I am trying to find out about the property tax laws in Hoboken. In other states I have lived there exists a method for appealing the property taxes and getting them reduced to comparable properties in a given area. Also what is the yearly increase cap?

Does Hoboken use the market value and assessed value system?

Is there a local attorney around that specializes in this? I have found that if it is possible in a given area there will be a guy that makes his living from supplying the service.

Any help or advice will be welcome as I am looking to buy a place in Hoboken and I want to find out if there is a chance of reducing tax costs.

Thanks

yeah, good luck with that. are you aware they are trying to raise taxes 50%? so, you can try, let us know how it works out.

Well, you need to start doing your due diligence, because you are totally going to embarrass yourself by putting your face behind your question.

Hoboken taxes in old units haven't been reassessed for 20 years. (10 years overdue.) That means there are some million dollar properties in town paying miniscule amounts of property tax - the tax is based on whatever the property cost 20 years ago when Hoboken was not nearly the place it is today, and at real estate prices dating back two decades).

So, Hoboken's problem isn't taxes that are too high, it is that a large proportion of the taxes are TOO LOW. Good luck appealing that.

The taxes that are "appropriate" on those that are on newer condos and buildings, and value on them hasn't dropped much. You are NOT going to find any "overtaxed" properties in Hoboken.

The more accurate issue is how high the taxes are in Hoboken, given the infrastructure and amenities available. There is no doubt that there has been mismanagement of fiscal affairs. We are about to move from absurd levels in property taxes - to outrageous. Property values CANNOT and WILL NOT hold up under such circumstances. The burden is outweighing the location benefit. It's that simple. Rents can only go up but will still be the more viable alternative until prices come down further.

You may file an appeal at the Hudson County Board of Taxation prior to the April 1st deadline if you think you're over-assessed. The cost is only $25. To properly calculate the value the City believes your property is worth, you need to divide the assessment by the average 2009 Chapter 123 Ratio, which is 29.25%. For example, if your assessment is $250,000, the City has your property valued at $854,700 ($250,000 / 29.25%). The law in NJ permits the assessor to have a 15% margin of error. Therefore, in order to win your case, you will need to provide evidence, in the form of comparable sales, to prove a market value of $726,500 ($854,700 x .85) or less using this example. The sales should be fairly recent but should not have occured after October 1, 2008 which is the assessment date for the 2009 tax year. If you use sales after the Oct. 1 date, the County Board may exclude them from consideration. When you file the appeal, you should attach the sales to the form. I suggest using between 4 to 6 sales.

I hope this helps!!

#5... thanks...
thats interesting... so my does this mean that the condo i bought in march 07 for 590K and is assessed at 232k is high...
232/29.25% = 795k?
even if i take the 15% diff.. the price comes to 675k...

so am i over taxed? i know 6 months before i bought this, the same condo went for 700k... but now the prices are much lower...

i am not sure what/how to go about doing this.. can you provide more details?

You should contact an attorney that is familiar with these matters.

Many will do this for a flat fee upfront, and then a portion of any tax dollars saved.

Ultimately, it comes down to the Hudson County assessors office and considering the large county wide and municipality wide deficits that are being projected, they are very likely to deny most appeals.

That's why it is good to have an expert on your side. Best of luck.

You seem to know much about the property tax appeal process. can you recommend a good and trustworthy attorney? Thanks

Let us know if we can help!

Stack & Stack
90 Hudson Street
Hoboken, NJ 07030
201-659-1000

I always thought the "correct" measure would be what other similar places are assesed for, NOT what they sold for. Sales are random, but the government valuing my place is always correct :>