newjerseynewsroom.com

BY ADELE SAMMARCO

NEWJERSEYNEWSROOM.COM

It is no secret the Garden State hosts the highest property taxes in the entire nation, but just when you thought there may be a light at the end of the tunnel in this ever-lagging recession, one thing does remain a constant; property taxes are yet again, on the rise.

In 11 years, the average New Jersey homeowner has seen their property taxes increase by 66 percent, when they averaged paying about $4,661 a year, according to the latest data released by the state Department of Community Affairs.

On average, New Jersey's property taxes climbed 2.4 percent to a high of $7,759 in 2011.

The hike follows a 4.1 percent spike in real estate taxes in 2010, the major funding source for New Jersey’s schools and local governments.

After property-tax rebates and credits, the average bill was $7,519 in 2011, up 20 percent from 2009, the data shows.

To help pull in the reigns on rising property taxes, Governor Christie scaled back property-tax rebates in his first budget since taking office by enacting a 2 percent cap on the levies that took effect at the beginning of 2011.

Christie's initiative reduced the 4 percent limit enacted by his predecessor, Democrat Jon Corzine, and cut the number of exemptions to 4 from 14.

Under Corzine’s leadership, towns sought cap waivers from the state's Local Finance Board. Christie's measure required a voter referendum and according to Bloomberg, last April, 14 of 566 communities asked voters to exceed the cap and only two increases were approved.

There is some good news. Last year’s 2.4 percent increase was the smallest in at least a decade.

However, property taxes continued to increase by about 7 percent annually in 2004, 2005 and 2006 before the rate began to slow.

During his recent State of the State address, Christie proposed an across-the-board 10 percent income-tax cut, but Democratic lawmakers say his plan only benefits wealthy New Jersey residents.