Posted on 11/09/2009 9:44:03 PM PST by Extremely Extreme Extremist
Harding Township Manages To Keep Taxes Very Low Because Residents Volunteer, Do Many Things Themselves
HARDING TOWNSHIP, N.J. (CBS) ―
Across the Hudson River where property taxes are a hot button issue, homeowners in one New Jersey town know how to get more bang for their buck.
What's Harding Township's secret? Lawmakers keep those taxes down and residents happy.
It's a secret the residents don't want the rest of the state to know about -- how they've managed keep their property taxes down.
When you step into Harding Township you feel like you've gone back in time.
Horses, farms, barely any street lights. This little oasis is just 35 miles from the city, near transportation and malls.
But residents say what makes this New Jersey town special is they pay some of the lowest property taxes in a state with the highest rates in the nation.
"It's like a little spot no one knows about it -- because it's not such a huge area people don't know about it," resident Gary Gutjahr said.
Gutjahr pays $36,000 a year for a $6 million home. He said he'd pay triple that in neighboring Mendham.
Township officials said there is a reason for moderate taxes -- shared services, a concept Gov.-elect Chris Christie pushed during his campaign.
"I think the governor-elect has been saying it for nine months. We have a spending problem. We have to live within what we can believe our revenues are going to be," said Regina Egea.
The Township has a private fire department that's 100 percent volunteer. Some residents rely on well water and septic tanks and those who live in the New Vernon section pick up their own mail from the post office.
That's why realtor Deborah Tong said you get more land here for your tax dollars.
"We have private garbage. We only have K-8 and our sending district is Madison High School," Tong said.
The Township has more than 3,600 residents and because it has a wildlife refuge and national park building's kept at a minimum.
And there seems to be something else.
"There is a lot of volunteerism with Harding Township," Deputy Mayor Ned Ward said.
The Kirby family donated money to build the municipal building, and residents say their families have been here for generations.
"It's a great town to live in," Lucinda Miller said. "The secret's out. A lot of people move here strictly for the address."
At the center of town there's a deli and several real estate companies. While the secret may be out, it remains to be seen if other New Jersey towns can do what Harding Township has done -- keep property taxes down through shared services.
Still, despite all the positives, Township officials said because of falling revenues they still struggle to hold taxes flat.
Most towns in NJ are getting killed by the county and state taxes used to fund the huge cess poll welfare cities...even the city of newark has its education system paid for by the state, er, the rest of the taxpayers in the state.
We pay $9000 a year on a $450k house. We have septic & well, K-8 schools and are a sending district. The only thing we have different than Harding is that garbage is included in our taxes.
So, $36k for a $6M home is a low rate in NJ!
It is interesting that there is a correlation between modest taxes, reduced services, AND local volunteerism. That’s the way it used to be.
When you pay more and work longer just to pay taxes, you think (or I think) “I’m tired, I already gave at the office, so to speak,” and volunteering and community connectedness are diminished.
Are you in NJ? Maybe your local government needs to be looked at if your taxes are that high and services relatively minor. You are paying 1/4 of the taxes of the referenced Harding property for a house roughly 1/12 its value. Private trash collection in this area is @ $30-40/ month for 2x week plus recycled/yard debris pickup.
If my calculations are correct (and I am NO mathematician), taxes on your property in Harding would be $2700 a year. That $6300/year in your pocket probably wouldn’t hurt. Ok, so $5800 after trash.
I’m not too sure why the article couldn’t have referred to a more modest property. $6M is well above average for any town in the US outside Beverly Hills.
Yep, we are in NJ and most of our township government is part time. I am not sure what the money is used for. My wife and I plan on looking into it.
Let us know when you run for your township board. Seriously, it’s stuff like this that gets ordinary citizens to want to have some control over how THEIR money is spent. If not, hope you can find out where the $$$ goes.
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