Cranford Makes Top 100 List In NJ For High Property Tax Rates

CRANFORD, NJ — A list of the New Jersey municipalities with the highest tax rates shows several towns in Union County at the top, although Cranford doesn't rank as high as some of the other popular North Jersey suburbs. READ MORE: Every NJ Town's Average Property Tax Bill In New 2021 List

Patch put together the list of more than 500 municipalities based on data released this month from the state Department of Community Affairs.

The good news is that even as the COVID crisis shut the economy down and brought a halt to revenues last year, property taxes rose at a much slower rate in 2020 than they did the year before.

On average, the state's property taxes rose 1 percent, from $8,953 to $9,112, from 2019 to 2020. By contrast, between 2018 and 2019, the average homeowner's tax bill rose from $8,767 to $8,953, an increase of 2.12 percent.

On the list of more than 500 municipalities, Cranford came in at number 97. The two highest ranking Union County towns were Summit at 18, and Westfield at 24.

Cranford fell between Northvale and Shrewsbury:

95. Highland Park Borough, Middlesex $12,168

96. Northvale Borough, Bergen $12,102

97. Cranford Township, Union $12,088

98. Shrewsbury Borough, Monmouth $12,080

99. Millstone Township, Monmouth $12,033

100. Weehawken Township, Hudson $12,007

Number one on the list is wealthy Tavistock, a Camden County town with three large houses in it.

These were the top 20 communities in New Jersey. To see the full list, or to look at a separate list of who got the largest increases, click here: Every NJ Town's Average Property Tax Bill In New 2021 List

Top 20 towns in New Jersey:

1. Tavistock Borough, Camden $30,328
2. Millburn Township, Essex $24,370
3. Mountain Lakes Borough, Morris $21,625
4. Tenafly Borough, Bergen $21,552
5. Demarest Borough, Bergen $21,377
6. Glen Ridge Borough, Essex $21,214
7. Rumson Borough, Monmouth $21,153
8. Alpine Borough, Bergen $21,042
9. Essex Fells Borough, Essex $20,413
10. Princeton, Mercer $20,352
11. Montclair Township, Essex $19,963
12. Mendham Township, Morris $19,794
13. Mantoloking Borough, Ocean $19,304
14. South Orange Village Township, Essex $19,147
15. Deal Borough, Monmouth $19,117
16. Upper Saddle River Borough, Bergen $18,886
17. Ridgewood Village, Bergen $18,506
18. Summit City, Union $18,314
19. Haworth Borough, Bergen $18,270
20. Saddle River Borough, Bergen $18,210

Patch Editor Tom Davis contributed reporting to this story.

Got news? Email caren.lissner@patch.com. Got photos? Please include express written permission from the photographer for us to use them. To be the first to get free news alerts with breaking stories in your town, or to get a free local newsletter each morning, sign up for Patch breaking news alerts or daily newsletters.