Feb 23 Property Owners: Are you Entitled to a Reduction in Your Taxes?

Certainly 2020 has been a challenging year for all property owners. Tenants in all asset classes have been impacted by the pandemic and they are seeking rent relief either by asking for concessions, relying on the State’s eviction moratorium, filing bankruptcy, or just not paying.

As property owners, the expenses of operating your properties have not decreased during the pandemic and may have actually increased.  Depending on the particular asset class, your vacancies may have also increased.

Even if your property has not been adversely affected by the pandemic, you should evaluate whether your assessment is in line to determine if an appeal is warranted. Please keep in mind that your assessment may not be representative of what you believe your property to be worth, as the tax assessment is based on value adjusted by the municipalities’ ratio. For example, one property located in Hoboken and one located in Jersey City with the exact same market value will each have different tax basis on which the assessment is based.

Deadlines to Note

We suggest you review your 2021 property tax assessment with your legal advisor to determine if a tax appeal should be considered.   New Jersey municipalities are required to provide you with a written notice of your annual assessment on or before February 1, 2020, and any tax appeal to challenge the assessment generally must be filed by April 1, 2020.   Monmouth County is an exception and has an earlier deadline.

New York City normally issues annual tax assessments by January 15 and has a tax appeal filing deadline of March 1, 2021 for Class 2, 3 and 4 properties and March 15, 2021 for Class 1 properties.

We recommend if you haven’t already done so, that you act now to review the potential merit for filing a tax appeal on your property. Don’t hesitate to contact a Sax Real Estate advisor if you need further information or guidance at (973) 472-6250 or visit www.saxllp.com.