The knock will come without warning. Sometime in the coming months, a data collector carrying a photo ID and an authorization letter from the town will show up at a Foster home, unannounced, tape measure in hand, asking to see the inside.
It's the opening move in Foster's first full property revaluation in nine years, ordered by the Tax Assessor's Office in a notice published July 16 and required under Rhode Island General Laws §§ 44-5-11.5 and 44-5-11.6. The law forces every municipality onto a staggered cycle: statistical updates every three years based on sales data, and a full physical inspection — inside and out — every nine. Foster's last full revaluation dated to December 31, 2017. This one values the town's properties as of December 31, 2026.
The timing is not gentle. Foster's median home price has climbed to roughly $529,000, according to a July 2026 market report from Long Realty Inc., with only about six homes listed for sale and an average of 96 days on market. Because assessments have not been physically reset since 2017, homes that appreciated fastest over the past nine years are likely to see the sharpest jumps in assessed value once collectors finish their work.
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Data collectors working for Vision Government Solutions Inc., the Hudson, Massachusetts-based firm the Foster Town Council hired for $109,000 to run the project, will not schedule appointments. The town says that's by design: coordinating individual visits across thousands of rural parcels would be too costly and too slow to meet the contract's deadlines. To address safety concerns, the town requires every collector to carry visible photo ID and a letter of authorization from Tax Assessor Karen Williams, and every vehicle must be registered with both the Assessor's Office and the Foster Police Department, so residents can call in to confirm who's at the door.
Refusing entry carries a cost. Under state Division of Municipal Finance guidance, a homeowner who won't let an inspector examine the interior can have their property assessed at what officials describe as the "highest reasonable estimate" based on the exterior and neighborhood comparisons — and, under state law, forfeits the right to formally appeal that valuation later.
The double whammy
Even before the new assessments land, Foster homeowners are absorbing a separate hit. The Town Council's FY2026–2027 budget, approved by residents on May 5, 2026, trimmed the local Homestead Exemption — a discount on assessed value for owner-occupied primary residences — from 23% to 22%, while raising the real estate tax rate to $22.16 per $1,000 of assessed value, up from $21.52. On a home assessed at $400,000, that shift alone raises the taxable value from $308,000 to $312,000, pushing the bill from roughly $6,826 to about $6,914 before the revaluation even takes effect.
That local pressure sits inside a statewide squeeze. A June 30, 2026 update from the Rhode Island Public Expenditure Council, a nonpartisan Providence-based research group, found municipal tax levies statewide grew 3.7% in fiscal 2026 — the fastest pace in a decade and edging toward the state's 4% cap on annual levy growth. Residential property, the council found, now makes up 83% of the state's total assessed value, meaning homeowners are shouldering an outsized share of that growth.
What happens next
A revaluation does not automatically mean a higher bill. The town's total assessed base and its mill rate move together: if Foster's overall property values jump sharply, the Town Council is required to lower the rate next spring when it sets the FY2028 budget, to stay under the state's levy cap. Whether an individual bill rises or falls depends on how a specific home's value changed relative to the townwide average — not just whether it rose at all.
Assessment notices are expected in early 2027, followed by informal hearings with Vision Government Solutions to correct errors. The new values take effect on July 2027 tax bills, and property owners will have a 90-day window from their first quarterly payment due date to file a formal appeal with the Assessor's Office — provided they let the inspector in the door.