Morristown Revaluation Shuffles Tax Burden Around: See The Breakdown

MORRISTOWN, NJ — If you own a home or other property in Morristown, it may take a bit of mathematical juggling to figure out what your tax bill is going to be.

While introducing the proposed Fiscal Year 2024 budget, officials explained that the town's first revaluation in 20 years has caused some shifts in the tax calculations.

The $49 million operating budget includes an effective 1.7 cent increase in the municipal tax rate, Mayor Tim Dougherty said in his budget address at last week's Town Council meeting.

And even though the rate is going up, town officials estimate that the average home (valued at $635,443) will see municipal taxes decrease by about $412 compared to last year.

But with school and county taxes factored in, Business Administrator Jillian Barrick said, the overall tax bill for that average home will increase by about $189.

Here's a closer look at why:

With the town-wide revaluation, the average assessed home value in Morristown has gone from $357,595 up to more than $650,000.

The town's tax base has also doubled based on the revaluation, with commercial property values increasing faster than residential assessed values.

"The increase in value shows the growth in our town in the last 20 years that is further evidence of how attractive our town is to investment," Dougherty said.

The value of apartments almost tripled, Barrick said (see below):

As well as the municipal (town) portion, property taxes in New Jersey also include county and local school district portions.

Officials said that Morristown's revaluation has also shifted the share amounts here, reducing the town's property tax revenue by 4.6 percent and increasing the money going to the county and the Morris School District (see below).

Note: The Morris School District had predicted a tax decrease for Morristown homeowners assessed at the average when they approved their budget on May 2.

Barrick pointed out that each resident's tax bill will depend on the individual assessment. She said the town will also be posting a calculator on the website for residents and property owners to figure out what the individual change will be.

Barrick provided more details about the budget breakdown, which you can watch here (audio and video quality fluctuate) or view a slide show of the presentation here.

Overall, Mayor Dougherty said the town is "still headed in the right direction" and noted the number of construction projects that have been going on — from the opening of Max on Morris to the M Station redevelopment on Spring Street.

Dougherty said the North Park Place redevelopment project will "continue to be a prime focus" of his administration this year.