The town of Burgaw is increasing its tax rate.
The town’s newly adopted budget went into effect on July 1, and with it comes an increased property tax rate, as well as a brand-new tax for some properties. The decision to raise taxes comes after the state decided to freeze property revaluations, keeping home values at their 2019 levels while costs have continued to rise.
Burgaw’s adopted budget will fund enhancements to public safety and infrastructure improvements as future growth looms. With close to 1,000 new homes on the way -- nearly the same amount as the town’s current stock -- the budget aims to prepare Burgaw for the years to come.
Higher taxes
Burgaw’s 2026-27 adopted budget raised the tax rate by 4 cents, going from 60 cents to 64 cents per $100 valuation.
According to the town’s budget overview, that comes out to around $100 more per year for a home valued at $250,000.
On top of that, the town is levying a brand-new municipal downtown service tax -- an extra 10 cents per $100 that only applies to properties in downtown Burgaw. Some properties, including government buildings and churches, are exempt, leaving around 70 taxable properties in the district.
The revenue will be reserved for capital improvements to the district.
Service costs, including sewer and trash, also rose. The town estimated it would cost each resident less than $5 per month.
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What’s being funded
Burgaw’s enhanced budget is around 7% larger than the previous year, or about $735,000 in additional spending.
To put things into perspective, it’s mostly employment that drives these costs. Over half the total budget goes toward employee salaries and benefits.
Broken down by category, the budget will largely fund public safety. Around 53% of the general fund will go to fire, police and inspections. Another 16% will go to buildings and facilities, 14% to general government -- things like finance, planning and IT, while 11% will go to sanitation.
Long-term projects
Burgaw is also pursuing several capital improvement projects that were accounted for in the budget. Importantly, the town says that 86% of capital improvement funding came from outside sources, including grants and financing.
The biggest expense is the town’s multi-use path project at around $1.5 million. Another $1.2 million went to facility and equipment costs for the fire department.
Growth and costs
According to the town, Burgaw will add over 900 new housing units in the next 5-10 years. Burgaw currently has just over 1,200 households.
These new homes will eventually create a much larger tax base, but they’ll also impact services. Pender County continues to grow, and Burgaw will likely grow right along with it. More investments in the coming years could help prepare the town for that growth and avoid more strain to infrastructure and services in the future.
Charlie Kingree is the Pender County and trending topics reporter for the StarNews. He can be reached at [email protected].