New Jersey’s outrageous property tax rates managed to get even worse in 2016.
On average, bills tallied up to more than $8,500 per home—nearly $200 more than in 2015 and a 2.35 percent increase over last year. Essex County, Bergen County, and Union County got the worst of it, with average bills of $11,550, $11,311, and $10,821, respectively.
In 2010, Gov. Christie signed a law that limited property tax increases to 2 percent per year, which came after property taxes rose 7 percent each year from 2004 to 2006. However, lawmakers have succeeded in exempting some expenditures from the 2 percent spending cap, such as debt, emergency expenses, and health benefit costs.
Overall, New Jersey property taxes were hiked by more than $700 million, more than half of which goes to school district spending. Several lawmakers spoke to New Jersey 101.5 about how addressing the school funding formula is key to decreasing property taxes. Legislative hearings on this topic are already underway.
To see how much your average property taxes have changed, visit NJ.com’s property tax comparison tool.
