Gov. Extends Date for Property Tax Apps

The Governor said the extension is especially important this year because higher income limits for program eligibility are in effect for 2001. The original deadline was March 15, 2002.

"The new limits will allow more of New Jersey's seniors and disabled residents to participate and obtain tax relief for the first time this year," he said.

The program, now in its fourth year, reimburses eligible senior citizens and disabled persons for property tax increases. The amount of the reimbursement is the difference between the amount of property taxes paid in the year the applicant first became eligible for the program and the amount of property taxes paid for the current year, provided the amount paid for the current year is greater.

To be eligible for a property tax reimbursement for 2001, a first-time applicant must meet the following requirements for both 2000 and 2001:

Be age 65 or older or receiving Federal Social Security disability benefits as of December 31, 2000 (if disabled, the applicant continued to received benefits through December 31, 2001); and Have owned and lived in the home for which the reimbursement is being claimed, or have leased the site in a mobile home park on which a manufactured or mobile home is placed, since before January 1, 1998; and

Have lived in New Jersey continuously since before January 1, 1991 as either a homeowner or a renter, and

Have annual income for 2000 that is less than $37,174 for single applicants, or $45,582 (combined income) for married couples, and annual income for 2001 that is less than $38,475 for single applicants, or $47,177 (combined income) for married couples; and

Have paid the full amount of the property taxes (or site fees if a mobile home owner) that were due on the home for both 2000 and 2001.

First-time applicants, and those who did not receive a property tax reimbursement for the 2000 calendar year, must use Form PTR-1 to file for their 2001 reimbursement. Form PTR-2 is a personalized application for those who applied for and received a reimbursement check for the 2000 calendar year, and is preprinted with some of the information provided for the applicant's base year.

Information on the Property Tax Reimbursement Program is available on the Division of Taxation's Web site (http://www.state.nj.us/treasury/taxation/) or by calling the Automated Tax Information System at 1-800-323-4400. Division representatives are available at the Property Tax Reimbursement Hotline (1-800-882-6597) from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, to answer questions about the program.

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Author: Paul Aronsohn