over 5 yrs; tax bill up to 8.2% of median income (state median 6.4%).
"pts" are points toward the chance of an override vote. Max levy is the most the town can raise without a vote under Prop 2½. See how the budget grade works.
See this town in the full data table →