Calling all real estate brokers/lawyers

[NJ2Boardwalk]

Is it legal for a town to automatically lower your total land/improvements taxes? No town revaluation is going on. Rumor has it that they lowered them to stop all the tax appeals for 2011. Mine were lowered by $73,000, but yet my taxes stayed the same.

I wanted to appeal this year but pretty much have no chance now.

Thanks to all for any input.

 

[scrapquitler]

Is it legal for a town to automatically lower your total land/improvements taxes? No town revaluation is going on. Rumor has it that they lowered them to stop all the tax appeals for 2011. Mine were lowered by $73,000, but yet my taxes stayed the same.

I wanted to appeal this year but pretty much have no chance now.

Thanks to all for any input.

At least here in CT, thats how it works. They figure out what the grand list is (the total value of all the properties in town), they look at the budget and figure out how much $$ they need to raise thru property taxes, and they divide to come up with the mill rate. So either they adjust the property value or they adjust the mill rate, either way it comes out the same. And somehow they never adjust so you pay less taxes.

 

[WDWisTheBest]

Is it legal for a town to automatically lower your total land/improvements taxes? No town revaluation is going on. Rumor has it that they lowered them to stop all the tax appeals for 2011. Mine were lowered by $73,000, but yet my taxes stayed the same.

I wanted to appeal this year but pretty much have no chance now.

Thanks to all for any input.

Would it be helpful to you just to directly talk with your local valuation board or whatever the city calls it? Also, you could talk with the city manager or other city council members. Local information is your best bet, I think.