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Property Revaluation Plan On Hold | Paterson Times

Property Revaluation Plan On Hold

Paterson City Council has rejected a plan to re-evaluate property assessments around the city, where most homes are underwater, and citizens are being taxed in a manner in which they feel, they are being cheated and bamboozled. 

This year over 8,000 property tax appeals were filed by residents because of excessive taxation which results from bloated home values on record at the tax office. Most homes in Paterson are underwater, a house that was once 250,000 at the peak of the housing market is now worth less than 150,000, but the city continues to collect taxes on the former completely ignoring the new reality less nudged by tax appeal.

The re-evaluation will cost the city 2.1 million dollars, one of the causes for the rejection by council members; but the other, more important reason for the rejection was the incompetence of the tax office, which often has a great deal of difficulty mailing quarterly tax returns without bungling it.

The council is not against tax re-assessment, but it is concerned over the amount of money, and fears the 2 million dollars might go to waste as a result of an antiquated softwares and persons employed at the tax office. The Passaic County Tax Board is working on getting Paterson and other municipalities the requisite computer stuffs which would end the burden of over-taxation as a result of inflated home value; because the new software, which is used at another town can, with tinkering, adjust assessed home values based on market prices.

Until the tax assessor’s office procures the necessary softwares the city council feels is required for the assessment, homeowners in the city will be stuck paying exorbitant sums in taxes. Almost all Patersonians have monthly mortgages that are less than their monthly tax payments.

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