New Jersey state has some of the highest property taxes nationally. In an exciting announcement however, the state government has announced the launch of the ANCHOR property tax relief program to continue this year. The program took effect in July of this year where Gov. Phil Murphy has put aside $2 billion dollars towards property tax relief within the program for the 2024/2025 fiscal year.
The program intends to release tax relief benefits from October of this year
The program will offer relief to homeowners and renters through tax rebates. New Jersey residents who make less than $250,000 a year and are homeowners may receive up to $1,500 in rebates. Renters who make less than $150,000 a year will also be eligible to receive rebates. Last year, approximately 1.5 million residents participated in the ANCHOR program.
Part of the $2 billion initiative includes funding for the Stay NJ program. This program is intended for individuals over the age of 65 years old with an annual income of $500,000 or less. When implemented, the program will see eligible residents’ receive up to $6,500 in benefits to reduce property tax bills by 50%. Benefits will be released late next year pending additional funding and approval for the 2026 fiscal year.
The program will also fund the Senior Freeze program which offers property tax reimbursements for homeowners older than 65 years old or disabled homeowners. To be eligible, you must earn less than $163,050 a year and the reimbursement must be for your primary residence. The program is now own to renters or to anyone who owns a home which is more than four units.
Automatic reenrollment ensures efficiency and guaranteed satisfaction
Residents who participated in the program the last fiscal year will be automatically reenrolled for the 2024/2025 ANCHOR program. This not only reduces the administrative load on residents, but ensures that those who particpated previously are guaranteed to continue recieiving benifits. Often, people are not aware of the status of government programs and their continuation and risk losing out
If you filed last year however and any of your application information has changed (such as your bank details or address), you will need to fill out a new application. The filing deadline is November 30th 2024. This will be the third year that the ANCHOR program will be running for. It is expected that the number of people who partake in the program will increase this year.
The funding will significantly help older NJ residents remain in their homes
Increasing property taxes consistently put senior citizens at risk. The ANCHOR program, along with Stay NJ and Senior Freeze, will provide the most benefit to retired senior citizens. The funding will allow for these vulnerable individuals to remain in their homes and communities as home owners. Currently, New Jersey property taxes average $9,800 a year and are expected to continue to increase.
All three programs continue to be welcomed by home owners. New Jersey is continuing to make a considerable effort to help low- and middle-income residents stay ahead of rising costs in living. Programs to help renters should also be considered to help young adults who are unable to purchase homes but also spend a considerable amount of their income on rent.
The property crisis is not just isolated to New Jersey. Nationwide, re3nt continues to exceed inflation and mortgage rates are currently at a multi-decade high. Further, some analysts estimate that their is a housing shortage of up to 5.5 million units. Some economists estimate that costs are not to be expected to improve until 2026.
The combination of COVID-19 and the Federal Government’s “war on inflation” has set up a housing market with historically high costs and taxes. Programs like the ones seen in New Jersey will provide significant relief to vulnerable home owners and renters
