In its March issue, Boston Magazine named Swampscott one of the Top 5 most affordable towns in Greater Boston, but the ever increasing taxes to homeowners might tell a different story.

“It’s not just the cost of buying it. It’s the total ownership,” said Swampscott Housing Authority Chair Charles Patsios, who is also on the Board of Assessors.  

In Town Administrator Nick Connors’ March 18 budget proposal,the $67,281,364 tax levy would increase residential property tax rates by $0.70 per thousand, to $12.70. This marks a $0.17 per thousand reduction from Connor’s original proposal.

At the March 2 draft budget meeting, Connors noted the figures are estimates that will be refined once the final budget is adopted and the tax rate is set in December.

“If your assessments aren’t keeping pace with everything else, the only mechanism the Select Board has is to raise the tax rate,” Patsios said. “Your house is worth less and your taxes are worth more. There’s no such thing as equity in taxes.”

An assessor’s role, Patsios said, is to bring property values in line with the market while lowering the tax rate. Patsios said this is why a full-time assessor is so imperative to the town.

Boston Magazine evaluated 141 communities based on safety, mobility, education, entertainment, and housing – factors that helped Swampscott stand out. But affordability goes deeper than those metrics, Patsios said.

Even if someone could “buy more houses in Swampscott” compared to a neighboring town like Marblehead, the total ownership and outside expenses is what creates a true “affordable” town, Patsios said. Rising costs – such as utilities, municipal properties, education, and staff turnover – drive the town’s need for revenue, resulting in higher taxes for residents. The idea of affordability goes beyond just the cost of a house, Patsios said.

“Right now what we’re trying to cut ourselves out of a deficit. You can’t cut your way out of a deficit. It’s a deficit. You need more money,” Patsios said.

Boston Magazine, though, credited Melissa Weinand, of the Proper Nest Real Estate, to saying that “prices are softening,” as “listings with price reductions jumped 30% last year and condo prices per square foot dropped 17%.”

Yet the “vacationland” lifestyle with “year-round appeal” may not be as affordable as it sounds  for the exact reasons Weinand and Boston Magazine claim it’s attractive – “a brand-new elementary school, a growing restaurant scene and an ongoing overhaul of Vinnin Square that’ll add green space and refreshed retail.”

Without additional revenue, projects like Hawthorne-by-the-Sea, the Hadley Hotel, and potential school redevelopment could further burden residents.

“The only way we can turn that around is to allow Marzie Galazka and the development people to do what they do best, which is bring in smart, managed, defined growth, which brings in discretionary income, which feeds businesses, which makes everything alive and vibrant,” Patsios said. “If we don’t do that and we continue doing what we’re doing, we’re going to continue to get what we got, and nobody likes it.”

Patsios, who is also a candidate for the Select Board, suggested that the town can think of more out-of-the-box solutions such as combining the former-Hadley School property with the former-Hawthorne-by-the-Sea property to form a functional area with premium hotel space, restaurants and space for amenities like spas, massages and self-care services.

“Anyone that’s coming to a wedding here is going to immerse themselves, going for a walk, going to the beach, everything is there. And if you want to go into Boston, the train is right there,” Patsios said. “But if you’re not a business person – man or woman – and you don’t do it for a living, how are you supposed to come up with these ideas?”