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First, how is the property tax broken down? (where does the money go?)
For example, if you pay $6,000, does that go to your local schools, police, county, city, etc. Does the state take a portion of the property taxes or is that soley the NJ state income tax? Does some money go to the urban school districts or is that also out of the state income tax?
Also, is there a property tax refund and how does that work? (I realize it will probably go away due to budget issues, as ours did here in GA)
Is there a homestead exemption?
Finally, I know that NJ levies a state income tax (I have the charts). Do local townships also levy an income tax in addtion to their sales tax? (I have info that says for example Vernon, NJ has a 2.45% income tax)
I'm not worried about percentages or specifics, just a breakdown of the different categories where the money goes.
For example, in GA right now, we pay $1,700 a year on a home that sold for $190k. (assessed at $170k for tax purposes, but we might have to sell for as low as $165k). Approx. $1,088 is school tax (67%), $414 is county tax (26%), $100 is fire tax (6%), $16 is state tax (1%), and $50 is solid waste (in addition to our private curbside hauling bills). We also have a state income tax, but it's not very much.
We are looking at the areas of Vernon, and Sussex County if that helps.
Each year, you township/borough council and your local school board will each pass a budget. Depending on what the budget is, you'll be taxed accordingly as it relates to your property value and where you live. In a township with a K-12 school district, the township will collect all of your taxes. The school district sends a bill to the township and the township then pays the school district. In sending-receiving districts, there's just an extra step as the township may pay its own K-8 district and a high school district, for example. As a rule of thumb, about 75-85% of your property tax bill goes to the school district.
Property taxes are normally not directly sent to the state except for certain assessments such as to the state pension fund. Income taxes were originally supposed to be for property tax relief, but they have largely been raided for other purposes over the years. Sales taxes, corporate taxes, state fees and other revenue sources round out the remainder of the state's budget. That's where those urban school districts come in. In the vast majority of states, local towns and school districts are funded through a combination of state and local sources. Since this state's money is basically tied up in a few cities (and for school purposes, the 31 Abbot districts) there is no money left over to be distributed to suburbanites, even though they have paid the vast majority of that money in the first place. That's the reason why property taxes are so high: local municipal and school districts must be funded totally from a single, local source - property taxes - instead of multiple sources such as revenue from the multitude of ways the state generates revenue.
I've never personally lived in (or heard of) a town in New Jersey that had a municipal income or wage tax, but I'm sure it may exist somewhere.
Thanks for the info everyone. My parents are freaking out because we want to move up to NJ. (all my mom keeps saying over and over is "the taxes! the taxes!" like she knows anything about it) My parents are still down in central FL, which is falling apart all around them. In their town, the post office has be chained shut at 6PM to keep out the homeless who were sleeping in the lobby and using it as a toilet. At least in NJ you know that type of thing will only happen in certain bad areas.
My husband grew up in Sussex County (first Sparta and then they moved up by Wantage) and he still loves the area. We just returned from a trip there and I have to say, it looked great to me too. Much more family oriented than GA and FL for sure, which is important since we have two small boys. I might be better able to use my MBA degree up there too.
I understand why local taxes are so high. Many areas that we toured didn't have much of a business base to tax (more bedroom communities) so that extra has to be made up from local homes. It might be worth it if we can live in peace and be surrounded by nice folks and farms. That area is really unchanged from the 1980's. When we left FL, they had just approved 10,000 new homes to be built in our town (and that was just in one or two new developments). We made it as far as north GA but this state is truly a southern state (unlike FL) and we don't like it at all. (mistake...)
Hopefully we will land in NJ for good next June. This has to be the last move for us!
Thanks for the info everyone. My parents are freaking out because we want to move up to NJ. (all my mom keeps saying over and over is "the taxes! the taxes!" like she knows anything about it) My parents are still down in central FL, which is falling apart all around them. In their town, the post office has be chained shut at 6PM to keep out the homeless who were sleeping in the lobby and using it as a toilet. At least in NJ you know that type of thing will only happen in certain bad areas.
My husband grew up in Sussex County (first Sparta and then they moved up by Wantage) and he still loves the area. We just returned from a trip there and I have to say, it looked great to me too. Much more family oriented than GA and FL for sure, which is important since we have two small boys. I might be better able to use my MBA degree up there too.
I understand why local taxes are so high. Many areas that we toured didn't have much of a business base to tax (more bedroom communities) so that extra has to be made up from local homes. It might be worth it if we can live in peace and be surrounded by nice folks and farms. That area is really unchanged from the 1980's. When we left FL, they had just approved 10,000 new homes to be built in our town (and that was just in one or two new developments). We made it as far as north GA but this state is truly a southern state (unlike FL) and we don't like it at all. (mistake...)
Hopefully we will land in NJ for good next June. This has to be the last move for us!
You'd be surprised about the homeless problem in New Jersey. I live in a fairly affluent area and our local daily newspaper had a big spread on local homlessness last week. These guys don't sleep near the post office, but rather in the local wooded areas in tents. Homelessness is a very big problem in New Jersey that, thanks to the urban and (in contrast) wooded options, isn't a very visible problem. FWIW, my local post office closes at 4:30 p.m. anyway. I WISH it was open 'til 6 p.m.!
While I'm not familiar with the taxes in the area of the state where you're looking to move, taxes plus the overall cost of living in New Jersey is getting prohibitively expensive for middle class families. It's not just taxes alone, but car insurance premiums, health insurance premiums and other costs that are artificially higher in New Jersey due to regulations many other states don't have. Then, of course, the cost of real estate is through the roof and never came down in price as it has in many other states. Young people, unfortunately, are fleeing New Jersey because they can't afford it.
As for jobs, a masters is almost a must these days in New Jersey. Though the issue is that SO many people have degrees here that it reduces its value overall and you're competing with a lot more people for a single position. And with such a large pool of qualified applicants, salaries seem to have taken a nose dive in New Jersey in the private sector. Public sector employees are paid among the highest in the nation, however. As for unemployment, the rate is below that of Florida, but it's still bad and from what I've read in the ongoing discussion of the issue on here, NO ONE is hiring.
Whenever I advise people considering a move to this state, I always tell them to consider the OVERALL cost of living. If you can afford it, awesome! Welcome to New Jersey. But many people who grew up here are getting the hell out because it's very, very expensive.
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