New Jersey Tax Court Affirms Montclair Township’s Property Tax Assessment of Taxpayer’s Fire-Damaged Apartment Complex

The New Jersey Tax Court Nov. 2 affirmed the Montclair Township property tax assessment of Taxpayer’s fire-damaged 28-unit apartment complex. The township’s assessor reduced the property’s improvement assessment following extensive damage from a 2015 fire. In 2016, Taxpayer retained a property restoration firm to commence repairs to the property. On Oct. 1, 2019, the assessor imposed an added assessment and prorated the added assessment for nine months, after the property repair was substantially completed. Taxpayer argued that the property wasn’t functional for its intended purpose, as a multi-family dwelling, as of the assessment date. The tax court noted: 1) the ...