Quote from volente_00:
How are taxes going to increase when you argue that the appraisal is going to drop 20% ?
That's actually a very good question......but you may want to ask City Officials...because I don't understand it either....
it's happening all over NY and NJ
ENGLEWOOD -- Homeowners in the city's modest neighborhoods are likely to face huge tax hikes this year while those in wealthier areas get a break following the first property revaluation in more than a decade.
Houses that had previously been valued at less than $120,000 -- about one-fifth of all homes in Englewood -- have almost tripled in value since the last citywide assessment in 1994. Those owners could end up paying $1,000 more in taxes this year. For some, the increase could be even more.
"I'm not happy at all," said Richard Friedman, whose taxes could jump about $2,100 this year, according to an analysis of the revaluation by The Record. His one-bedroom home on Brook Avenue in the 3rd Ward, previously valued at $113,500, is now assessed at $382,000. The possible 45 percent tax increase leaves Friedman feeling "ripped off."
Another 3rd Ward resident, Shirley Green, may have to fork over $1,600 more in 2007 if the city's overall tax burden grows at the same rate it did in 2006. "Wow," the 79-year-old retired schoolteacher said. "That's a lot of money. I'm still on a fixed income."
Is your town next?
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The following North Jersey towns have upcoming revaluations:
2007
BERGEN COUNTY
East Rutherford, Fair Lawn, Franklin Lakes, Hackensack, Teaneck
PASSAIC COUNTY
Paterson
* * *
2008
BERGEN COUNTY
Bogota, Carlstadt, Edgewater, Englewood Cliffs, Fairview, Garfield, Leonia, Mahwah, Maywood, North Arlington, Norwood, Oradell, Palisades Park, Ridgefield Park, Ridgewood, River Vale, Rochelle Park, Saddle Brook, South Hackensack, Wallington
MORRIS COUNTY
Boonton town
"This tax raise will make me more frugal," Green predicted. "I'll be more careful about turning off lights. I'll try to save a little money on the heat. I'll be a little more careful on food purchases and gasoline."
While some may feel sticker shock, others may get tax cuts. Those feeling the least pain will be owners of the city's priciest homes.
"For us, I guess it's a good thing," said Ruth Lubat of 155 Chestnut St. in the 1st Ward. Following the revaluation, her mansard-roof home was reassessed at $2.25 million. But that's an increase of only 97 percent. That's far less than the typical increase, so Lubat could pay about $7,300 less in property taxes this year.
The state requires every town to conduct periodic revaluations so that property assessments reflect true market values. That's because real estate prices change over time, so that some homeowners end up paying too much tax and others pay too little. By updating assessments, local governments make sure property owners pays their fair share of the local tax burden.
Realty Appraisal of West New York conducted a revaluation of Englewood in 2005 for $639,000. But Englewood officials then asked the county for a year's delay. Realty Appraisal reassessed the city in 2006, charging an additional $124,000.
The typical Englewood residential and commercial property increased in assessed value by 141.1 percent. That means that if your property increased more than 141.1 percent, you can expect an above-average tax increase this year. If your property increased less than 141.1 percent, you can expect a smaller tax increase, or you may even get a tax cut, according to The Record's analysis.
To estimate your new property tax bill, multiply the new assessment by 0.0179.
The estimate assumes a 4.5 percent increase in the 2007 tax levy, the same as 2006. Actual tax bills will go out this summer.
This calculation showed Robin Greenfield that she may have to shell out $3,233 more in taxes this year. That's because the assessment on her Robin Road Colonial home went from $271,000 to $810,400 -- an increase of 199 percent.
"I wasn't aware it was going to be that dramatic of an increase to my pocket," Greenfield said. "I have to sit down with my husband and a pen and paper and figure out what this means."
Greenfield's 2nd Ward home is within walking distance of Ahavath Torah, an Orthodox Jewish synagogue.
Greenfield said when she and her husband bought the house in 1999, it was partially because the taxes were only $7,800. "You're talking doubling that in the course of eight years," she said. "That's kind of ridiculous."
It's common in a revaluation to find that smaller homes increased in value faster than larger homes, said Neil Rubenstein of Realty Appraisal.
"There are a lot more buyers for smaller homes usually than for larger homes," Rubenstein said. "A million-dollar home does not triple in value as fast as a smaller home can."
The good news for residents is that Englewood's commercial properties slightly increased in value, lessening the tax burden on homeowners. Commercial properties as a whole increased 148 percent in value, while residential properties increased nearly 143 percent in value.
This is an unusual outcome after a North Jersey revaluation. In most other towns, homeowners end up shouldering more of the tax burden relative to businesses, Rubenstein said.
"Englewood has got something that some towns don't have," Rubenstein said. "They have commercial new construction happening and a redevelopment zone right across from City Hall. That helped the outcome of the revaluation."
Among residential properties, however, some streets will see dramatic tax shifts.
On 3rd Street in the 4th Ward, for example, 31 homeowners maintain some of the city's smallest houses. The typical home nearly tripled in value -- far more than the citywide average. That will translate into about a $1,000 -- or 25 percent -- tax hike (assuming city, county and school budgets rise 4.5 percent this year, as they did in 2006.)
Compare that to Lincoln Street in the 1st Ward, near the the private Dwight-Englewood School on the East Hill. There, 22 homeowners will see a very different picture when tax bills go out. For those residents, assessments barely doubled after the revaluation. So if the levy rises 4.5 percent this year, the typical Lincoln Street homeowner will see property taxes drop $3,400, or about 12 percent.
"I'm surprised," said Alice Pierson of Lincoln Street. "It's very pleasant to have to pay less taxes." The Piersons will still pay an estimated $19,000 in property taxes, but that's about $1,900 less than last year.
"That's perhaps too bad," Pierson said of the decrease, "because the people in the high end like me could afford to pay more, and the people who couldn't afford it are going to pay more."
Pierson said she might donate her tax savings.
"I'll have to put it into good works for Englewood to pay for things that aren't getting done," she said.
E-mail:
feibel@northjersey.com and
sheingold@northjersey.com
Copyright © 2007 North Jersey Media Group Inc.
Copyright Infringement Notice User Agreement & Privacy Policy