Politics & Government

How Does Westfield's Property Tax Bill Compare to Rest of Union County?

Residents in Summit, Westfield and New Providence paid the highest average total tax bill in the county in 2012.

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Homeowners in Westfield are paying higher property taxes than the statewide average and the second highest in Union County, according to a statewide chart published by the Star-Ledger.

Residents in Summit (1), Westfield (2) and New Providence (3) paid the highest average total tax bill in the county, while residents in Winfield (21), Kenilworth (20) and Plainfield (19) paid the lowest.

The Star-Ledger noted that property taxes statewide rose 2.4 percent in 2011, the first year Christie’s two percent cap was in effect. But the trend of lower increases could be reversed because of Hurricane Sandy, according to the report.

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In Manasquan, which suffered some of the worst damage from Sandy, local officials said the cost of rebuilding might drive up tax rates by at least 20 percent, the report said. To top it off, the tax base shrank as properties were washed away, according to the report. Towns are allowed to exceed the two percent limit on property tax collections for emergencies such as Sandy.

UNION COUNTY     

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Average County Bill

Average Municipal Bill

Average School Bill

Average Total Bill

Rank of Total Bill in County

Percent Change from 2011

Berkeley Heights

$2,580.35

$2,050.60

$6,474.40

$11,105.36

5

0.7%

Clark

$1,942.70 $2,474.34 $4,792.82 $9,209.86 10

3.5%

Cranford

$2,060.72 $2,472.99 $5,369.98 $9,903.70 9 3.6% Elizabeth $1,231.09 $4,743.14 $1,871.93 $7,846.16 17 -0.5% Fanwood $1,937.83 $2,218.57 $6,280.15 $10,436.55 6 1.2% Garwood $1,710.53 $3,077.43 $3,961.33 $8,749.30 12 4.3% Hillside $1,167.12 $3,989.62 $3,513.51 $8,670.25 13 1.8% Kenilworth $1,520.31 $2,269.26 $3,548.28 $7,337.85 20 4.4% Linden $1,284.72 $2,621.57 $3,967.24 $7,873.53 15 1.7% Mountainside $2,677.69 $2,768.10 $4,743.20 $10,188.99 7 5.6% New Providence $2,560.99 $2,684.54 $7,066.03 $12,311.56 3 2.5% Plainfield $1,141.75 $4,579.09 $2,094.72 $7,815.57 19 -0.4% Rahway $1,303.43 $3,057.40 $3,465.96 $7,826.79 18 1.1% Roselle $1,042.55 $4,416.74 $3,597.64 $9,056.93 11 -0.6% Roselle Park $1,303.45 $2,815.30 $4,486.97 $8,605.73 14 1.5% Scotch Plains $2,248.72 $1,966.49 $7,304.99 $11,520.19 4 2.4% Springfield $1,876.85 $3,220.94 $4,910.17 $10,007.95 8 2.5% Summit $4,132.33 $3,643.99 $8,274.22 $16,050.53 1 3.4% Union $1,378.43 $2,878.21 $3,604.53 $7,861.16 16 3.3% Westfield $3,204.80 $2,657.55 $8,466.72 $14,329.07 2 3.1% Winfield $82.83 $1,436.10 $1,591.03 $3,109.97 21 -0.8% COUNTY AVERAGE $1,828.06 $2,954.38 $4,732.66 $9,515.09     –  2.1%

The data above, which divides property tax bills by municipal, county and public education costs, was compiled from numbers released by the state Department of Treasury and county boards of taxation.

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