Bergen County Real Estate News: August 2006 – Week 3

Bergen county news with an emphasis on aspects affecting real estate, residency and community issues.

Construction Decisions In Bergen County
Bergen County Becomes Safer For Residents
Bogotá, The Best Place To Live In
Bogotá Residents To See Tax Hikes
Rising Property Taxes Cause Alarm

Construction Decisions In Bergen County

The Bergen County towns of Tenafly and Demarest may soon see the slowing down of building and expansion projects due to various environmental and mechanical issues. While in 2003 Demarest officials had announced their plans of doubling the DPW office space, the Demarest building project stands as it was even today. Slated to come up on a new site, the project has been stalled due to the lack of approval from theDepartment of Environmental Protection. The good news is that the proposal has now received approval for construction near the Tenakill brook, a protected waterway. However a decision to scale down the project to meet state environmental laws is still pending. Another example of stalled constructions in Bergen County, include the police department building in Tenafly. While the studies for expanding the building began in 2003, all plans of doing so have been sidetracked due to a situation with the ventilation system of the building. Alternatives are still being considered for the same.

Bergen County Becomes Safer For Residents

Here is some good news for residents in Bergen County. Property holders and home owners in the towns of Bergen County can be assured of safety now. Statistics from the 2005 state Uniform Crime Report that was released on August 8, 2006, indicated a decrease in crime rates throughout the county. As per the report only four crimes were committed in Haworth last year. This included a burglary, two larcenies and an arrest for domestic violence. Better still were the towns of Allendale, Northvale, Harrington Park and Waldwick where no crimes were registered for 2005. On the whole, Bergen County topped on the list of states for rate reduction. Rapes reduced by 21%, burglaries reduced by 13%, drug distribution went down by 21% and violent crimes reduced by 8%. The crime rate in Cresskill decreased by over 50%. It was noted to be at 6.7 crimes per 1,000 people from 13. Borough officials in Cresskill state that this reduction in crime rate could be credited to the new recreation center to some extent. This center has helped in keeping the kids out of trouble.

Bogotá, The Best Place To Live In

Research indicates that the compact town of Bogotá in Bergen County is easier to operate as compared to its bigger counterparts. Even though it measures less than a mile, the town has its own high school and separate buildings for public works office, the health department and building departments. The town also has a police force of 15 members that offer security to the 8200 people who live in Bogotá. This is quite in contrast to bigger towns, where maintenance and management is a tough situation to tackle. Statistics indicated success of managing small towns when data was compared. For example, the per capita municipal costs when compared worked out to be just $741 in Bogotá as compared to approximately $2,040 in Newark and $1,183 in Teaneck. Click here for more information about the town of Bogotà.

Bogotá Residents To See Tax Hikes

Borough residents in Bogotá will now see their municipal taxes go up by 3.7%, as the borough officials passed the hike under the 2006 budget. As per the new figures, the municipal tax bill for a home assessed at $200,000 would now cost $1,894. The budget which was put forth on Monday, August 7, 2006 was adopted in part with various changes. These included a 6.5% hike in the spending plan. This figure takes the $7 million plan up by $428,400 as compared to last year. The budget however does not include any increases in operating cost for key public safety areas like the fire department, rescue squad or ambulance corps. Click here for more information about the town of Bogotá.

Rising Property Taxes Cause Alarm

Rising property taxes are a cause of alarm for many residents of Bergen County and New Jersey as such. As these taxes average to approximately $6000 a year, residents and officials are finding ways to offer property tax relief. It is also seen that high property taxes are the major reason why New Jersey is expensive and homebuyers are skeptical. This has been a major issue that worsened due to chronic state budget crises. Recent analysis also indicated that property taxes were fast outpacing the rises in income. 
In Bergen County itself, property taxes were seen to skyrocket by 26 percent, which was a three times the growth rate of income.

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