Why Have Middletown Property Taxes Gone Up So Much?

MIDDLETOWN, NJ — This August, some Middletown residents may have noticed a fairly significant increase to their quarterly tax bill.

How did that happen? Well, you can blame, in part, the steep increase in home sale prices Middletown and other wealthy New Jersey suburbs have experienced in the past year and a half, according to Middletown Township Tax Assessor Alex Worth.

"My tax bill went up by $1,400!” some Middletown residents posted on Facebook in recent weeks.

Here's why:

"To ensure equal treatment for all properties, the Township conducts an annual reassessment to bring all properties to market value in order to distribute property taxes equitably," explained Worth. "In some neighborhoods, the average year-over-year sale price went up over 20 percent, while other areas increased by seven percent."

Due to the increase in home selling prices, there were some Middletown residents whose homes were assessed at higher value, and therefore saw a tax increase. Since 2013, Monmouth County has used the real property Assessment Demonstration Program (“ADP”) to assess home values and determine property taxes. ADP requires homes be reassessed every year.

Interestingly, it is not always homes in wealthy Middletown neighborhoods that saw the biggest jump in selling prices in the past year, as many would assume.

In fact, areas with historically lower- or moderately-priced homes, or were targets for first-time homebuyers, saw the greatest spike in sale prices as the pandemic came to an end. That's why these homes had a bigger percentage tax increase by late summer.

However, most homes in Middletown actually saw a property tax decrease or an increase of less than five percent this summer, said Worth. Thirty nine percent (8,974 private homes) of Middletown homes reassessed saw a tax decrease; 32 percent (7,454 homes) saw a tax increase and 28 percent (6,463 homes) saw a very minor tax increase of 0.01 to 5 percent.

"Due to the different rates of appreciation, the impact on the assessment and subsequent tax bill are different for everyone. Most residential properties in town received a tax bill that went down, remained unchanged, or changed by less than 5 percent," he said.

"We can all agree, an annual property tax increase of $1,400 for any resident is a difficult situation," continued Worth. "I recommend you call 732-615-2089 or email taxassessor@middletownnj.org to discuss your property. We will review your property record card for accuracy and errors and provide education and clarification on the process. The New Jersey Constitution requires properties be assessed according to the same standard of value. The Legislature and Governor are free to establish a different standard however, the current standard is true value i.e., market value."

More from Worth:

"Unfortunately, the time to challenge an assessment is over for tax year 2022. Each year, you will receive a postcard on or before November 15 detailing the assessed value for the new year. This information is also available online at https://www.middletownnj.org/ by clicking on Departments, Tax Assessment and Assessment Records Search. If you do not believe the assessed value is accurate, based on sales that have occurred in your area, you may file an appeal (property taxes cannot be appealed, the test to determine an accurate assessment is market value). Property sales can be found on a number of online real estate websites like Zillow.com or Realtor.com and at https://www.middletownnj.org/ by clicking on Departments, Tax Assessment, and Sales Search. On the back of the assessment postcard, there are instructions on how to file an appeal or you can visit https://secure.njappealonline.com/. The deadline to file an assessment appeal is January 15 of each year."

"To informally notify Middletown Township now, you can file a Taxpayer Informal Assessment Review Application (TIARA) at https://taxboardportal.co.monmouth.nj.us/. The purpose of TIARA is to provide the residents with a free and informal means of submitting questions and supporting documents (pictures, maps, narratives) regarding their future property assessment. Submissions will be reviewed annually by my office prior to the delivery of the next Preliminary Tax List. If the information submitted warrants a change in the future assessment, we will change the assessment for the following year, thereby avoiding the need for the formal appeal process."