By: Jeffrey Hall
Major changes affecting the rights of Burlington County taxpayers will take affect this year and next year. Since the 1980s, the deadline to file a tax appeal has been April 1st of the tax year (May 1st in the case of municipalities who have a revaluation) and the property assessment notification postcards were typically sent on or around February 1st of the tax year. That all has changed as of now.
In 2018, Governor Murphy signed in to law, P.L. 2018, c.94, which is known as the Alternative Real Property Assessment Calendar. The Board of Chosen Freeholders of Burlington County adopted the Alternative Calendar via Resolution number 2020-00149 earlier this year. The commencement of the new law was October 1, 2020.
This change is touted as a benefit to both property owners and municipalities by allowing the completion of the assessment appeal process before tax bills are generated in 2021 and each tax year thereafter. It is important to remember two major changes.
- You should receive the property assessment notification postcard on or around November 15, 2020This should be compared with your current assessment to see if there has been any change. You should also evaluate whether your assessment, adjusted by the Director’s ratio, is in line with your property’s market value.
- The deadline to appeal is now January 15th of the tax year, a full two and a half months before the previous deadline of April 1. If you miss that deadline, you will be prevented from appealing your property assessment until the following year.
For more information please visit the Burlington County Taxation board website.
To speak with attorney Jeff Hall regarding pursuing a tax appeal on your property, please call (609) 557-0869 or email him at jhall@szaferman.com.
