| Author |
Message |
    
Buck
| | Posted on Thursday, January 18, 2001 - 9:29 pm: |     |
First, let's me say that I'm one of the "victimized" in this reassessment process. Moved here in August, house assessed higher than I paid, taxes will, if the appeal isn't successful, go up about 30%. And, I'm not happy about that.
However, after reading this message board and listening to people around town talk about the reassessment, I'm disappointed in this town's reaction. When we remind ourselves that the issue isn't just about how much we pay, but who pays, the overreaction coming from some is just like that felt in every other exclusive community in New Jersey. Since I moved to New Jersey 7-1/2 years ago, I've lived in three towns. After becoming disgusted by the exclusitivy of Bergen County, I was excited to move my family to Maplewood. Finally, we found a comfortable town that treasured its diversity. That is until we all found out about the town's dirty little secret. Everybody doesn't pay their way.
When I moved here I was told what my taxes would be. Sure I thought they were high, but I also thought that they must be fair. I have a family and a job, I couldn't be spending my time sitting in town hall reviewing the tax records making sure that I was being asssessed a fair amount. But now I know I'm not. When I read in the New York Times this morning that someone with a 4 bedroom Victorian in the Village is angry that their taxes will go from $8k to $15k, I learned that right now I'm paying roughly the same in taxes for my 3-bedroom starter home. Come on.
The final straw to me was when people living in $500,000 houses started to cry poverty. Some of the discussion I've heard has included the observation that at the town meeting last week, it was clear that the citizens were better informed, smarter, and more articulate than the members of the town council. But in the same breath I'm to believe these same people are naive. Naive to believe that they weren't being undertaxed, which, by definition, means others are overtaxed. Come on, you knew, and the jig is up.
In some ways I'm glad I learned the true fabric of Maplewood after living here only 4 months. Now I know that this town is (at least half of it is) just like every other exclusive community around. Now I know this may not be a place I want to raise my family. And that conclusion has nothing to do with my tax increase. |
Kayceecee
| | Posted on Thursday, January 18, 2001 - 10:13 pm: | |
I totally agree with you: these people who are whining now must have known they were being undertaxed. But don't let that put you off. That's not the true fabric of Maplewood, not in our neighborhood anyway. Our neighborhood--the "middle" of town, on the wrong side of Valley--is what we fell in love with years ago and we haven't been disappointed. Diverse, down-to-earth, creative people who are very involved with the schools and their families. Most of us on the block will see some tax increase, but we believe in paying our fair share. It's amazing that a 4-bedroom Victorian in the Village was only paying $8,000. A lot of my neighbors are paying close to that for an average 3 bedroom in our part of town. No one likes to take such a hit but they have been benefitting at others' expense for quite awhile. |
Judy
| | Posted on Thursday, January 18, 2001 - 10:27 pm: | |
I am from the east side of town and although my assessment would mean an increase for us it is not a substantial one. But what satisifies me is the fact that the reeval will distribute the burden of the taxes, that we are going to have to pay anyway, amongst ALL taxpayers in Maplewood. |
Mplwd
| | Posted on Thursday, January 18, 2001 - 10:50 pm: | |
YOU ALL NEED TO GET GRIP ON IT. WAKE UP , IF KNOW ONE TOLD YOU THAT EAST WAS OVER PAYING WOULD YOU HAVE JUST SAT AROUND AND PAID FOR IT. AT LEAST WE ARE TAKING A STAND FOR OURSELVES GROW UP AND YOU STOP WHINING! |
Papa
| | Posted on Thursday, January 18, 2001 - 11:50 pm: | |
I live in a 3 bedroom(small bedrooms) on the west side of town. My taxes have gone up about 200.00 every year since the dems. took over. I now pay approx. 7000.00 I have been overcharged for years . My taxes are going up approx. 2000.00 So please donot lump all houses on the west side togeather as not paying their fair share .I cannot afford it anymore .I am gone as soon as I can sell.I donot like all this fighting all because the township comm. has not a clue as to what thay are doing...... |
Njjoseph
| | Posted on Friday, January 19, 2001 - 7:27 am: | |
Papa, if I were planning to sell and move out, I'd be concentrating my efforts there, rather than spend another minute on this board. |
Buck
| | Posted on Friday, January 19, 2001 - 7:41 am: | |
Mplwd:
You are the problem here. Everyone that disagrees wiith you is whining. In case you didn't read my comments, I disagree with you and am challenging a 30% increase. That's not whining. What you can't see through the red in your eyes is that you are taking a stand at someone else's expense. Besides, no one isn't spelled "know one". |
Nohero
| | Posted on Friday, January 19, 2001 - 9:03 am: | |
Buck - Please stay. Some folks have gotten very angry lately, and that has affected how they express themselves. There are probably some egregious errors in the revals; that has caused some people to resent the entire concept of a revaluation. There are a lot more people with your attitude who live in this town, but people who respond in a more quiet, thoughtful manner (if at all) are usually not noticed as much as those who react more forcefully.
And finally, don't let them get to you. |
Euclidean
| | Posted on Friday, January 19, 2001 - 9:15 am: | |
A lot of the problem with the tax revaluation is that a lot of homeowners were hit with very large tax increases and it was difficult to get an accurate explanation of the basis for the increase. Certified did the TC and all of Maplewood a serious disservice by:
1)apparently not being able to clearly articulate their revaluation methodology. They should have a Powerpoint presentation or something that clearly explains their methodology.
2) apparently being a bit rude to some people trying to understand what was happening and
3) not giving the TC a warning that a number of homeowners were going to experience tax sticker shock and would therefore be upset.
On top of that, there is some reason to question the quality of the work performed by Certified.
My point is that most of the people upset about their significant tax increases aren't against paying their fair share. And I would guess that most of these people didn't investigate the relative distribution of the tax burden in Maplewood when they purchased their homes. I don't think that is a usual home-buying research point.
The major problem is being blind-sided by tax increases which, even if affordable, represent a lot of money. It is going to take some time to work through this problem, get the facts out and cleanup Certified's errors. When that is done, I would guess the majority of people will get on with enjoying Maplewood. Some will move out. Some will hold a grudge. The majority will be fine. |
Mlj
| | Posted on Friday, January 19, 2001 - 9:35 am: | |
E, I strongly agree with you. Some people are so enraged that they are losing their objectivity. Some will just quietly move out of disgust for their increases or inability to afford them. Not to mention the many who received wacky assessments without complete public disclosure on the part of Certified. No one should be expected to accept that. I do hope we can work things out but think it will be very difficult. It will take a long time to do this revaluation accurately, raise those who should be raised and decrease those who should be decreased. I hope we can all agree with that, no matter our differences. |
Mplwd
| | Posted on Friday, January 19, 2001 - 10:14 am: | |
BUCK,I AM NOT THE PROBLEM, THANK YOU VERY MUCH.
I HAVE LIVED IN THIS TOWN 35 YRS.I AM IN MY THIRD HOME, AND I LOVE IT. I ALSO LOVE THIS TOWN, ITS MY HOME. I DO NOT THINK YOU KNOW MAPLEWOOD VERY WELL IN ONLY FOUR SHORT MONTHS. THE WHOLE TOWN HAS BEEN OVERTAXED FOR YEARS, WE REALIZE THAT WE ARE GOING TO FACE A INCREASE, WE ACCEPT THAT BUT IF YOU THINK SOMEONE DESERVES A INCREASE OF 10,000. YOUR CRAZY. WE CANT CORRECT WHAT HAS HAPPENED IN THE PAST WE NEED TO FIND A RESONABLE SOLUTION FOR EVERYONE.
IT DOES NOT MATTER WHAT PART OF TOWN YOU ARE FROM
NO ONE HAS BEEN TREATED FAIRLY, WE NEED TO STAND UP FOR WHAT IS RIGHT.
NO ONE IS BEING NAIVE . THERE ARE TWO SIDES TO EVERY STORY, SO BEFORE YOU START SAYING THE WEST HAS NOT BEEN PAYING THEIR SHARE DONT FORGET WE KNEW THERE WAS GONG TO BE AN INCREASE, BUT WITHIN REASON. |
Rckymtn
| | Posted on Friday, January 19, 2001 - 10:39 am: | |
Please, stop yelling. Try hitting that caps lock key. |
Davel
| | Posted on Friday, January 19, 2001 - 10:50 am: | |
Mplwd - After correcting for Certified's overinflated valuations, if many buyers of properties on the west side of town had not engaged in bidding wars over the last 2 plus years and paid unreasonable prices, then the valuations would have been far more reasonable and the extent of the reeval would be much lower. I truly feel sorry for those on the west side that were not party to the feeding frenzy of inflating market prices. I have less sympathy for those who paid so much that they have created a much more stratified housing market in Maplewood. You have to be quite well off now to buy a house on the west side and pay the property taxes. It will change the character of Maplewood. |
Kathy
| | Posted on Friday, January 19, 2001 - 10:55 am: | |
Mplwd, When you say "The whole town has been overtaxed for years", you reveal that your problem is not with the revaluation (which has to do with how taxes are distributed within the town) but with the town, county and school budgets. That's a whole separate issue. It can be addressed through the budget process, or by changing the way that those budgets are funded (to some basis other than property taxes), but not by adjusting anybody's assessments. |
Fraser63hall
| | Posted on Friday, January 19, 2001 - 11:02 am: | |
Euclidean.... I totally agree with you.
I am one of the homeowners experiencing tax sticker shock. I purchased my home 2 years ago, assuming I was paying my fair share in taxes.
I never expected to be hit with a $5,000 increase in one year. I think that is a reasonable assumption.
If that is my portion of the tax burden... so be it. Maplewood is my home, and I plan to stay.
I just want to make sure my property was properly valued, and the $15,000 is truly my fair share , before I bite the bullet. |
Nakaille
| | Posted on Friday, January 19, 2001 - 11:44 am: | |
Fair enough, Fraser! Thank you for your calm, reasoned response to this mess.
Bacata |
Buffalojoe
| | Posted on Friday, January 19, 2001 - 12:01 pm: | |
Why is Maplewood being characterized in this thread as an "exclusive town"? What exactly does that mean? And why has no one commented on it?
Here are some interesting dictionary definitions of "exclusive":
exácluásive (k-sklsv)
adj. Abbr. excl.
1.Excluding or tending to exclude: exclusive barriers.
2.Not divided or shared with others: exclusive publishing rights.
3.Not accompanied by others; single or sole: your exclusive function.
4.Complete; undivided: gained their exclusive attention.
5.Excluding some or most, as from membership or participation: an exclusive club.
6.Catering to a wealthy clientele; expensive: exclusive shops.
If Maplewood is an "exclusive" community, then I'm glad I'm only renting and can leave whenever I want. |
Townie
| | Posted on Friday, January 19, 2001 - 12:16 pm: | |
Hi Buck, welcome to Maplewood! Quite sincerely. Sorry you arrived at a time when people were feeling like maybe they needed to stand up for themselves and ask loud questions.
I'm agnostic about how to proceed from here with the new tax situation because I still don't have all the facts. But I think everybody who ever gets a property assessment should try to determine if it is accurate. When I bought my house, I checked to see what other neighboring homes had recently sold for. I didn't want to overpay for a house in this area. Likewise, when I received my new property assessment, I called my neighbors to see what they had gotten, and when I get the next one, I'm going to call real estate agents to see if they believe it accurately reflects the fair market value of my home. If it doesn't, I will appeal. And that has nothing to do with anyone else in town.
It's too bad that it wasn't just one area of Maplewood property went up in a hot real estate market. What happened is that one area went up and one has been going down for some years (while the homeowners weren't aware that they were gradually paying too much in property taxes relative to the value of their homes.) The fact that these two things came to light simultaneously is causing some people to confuse the issues and get mad at each other. Really, all you can know for sure is whether your house was valued fairly.
Of course, it should concern all of us that there is tax equity throughout the town. Unfortunately, I do hear some people saying that they shouldn't suddenly be faced with a high tax bill, even if it is based on the true value of their home, and they want other people to help them foot the bill with a delay or a phase-in. I think most of us would be willing to extend that help to seniors, but not everybody with a big house, especially at the expense of people who have apparently been ovepaying for some years.
But also unfortunately I hear some people saying no one has the right to question the assessment or complain about the way it was done in their case or their whole neighborhood. It may be unpleasant to hear, but those people have a lot to lose if that assessment is wrong. Some may lose their ability to stay in Maplewood. Of course many of them will be emotional about it and protective of their interests.
Like I said, Buck. Welcome to Maplewood. It's a town like any other, full of human beings, not angels.;-] |
Citizen
| | Posted on Friday, January 19, 2001 - 3:55 pm: | |
Buck:
Moved here in '96. Paid in the $230's for a four bedroom on westside. Taxes started at about $8k. Taxes are now $8,900.
Certified says my house is now worth $545,000. Taxes will go to $14,500.
Naivete? Naw...it's called extortion. |
Nakaille
| | Posted on Friday, January 19, 2001 - 4:11 pm: | |
Yeah, right, extortion! You might want to check a dictionary. You may have an inaccurate assessment and you may want to challenge it, just a thought. But to call it extortion is just throwing gasoline on a fire. Rather irresponsible in my opinion. When is/was your appt with Certified or the town assessor? And yes, some properties apparently have doubled in real market value in the past 4 years. Ask Jerry Ryan. Maybe not yours. So work on it instead of making incendiary comments like that.
Bacata |
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