Assessor's Office at a Glance

Joseph McKeon, C.T.A. Municipal Assessor

1715 Route 46                                          Phone:       973-448-2021

Ledgewood, NJ  07852                                  Fax:            973-448-0864

Assessor's Hours

Monday, Wednesday, Friday 8:00 AM - 3:30 PM

Tuesday 8:00 AM - 1:00 PM

Thursday 8:00 AM - 6:00 PM

Regular Office Hours: 8:00 AM to 4:30 PM   Monday thru Friday

The main function of the Assessor's office is to value all property in the municipality for tax purposes.  The ultimate goal is to assess the properties so all property owners will pay their fair share of the revenue needed to finance the schools, municipality and county government.  The Assessor's responsibilities are governed by state law and monitored by the State Division of Taxation, the County Tax Board and the County Tax Administrator.

There are three people in the Assessor's office:  a full-time assessor, Joseph McKeon, his assistant, Shirleen Boyle and secretary, Robyn Lance.

The office is the location of legal documents concerning all real estate properties in the municipality.  Deeds, easements, railroad date, tax maps, ownership information, property identification information is all on file in the Assessor's office.  We keep track of all property transfers that occur, verifying the information on each deed and updating the ownership information as the deeds are received from the County Clerk's office.  We qualify and process and process all tax deductions are tax exemptions that are offered by the state to residents as well as tax exempt organizations.  We inspect and evaluate all farmland properties.  We keep the tax, water and sewer billing records up to date so the bills are routed to the proper destination.  We keep the tax maps up to date, adding subdivisions, lot line adjustments, new easements or other charges to the boundaries of the properties in the township.  The Assessor defends tax appeals at the County Tax Board and the State Tax Court.  All new construction is inspected and valued for tax purposes, generating added assessment bills and increasing the total ratable value of the township.  We assist mortgage companies, appraisers and attorneys with closing information, escrow allowances and real estate market data.  We also help other municipal departments with ownership information and property data.  This department processes all 200-foot requests.

How to assess a house

All homes are assessed based on their square footage and the amenities they may have.  The first step is to measure the outside of the house.  Garages, decks, porches and pools are measured as well.  A quick "walk--thru" is then done to note the added features, i.e. number of bathrooms, fireplaces, type of heat and/or air conditioning etc.  The year the house was built or the effective age of the building is also factored into the analysis as well as construction quality.  This data is then entered into a CAMA (computer assisted mass appraisal) program.  The value is then computed to generate an assessment that would have been on the structure if it were standing in 1999.  This is to keep all properties assessed at the same market level.  This value is added to the value of the land to give the property a total assessed value.  This is the amount that determines the taxes on the property.

How to calculate taxes

New Jersey's real property tax is an ad valorem tax, or a tax according to value.  The standard measure of property value is "true value" or market value, that is, what a willing, knowledgeable buyer would pay a willing, knowledgeable seller on the open market at a bona fide sale as of the statutory Oct. 1 pretax year assessment date.

County, municipal and school budget costs determine the amount of property tax to be collected.  A town's general tax rate is calculated by dividing the total dollar amount it needs to raise (by school, county, municipality, etc) by the total assessed value of all its taxable property.  An individual's property taxes are then calculated by multiplying that general tax rate by the assessed value of his particular property.

The tax rate for Roxbury is the total of the rates for the school, county, county open space, municipal and municipal open space.  It is not just the municipal expenses that affect your property taxes.

Your tax bill itemizes how much of your property taxes go to the various taxing agencies.

                                                2007               2008               2009               2010

            Tax Rate                     $3.49              $3.638            $3.704

            Tax Ratio                    54.20%           50.91%           52.48%           55.17%

Tax Deductions & Exemptions

Tax Deductions

Qualifying Senior Citizens and Surviving Spouses -- $250.00

Qualifying Permanently and Totally Disabled Person and Surviving Spouses -- $250.00

Qualifying Veterans and Surviving Spouses -- $250.00

Qualifying Permanently and Totally Disabled Veteran and Surviving Spouse -- Total Exemption

Veterans who were honorably discharged or released under honorable conditions from active service during a time of war may claim a real estate tax deduction annually on homes they own and occupy in New Jersey.  A surviving spouse is also entitled to the deduction as long as the widow/widower does not re--marry and the spouse would have qualified for the deduction at the time of death.  If both husband and wife are veterans, each may claim the deduction.  The amount of the deduction has been increased by the state to the maximum allowance of $250.00.  If you have been receiving the veteran's deduction in the past there is no need to re-apply unless you move to another residence.

TO QUALIFY FOR VETERAN OR WIDOW OF VETERAN DEDUCTION

(NJSA 54:4-8.10 ET SEQ)

1.         New Jersey resident for at least 1 year prior to October 1 of pre-tax year (i.e. must have lived in NJ on or before 10/1/05 to qualify for 2007 deduction).

2.         Primary residence in New Jersey.

3.         Active Service in the Armed Forces of the United States in time of war.

4.         Honorable discharge.

5.         Ownership of property on or before October 1 of pre-tax year.

6.         $250 deduction per year.  Each qualified veteran may take only $250 deduction for all properties he/she owns in New Jersey.  If more than one property is owned the $250 may be split up among the properties.  This is not to exceed $250 a year.

7.         Surviving spouse of a veteran:

            Spouse must have been married to veteran at the time of death.

            Spouse must not have re-married.

            Veteran must have been a resident of New Jersey at time of death.

8.         Documentation required:

            Application

            Discharge papers

            Veteran Form DD214, service record

            Widows: Death certificate of veteran

Qualified Permanently and Totally Disabled war--period veterans may claim 100% real estate tax exemptions if the VA has identified them as totally and permanently disabled from service--connected conditions.  As above, a surviving spouse is also entitled to the exemption with the same restrictions.

VETERAN OR SURVIVING SPOUSE OF VETERAN DEDUCTION

ACTIVE WAR TIME SERVICE PERIOD

March 19, 2003 -- on-going                                     Operation Iraqi Freedom**

September 11, 2001 -- on-going                             Operation Enduring Freedom**

November 20, 1995 -- June 20, 1998                     Operation Joint Endeavor/Joint Guard Bosnia/Herzegovina**

December 5, 1992 -- March 31, 1994                    Operation "Restore--Hope"   Mission--Somalia**

August 27, 1992 -- March 17, 2003                        Operations Northern Watch/Southern Watch**

August 2, 1990 -- February 28, 1991                      Operation Desert Shield/Desert Storm Mission Enduring Freedom (Afghanistan) and Iraqi Freedom**

December 20, 1989 -- January 31, 1990               Panama Peacekeeping Mission**

September 26, 1982 -- December 1, 1987           Lebanon Peacekeeping Mission**

October 23, 1983 -- November 21, 1983               Grenada Peacekeeping Mission**

December 31, 1960 -- May 7, 1975                       Vietnam Conflict

July 1, 1958 -- November 1, 1958                           Lebanon Crisis of 1958**

June 23, 1950 -- January 31, 1955                         Korean Conflict

September 16, 1940 -- December 31, 1946         World War I

April 6, 1917 -- November 11, 1918                       World War II

** Peacekeeping Missions require actual service in a combat zone for a total of 14 days, unless a service injury was received in a combat zone.

TO QUALIFY FOR $250.00 SENIOR CITIZEN, DISABLED OR SURVIVING SPOUSE TAX DEDUCTION

(NJSA 54:4-8.40 et seq)

Senior citizen and totally disabled citizens may also be eligible for a tax deduction if they meet certain income level restrictions.

1.         New Jersey Resident for at least 1 year prior to October or pre-tax year (i.e. must have lived in NJ on or before 10/1/05 to qualify for 2007 deduction).

2.         Dwelling is principal and permanent residence as of October 1 of pre--tax year.

3.         Income:         Not to exceed $10,000 a year from all sources excluding:

                        A.        Social Security Benefits or

                        B.        Railroad, Federal, State or Municipal pensions up to the maximum amount excluded by Social Security.

                        C.        Spousal income to be included.

4.         Age Requirement:

                        A.        Senior Citizen -- must be at least 65 years old as of 12/31 of pre-tax year.

                        B.        Disabled Citizen -- no age requirement.

                        C.        Surviving Spouse -- must be 55 years or older at the time of death of spouse.  Spouse must have received deduction.

5.         Documentation Required:

                        A.        Application.

                        B.        Income Statement.

                        C.        Proof of NJ residency (i.e. phone bill, utility bill with NJ address, at least 1 year prior to October 1).

                        D.        Official documents to verify qualification as noted below:

                                    1.         Senior Citizen -- birth certificate, baptismal certificate, driver's license, veteran's DD214, or any other official                                                                                     document showing birth date.

                                    2.         Disabled -- Social Security award letter or note from doctor stating 100% disabled.

                                    3.         Surviving Spouse -- death certificate of spouse and birth certificate of applicant.           

6.         Other Requirements:

            A.        Annual Income Evaluation -- Post Tax Year Statement PD-5 must be returned to Collector's office by 3/1 each year to continue deduction.

            B.        Surviving Spouse must reside in same house in which tax deduction was originally granted (to spouse) and must not have re-married.

Application for these deductions must be made to the Tax Assessor who administers these programs and will provide the necessary forms.  Call 973-448-2021 for more information.

These forms may also be downloaded from the State Division of Taxation's website at http://millville.org/treasury/taxation/index.html?prntlpt.htm~mainFrame.  Senior citizen and totally disabled citizens have an additional income verification form to fill out that may be acquired through this office.  Tax relief program forms and information can also be found on this Division of Taxation web site.

Tax Appeals

Anyone wishing to appeal his or her assessment must file the appeal with the Morris County Tax Board on or before April 1 each year.  Only the total assessment may be appealed.  You may not appeal the taxes on your property.  Appeals must be made using the required forms acquired from the Morris County Board of Taxation.

Interesting Facts

Roxbury Township has no zip code of its own.  However, there are eight zip codes represented some with only a portion of the zip code in Roxbury.  They are:

                                                Flanders         07836

                                                Kenvil              07847

                                                Landing          07850

                                                Ledgewood   07852

                                                Mt Arlington    07856

                                                Netcong          07857

                                                Succasunna   07876

                                                Wharton          07885

There are 28 qualified farms (cropland or woodland management).

There are 460 commercial properties located within the Township of Roxbury.

There are 7804 residential properties located within the Township of Roxbury.

There are 468 privately owned vacant lots within the Township of Roxbury.

There are four major roadways running through the municipality.  They are Routes 80, 46, 206 and 10.

An interesting web site for you to check out is www.njactb.org.  It will give you the assessments and taxes on properties in most of the counties throughout the state.

For property and ownership information for Roxbury as well as all of Morris County use the Google search for "Morris County Tax Records" and click on the first entry for the Morris County Tax Board information.  There's a wealth of property information on this web page.