New Jersey Towns With The Highest Tax Bills In 2017

New Jersey’s property taxes, which are the highest in the nation, just keep rising. So you shouldn't be surprised when you see more money being taken out of your account this year.

But you may be surprised when you see how expensive it's gotten to live in your town, especially compared to other towns.

Patch put together a list of all towns and their average annual property tax bills, from highest to lowest (see chart below). The data, released last month, comes from the state Department of Community Affairs.

The list either won't surprise you - with Millburn leading the way at $23,327 - or it may pain you to see that it costs more to live in Bloomfield than it does to live in the affluent Long Beach Island community of Harvey Cedars.

Last year, property taxes rose by more than the state cap allows, according to NJ Spotlight. Schools remain the biggest spenders of tax dollars, the report says, but municipal governments have been driving the nearly 13 percent increase since Gov. Chris Christie took office.

Between 2015 and 2016, the average homeowner’s tax bill rose to $8,549, an increase of 2.3 percent, which was slightly higher than the 2 percent cap Christie put into effect in 2011, according to the analysis.

Christie spokesman Brian Murray told the publication that the average tax increase since Christie took office is “very close” to 2 percent and it “would have been lower had the Legislature not incorporated exceptions to the 2 percent caps, exemptions the governor advocated against.” Exemptions include health benefits and pension costs, as well as expenses arising due to an emergency.

Here is the list of communities, their counties and their average tax bills:

Patch file photo