By Lea Kahn, Staff Writer
East Windsor Township property owners should begin looking for their 2017-18 property tax bills, which have been delayed because of changes, early next month.
The mailing of the property tax bills has been delayed until Aug. 7 because of the late adoption of the state budget and changes to state aid to school districts.
The third-quarter property tax bill is normally due Aug. 1, but because of the late mailing, East Windsor Township officials are extending the due date to Sept. 1 without penalty. If the bill is paid after Sept. 1, interest will accrue on that bill.
Meanwhile, East Windsor Township property owners will see a small increase in their property tax rates. The total tax rate for 2017 is $3.32 per $100 of assessed value, compared to last year’s tax rate of $3.31.
Breaking down the tax bill, the East Windsor Regional School District tax of $2.09 per $100 of assessed value accounts for 62.7 percent of the overall tax bill. The East Windsor Township municipal property tax rate of 43 cents accounts for 13 percent of the total tax bill, and Mercer County makes up the rest.
For a home assessed at the township average of $258,287, the total tax bill is $8,575.13. Of that amount, the East Windsor Township municipal property tax is $1,122 – based the municipal property tax rate of 43 cents, which is unchanged from 2016.
"The 2017 municipal budget again reflects a zero tax increase, while retaining the same service levels. Thus, the municipal tax component has remained the same for five straight years," Mayor Janice Mironov said.
Mayor Mironov pointed out that East Windsor Township serves as the tax collector for itself, the school district and the county. Although property owners may make their checks payable to East Windsor Township, the township is responsible for distributing the money that is due to each governmental entity.
