The total assessed value of the city rose for the fifth consecutive year, up less than 1 percent, from $1.45 billion to $1.462 billion.
Become a Patron!
If you find this post valuable, consider making a contribution via PayPal or Buy Me a Coffee – or support local news you don’t get anywhere else all year round by becoming a monthly Patron.
The numbers come from the 2023 Union County Abstract of Ratables, which breaks down tax assessments across various categories for all 21 municipalities in the county.
The $1,462,406,766 billion figure is most similar to 2012 when the total assessed value was $1,462,809,500.
Here’s a breakdown of assessments across several categories from 2022 to 2023:
- Class 1 Vacant: +47.38%* — $18,888,100
- Exempt, Other: +8.31% — $287,136,050
- Class 2 Residential: +0.77% — $995,708,116
- Total Class 4 — +0.66% — $449,677,750x
- Class 4B Industrial: -0.42% — $447,810,550
- Class 4A Commercial: -1.85% — $126,615,750
- Class 4C Apartment: -2.57% — $68,749,200
The overall assessments don’t change much year to year, usually not much more than a few percentage points, if that. This year, that wasn’t the case but it was more a matter of record keeping. The assessment for vacant land jumped by some 47 percent, about $6 million from $12.8 million to $18.8 million, mainly the result of how reclassifying a property that was redeveloped with a Payment In Lieu Of Taxes (PILOT) agreement.
*About $2 million of the $6 million difference came from Metro Rahway, where the former A&M Industrial Supply building on Campbell Street building was demolished on Block 149, Lot 1.01 and the land was moved from Class 4A to Class 1 vacant, according to Tax Assessor Thomas Mancuso. There were a few smaller demolitions, most of the remaining 4 million was from seven PILOT in-lieu properties where the land had to be reclassified from Exempt to Vacant, Mancuso said.
The PILOT agreement for Metro Rahway predates the state’s directive to reclassify vacant land and directly dictated that it be classified as vacant versus exempt, according to Deputy Tax Assessor Logan Ortutay. It’s one of only two properties in the city that’s classified that way, per the PILOT agreements. Typically in PILOT agreements,, the land is typically classified as Vacant while improvements are classified as Exempt.
Otherwise, most other categories did not change beyond about 1 percent. The largest swings were Class 4C Apartment, -2.57 percent from about $70.5 million to $68.7 million, followed by Class 4A Commercial, -1.85 percent, down from $129 million to $126.6 million. Total Class 4 assessments declined 0.42 percent. Class 2 Residential includes any multi-family properties up to 4 units while Class 4C Apartment includes any properties of more than 5 units.
Looking at one year is just a snapshot but examining the assessments over multiple years will show more of a move. For instance, comparing 2023 with 2018 (5 years) and 2013 (10 years) will yield a fuller picture: Since 2013, Class 4C Apartment is up 24 percent, Class 4B Industrial is down almost 15 percent, and Exempt, Other is up 31 percent.
Become a Patron!
If you find this post valuable, consider making a contribution via PayPal or Buy Me a Coffee – or support local news you don’t get anywhere else all year round by becoming a monthly Patron.
