Lavallette Officials: Please Let Tax Revaluation Surveyors In

Lavallette Borough Hall (Photo: Daniel Nee)

Just under half of the homes in Lavallette have been inspected by a firm hired to conduct a revaluation of the borough’s tax base.

Mayor Walter LaCicero said about 1,000 homes – approximately 45 percent of all households – have been surveyed by teams going door-to-door to assess homes and assign them a value. The county ordered Lavallette to conduct a revaluation last year and officials scheduled the survey work to be completed during the summer when the highest percentage of homes would be occupied.

“We really did hit the ground running the first week of July,” said Borough Administrator Robert Brice.

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Brice and LaCicero both urged homeowners to allow surveyors to come in for a look.

“There’s an urban myth out there that if you don’t let them in, they fine you,” said Brice. “That’s not true, they don’t do anything punitive, but then they have to decide a value just by looking outside.”

“It might not be the value you’d like,” added LaCicero.

Brice said the most accurate assessments can only be conducted after an in-house inspection.

One resident who spoke at the meeting, John Corning of Newark Avenue, praised the surveyors, saying their visit to his home was brief and professional.

In tax revaluations, most experts advise that a “rule of thirds” most often applies: a third of properties face a higher tax bill, a third see their bill reduced, and a third remain about the same.