Assembly Democrats Nelson T. Albano and Matthew W. Milam are reminding eligible taxpayers who may be struggling financially that they have until the end of the month to apply to the Homestead Benefit and the Senior Freeze property tax relief program. The final deadline for applying for the Homestead Benefit and the Senior Freeze property tax relief program is next Monday, October 31. The Senior Freeze program was fully restored under the Democratic budget that Albano and Milam voted to approve earlier this summer.
“Times are rough for many residents, but particularly senior citizens living on fixed incomes,” said Albano. “We were able to restore funding for the Senior Freeze program, which will assist thousands of additional seniors in New Jersey. I hope those who are eligible will take advantage of the Senior Freeze, as well as the Homestead Benefit to help offset their expenses.”
“In these tough economic times, we can all use some property tax relief, especially seniors balancing property taxes with other financial responsibilities on fixed incomes,” said Milam. “Through our efforts, we restored the senior freeze program and allowed for more seniors to apply. I encourage all who are eligible and could use the help to apply to both programs.”
The average senior freeze check is approximately $1,200, and because of the Democratic budget, over 50,000 additional seniors will receive freeze checks than would have under the Christie proposal, which would have reduced the program by $25 million, would not have allowed new seniors to enter the program, and would have seen seniors reimbursed at the level of benefit received in FY 2010, regardless of the property tax increase incurred since 2008.
To be eligible for the Senior Freeze Program a person must be over the age of 65, have lived in New Jersey for at least 10 years and earned less than $70,000 for both calendar years 2009 and 2010. Eligible homeowners may apply online at www.state.nj.us/treasury/taxation/ until Oct. 31, or by phone (1-877-658-2972) 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Applicants can call the Property Tax Reimbursement Hotline at 1-800-882-6597 from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. weekdays to request an application, speak to a Taxation representative for assistance and get information on the status of their reimbursement checks if they have already filed.
To be eligible for the Homestead Benefit Program a person must have owned and occupied their home since at least October 1, 2010. In addition, during calendar year 2010, applicants under the age of 65 cannot have made more than $75,000 and applicants over the age of 65 cannot have made more than $150,000. For an application or assistance, residents can call the Homestead Benefit Hotline (1-888-238-1233) between 8:30 a.m. and 5:30 p.m., Monday through Friday. TLS.
Left unsaid, of course, is that the Democrat plan only helped seniors. The middle class, however, has been screwed. You see, Christie’s budget would have prevented taxes on the middle class from going up. The Democrat plan, on the other hand, will raise taxes on the middle class so that seniors can get help.
Left unsaid, of course. What else would we expect from the Democrats?
@1 Sorry, but your politicization of this matter is blinding you to the facts.
THIS IS NOT JUST FOR SENIORS AND DOES NOT “SCREW” THE MIDDLE CLASS.
“…applicants under the age of 65 cannot have made more than $75,000 and applicants over the age of 65 cannot have made more than $150,000. For an application or assistance, residents can call the Homestead Benefit Hotline (1-888-238-1233) between 8:30 a.m. and 5:30 p.m., Monday through Friday.”
Call the Homestead Benefit Hotline (1-888-238-1233) between 8:30 a.m. and 5:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, like the article says.
Call and you will find a cooperative person who will do your application over the phone and give you a confirmation number. After a relatively short wait, you will be done in 5 minutes.
Your “windfall” will be applied to your tax bill thus LOWERING your taxes.
BTW you repeat the phrase “left unsaid” but you have plenty to say about the “left” which in this case is irrelevant. There are plenty of blogs you can rant and vent about Democrats – why not take your political angst somewhere else before misleading people who might now think they are ineligible for this program and will lose money because of you.
Not every Democrat is a devil and not every Republican is an angel, and regardless of affiliation this program will help a lot of people over and under 65.
$o let’s $ee if you will be true to your word and NOT APPLY.
Ron,
For starters, this blog is the perfect place to educate people like you about what the Democrat party is doing to our country.
More specifically, this article was politicized throughout. Had the article been written without the politics, I would have said nothing. The article could have simply stated that everyone should remember to apply for their benefits.
However, the article clearly took the opportunity to remind everyone that it was the Democrats that pushed through this giveaway to seniors, and that Christie (the big bad Republican) was the one who tried to stop this massive giveaway to seniors.
So I reminded readers like you of what was left unsaid.
Yes, this program reduces taxes for seniors. But how does it do it? By having someone else pay part of the seniors’ taxes. And who do you think is going to pay for those reduced taxes? Left unsaid, of course, is people like me – the middle class – who work hard and struggle to put bread on the table for our children, who’s taxes will go up to pay for all these programs.
Nowhere in my comments will you find me say anything about whether I agree with this program. Nor do I want seniors to starve. However, for the article to paint Christie and the Republican party in a bad light because they didn’t want to renew the transfer of wealth to seniors, is gross journalistic malpractice at best, and quite possibly sinister propaganda on the part of Democrats, which is par for the course.
Remember when Corzine (Democrat) pushed through the 7% sales tax? He told us that the extra sales tax revenue would go to reduce property taxes. Then the next year he cancelled the property tax rebate, but kept the 7% sales tax.
Such is the Democrat way. Yes, Ron, the state does not have enough money to fund all its programs. Eventually, ether these programs will be cut, or taxes will be raised on the middle class. The Republicans want the former, the Democrats want the latter.
(Raising taxes just on the rich will 1- not be enough to cover these deficits, and 2 – will cause the rich to leave the state, causing their taxes and the jobs they create to leave the state with them.)
All this, of course, was left unsaid in the article. Thank you Ron for giving me the opportunity to bring this up.
Your points are well taken and I don’t disagree with you. I could get on the “soap box” and complement your views very well!
Just didn’t want people not to get the idea that they should not apply.
I think because the assessments have gone down so drastically the tax should reflect current values. That might not be what the politicians are thinking because if they weren’t dealing with some of the really troublesome issues like burning money into insolvent corporations, farming our jobs overseas, unemployment rates, and you know I can go on and on. I believe we wouldn’t be in such bad shape. It’s both Democrats and Republicans who got us in the current mess we’re in over many years. Taxes are not the way to create revenue. Business and jobs are.
No matter what they say during election time, somehow taxes still go up and we wind up having to pay them.
Finally, IMO, I really don’t think that those over 65 earning $150K and those under 65 earning $75K can any longer be considered middle class today almost anywhere in the US.
Thank you for your well written comment and clarification of your statements.
I apologize if I was offensive, I admit being a bit harsh and personalizing my response to you. I hope you will take it more in the spirit of which it was written.
Thanks Ron, for your kind words. You are a true mentsch. I appreciate it.
Yes, both Democrats and Republicans got us into this mess. And whenever politicians (from both parties) promise that he won’t raise taxes, they always inevitably end up raising taxes.
Though I must say, that there is one brand of politician that has promised us they won’t raise taxes, and they have kept their word. I refer to the Tea Party Congressmen who were elected in 2010. They are staying strong in the face of mounting pressure from Obama and the media, to raise taxes (by passing the so-called “jobs bill” which is nothing more than a massive tax hike which will end up killing more jobs.) . However, this small Tea Party caucus has stayed strong, and is resisting the pressure.
They must be commended.
It’s sad that we all lament the fact that all politicians end up raising taxes and the deficit. Yet when the Tea Party actually keeps their word and refuses to raise taxes or raise deficit spending, they are branded “extreme” by the Democrats and some Republicans who want things to stay the same. At times like thses, I scratch my head and wonder if our country has any hope.
Thanks and likewise. I think the Tea Party is the best thing that has happened in this country for decades. It’s the “Green” Tea and the “Red” Tea I can’t stomach……