Westwood, MA: town finances
Low debt and solid savings (12% of budget); little room under the tax cap; an override vote possible.
Budget grade
Better than 78% of MA towns · score 88 of 100
Ability to pay
Top 10% for income and property value
Shown separately; not part of the budget grade. Income per resident $94,692 (Census ACS 2020-24); property value (EQV) per resident $448,374 (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
Westwood: a resilient town, with strong reserves, taxing room and no override vote since 2007
Westwood also appears in: The wealthiest big suburbs: fewer students, costlier schools, tax bills ahead of inflation
Key numbers
| Measure | Westwood | Median MA town |
|---|---|---|
| Typical tax bill, FY2026 (average single-family) | $16,097 | $6,755 |
| Tax bill as a share of median household income | 7.2% | 6.4% |
| Tax bill growth per year, FY2016-26 | 4.55% | 3.95% |
| Override vote dates, last 5 years | No | 35% of towns had one |
| Savings (reserves), % of budget, FY2024-26 average | 12.0% | 7.3% |
| Debt, % of property value, FY2023-25 (voter-approved debt at half weight) | 1.22% | 0.70% |
| Debt payments inside the tax cap, % of budget | 3.2% | 1.3% |
| Unused room under the tax cap, FY2026 (% of max levy) | 1.31% | 0.34% |
| School enrollment, 5-year change | -4% | -2% |
| Students per teacher, 2025-26 | 12.2 | 11.4 |
| Median single-family sale price, 2024 | $1.2M (131 sales) | $614k |
| Single-family price change, 2019-24 | +47.3% | +52.8% |
| Median household income (Census, 2020-24) | $223,125 | $113,750 |
| Population (DLS) | 16,231 | 10,585 |
Main school district: Westwood. 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 B, solid (88/100; better than 78% of MA towns): reserves averaged 12% of budget over FY2024-26 (state median 7.3%); debt 1.22% of property value with voter-approved debt at half weight (1.56% before; median 0.70%); debt payments inside the tax cap 3.2% of budget (median 1.3%). 45% 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): little room under the tax cap (1.31% of max levy, +2); voter-approved debt or capital increase passed since July 2021 (+1); school spending grew 3.9%/yr vs 3.9%/yr for the tax cap limit, FY2020-2025 (+1).
Context, not scored
Teacher jobs +1.5% last year; enrollment -4% over 5 yrs; tax bill 7.2% 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 →