Revaluation looks bad for some homeowners

If the revaluation of Manal-apan occurs as reported in the Dec. 20 edition of the News Transcript, there will be serious implications for the residents of Manalapan and the value of their homes. The majority of homes in the town were built prior to the 1991 assessment and are currently taxed at the rate of $3.69 per $100 of as-sessed val-uation.

As reported in that article, that means the owners of a home previously valued at $200,000 and now valued at $500,000 will see a tax increase of $1,870 or 25.3 percent. This will have a significant impact on the ability and desire of that homeowner to remain in Manalapan and will reduce the attractiveness of Manalapan to new potential residents.

Furthermore, the impact on prices due to the increased taxes will add to the decline in housing prices that the market has experienced since the assessment was performed.

Additionally, there is a drastic injustice in the formula as predicted in that an informed purchaser of an $800,000 home after 1991 that is now valued at $1,000,000 was fully aware of what the taxes on that home would be at the time of purchase. That indi-vidual will see their property

taxes de-cline by $12,620 or over 40 percent.

The net result is that those who least expect it and can least afford it get hurt, while those being taxed at levels which were included in their budget and decision to move to Manalapan will experience a huge windfall.

If the township does not wish to experience a decline in property values combined with an inability to compete for the type of residents who have contributed to Manalapan's success, then we need to find an alternative to the approach reported.

Ray Arello

Manalapan