Berkeley Twp Property Tax

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A Tax assessment and appeal seminar will be held on March 7 at the Central Regional Middle School cafeteria. Taxpayers and Voters Association members will be present along with Tax appeals attorneys to answer your questions.

The last revaluation hit really hard. There are people who are selling their homes because some have had increases of over 100 percent. Many residents - especially those with waterfront and oceanfront properties - saw their property assessments skyrocket after the township's 2010 revaluation, the first in 20 years.

The deadline for appeal is April 1st. Anyone that thinks their property tax assessment is above the true market value of their property should know all aspects of their right to appeal their assessments and to secure tax relief.

Look closely at your real estate tax assessment statement. The assessment figure on your current Notice of Assessment does not necessarily reflect the true value at which your building and land are assessed and taxed. Real Estate Tax Appeals must be filed by April 1st of any given year. However some townships and cities may extend the deadline due certain circumstances.

Your municipality's average ratio of assessed value to true value must be known and applied to your assessment. A town assessing real property at, for example, $500,000, but which has an average ratio of assessed to true value of 50%, is really placing a value of $1 million on the property.

To estimate your tax bill, multiply your assessed value by your municipality's tax rate.

Note that your assessed value, based perhaps on the inflated real estate market of the 1980's, may not truly reflect the lower real estate values prevalent today. You have the legal right to appeal this assessed value and may be entitled to a substantial rebate.

Other factors may reduce your taxes. You may also be entitled to a substantial rebate based upon the following factors:

• Machinery and equipment. Recent legislation and regulations eliminate the assessment of certain machinery, apparatus and equipment used in business or industry.
   

• Transfer of title. A recent decision by the New Jersey Supreme Court holds that a town assessor cannot increase an assessment merely because title to the property has been transferred.
   

• Wetlands. Imposition of Flood Hazard regulations or denial of a Freshwater Wetlands permit will almost certainly give you a basis for seeking a reduction in your assessment.

   

You Have The Right To Appeal Property Taxes Every Year
Under New Jersey law, a taxpayer feeling aggrieved by the assessed valuation of real property may appeal that assessment. In order to bring an appeal, taxes and all other municipal charges must be current up to the first quarter of the year and a petition must be filed with your County Tax Board or the New Jersey Tax Court no later than April 1st.

Again, the Berkeley Township Property Tax Appeal meeting will start at 7:30 p.m. in the Central Regional Middle School cafeteria on Forest Hill Parkway on Monday March 7th.

Karl Hess, Berkeley Twp Real Estate, Keller Williams Jersey Shore