Looking to cut your NJ property taxes? (Who isn’t, right?)
“Stay NJ”, a new property tax relief program is on its way for New Jersey homeowners 65 or older.
To qualify for Stay NJ, you must have lived in your home for a full 12 months and have an income below $500,000. The benefit is based on 50% of the property taxes on your primary residence up to $13,000 in taxes, so the max benefit is $6,500.
Whether and how much you qualify for Stay NJ takes into account 2 existing programs:
· Senior Freeze. The Property Tax Relief or PTR (Senior Freeze) is a program that refunds eligible applicants for the property tax increases they encounter each year. To qualify, you must meet age/disability, income and ownership requirements. The income eligibility is $163,050 or less in 2023 and $168,268 or less in 2024.
· ANCHOR. The Affordable New Jersey Communities for Homeowners and Renters (ANCHOR) is property tax relief to NJ residents who own or rent property in New Jersey as their main residence. The benefit is $1,500 for homeowners with income of $150,000 or less and $1,000 for homeowners with income of $150,000 up to $250,000. Renters with income of $150,000 or less will receive $450. Non-senior homeowners and renters will have a separate application to complete for ANCHOR later this year.
If you also qualify for the PTR and the ANCHOR, those benefit amounts are taken into account and applied to the total NJ Stay benefit amount of 50% of your property taxes, up to $6,500. If the total of your PTR and ANCHOR benefits meets or exceeds the $6,500 max benefit, you will not receive anything from Stay NJ.
How do you apply for these tax-relief programs?
Click HERE for a combined application for PTR (Senior Freeze), ANCHOR benefit and Stay NJ. This form is only for homeowners and renters over the age of 65 or those receiving Social Security Disability benefits on December 31, 2024. The program will become available in February 2025 and applications should be mailed out in early March 2025. The deadline to file this form is October 31, 2025. Once filed, the Division of Taxation will determine which programs the applicant qualifies for and the amount of each benefit.
Of course, eligibility requirements and benefits available for all Property Tax Relief programs are subject to change by the State Budget.
For additional information and tax services we recommend contacting:
Robert G. Fortunato, CPA, MBA, JD, LLM
(973) 744-4022
Fortunato & Pirrello kindly provided this information for The Tamima Team and our clients.