Most listings print a property tax figure as though it were a fixed fact about the house. In Chatham Township this winter, it isn't one. The bill a buyer sees now divides the Township's tax burden using assessments last reset for the 2005 tax year. A county-ordered revaluation is about to redo that division for 2027, property by property.
The timing lands right in the middle of the winter selling season. Under the Township's schedule, owners get their proposed 2027 assessments by mail after November 10. The new tax rate won't exist until late summer 2027. A contract signed between those two points gets priced while one half of the tax math is known and the other half isn't.
A Tax Figure With a Shelf Life
Here's the figure a buyer was looking at going into this year. The state's 2025 residential statistics show 154 Township sales at an average price of about $1,564,184 and an average residential tax bill of $18,373. The Township's 2025 general tax rate was 2.104 per $100 of assessed value.
These are accurate numbers, but they describe an old split. The Morris County Board of Taxation ordered the revaluation on December 21, 2023, with a completion deadline of September 30, 2026. The new values take effect in the 2027 tax year. The Township awarded the work to Appraisal Systems, Inc. on January 28, 2025, by Resolution 2025-058. Every property is valued as of October 1, 2026, no matter when the inspector came by.
Chatham Borough is its own municipality with its own tax office, and this revaluation covers the Township only.
Twenty-One Years of Drift
Revaluations happen because assessments fall out of step with the market over time. In its owner letter, the Township said the 2005-era values "are now outdated and do not reflect fair market value." The letter put the Township's equalization ratio at 72.22% at the time and said the revaluation would bring assessed values to 100% of market value.
The drift kept going. New Jersey's certified Chapter 123 average ratio for Chatham Township for tax year 2026 is 66.41%. In other words, assessments townwide now sit at roughly two-thirds of market value on average, down from almost three-quarters a year earlier.
That number is an average, and averages hide spread. After two decades, some houses have gained more than the town as a whole and some have gained less. A single 2005 assessment can't follow either path. The revaluation exists to catch exactly those gaps.
Why the Ranking Matters More Than the Rate
New owners often assume that if assessed values jump toward 100% of market, tax bills jump with them. The Township's letter says otherwise. It calls the revaluation "revenue neutral." No additional taxes are raised for the school district, the municipality or the county, and the total burden is "redistributed in a fair and equitable manner based on the revised assessments."
The same letter also addresses the tax rate directly.
"Do not apply the 2026 tax rate to your 2027 assessed value. Since the ratable base as a whole is anticipated to increase in value for the 2027 tax year, the 2027 tax rate will be adjusted accordingly."
Here's how that works. If every property's assessment went up by the same percentage, the rate would drop to match and everyone's share would stay about the same. Bills change because assessments don't all move together. A house whose market value rose faster than the Township average since 2005 ends up carrying a bigger share of the same total levy. A house that rose more slowly carries a smaller share.
So a buyer comparing two Township houses with similar 2026 tax bills may be looking at two different 2027 bills. The proposed assessment letter is the first document that shows which way a particular property is likely to go, and the Township has said that 2027 taxes can't be determined until the rate is set.
The Calendar a Contract Has to Fit Inside
The Township published its revaluation timeline in February 2024 and called it tentative and subject to change. These are the steps that matter for a winter sale:
- By November 1, 2026: preliminary values are set, based on the October 1, 2026 valuation date.
- After November 10, 2026: letters go out with each proposed 2027 assessed value and instructions for booking an appointment with the revaluation firm.
- November and December 2026: informal one-on-one reviews for owners with questions, followed by a letter with the result.
- December 31, 2026: final values are set.
- January 10, 2027: the final tax list goes to the Morris County Board of Taxation.
- May 1, 2027: deadline to appeal a final 2027 assessment with the Morris County Board of Taxation. Properties assessed over $1 million can go to the Tax Court of New Jersey instead. County Tax Board hearings are typically held in May and June.
- Late summer 2027: the 2027 tax rate becomes available.
The Township's leadership has pointed to the same mailing window. At the May 12, 2026 Township Committee workshop, Committeewoman Ewald asked when assessment letters would go out, and Mayor Rowland said she thought the preliminary letters would be sent November 10. At that meeting the Mayor also reported that 67% of properties had been completed, and 65% of inspected properties had given inspectors access. She said she hoped to finish by the end of August.
New Jersey's Division of Taxation says appeals are normally due April 1 and move to May 1 in a municipality that has gone through a revaluation or reassessment. According to the Township, an appeal centers on the property's market value as of the assessment date, not the amount of tax, and the taxpayer has to prove the assessment is wrong.
Where the Calendar Meets a Sale
Put that timeline next to a typical winter deal and three friction points show up.
A listing that goes live before the letters arrive. A seller who lists in late October or early November is marketing the house with a 2026 tax figure. Within a few weeks, a proposed 2027 assessment may show up in the mail. That letter is the newest public signal about the property's tax share, and it's information a buyer will ask about once they learn the revaluation is underway.
A contract signed between December and summer. After December 31, the final assessment is known but the rate isn't. A buyer closing in spring 2027 knows the value the bill will be based on. They won't know the bill itself until late summer, and the Township has warned against estimating it with the old rate.
A house the inspectors couldn't get inside. The Township's FAQ says owners could refuse entry. In that case, though, the firm "will estimate the interior at its highest, most reasonable potential which may result in the overassessment of the property." At the July 14, 2026 meeting, Committeewoman Ewald encouraged residents to let inspectors complete their inspections. Whether a particular house got a full interior inspection is a reasonable thing for either side of a sale to find out.
For a Township deal this winter, these are the documents to keep in the file:
- The current tax bill, with the understanding that it reflects 2005-era assessments
- The proposed 2027 assessment letter, once it arrives
- Any follow-up letter from an informal review
- The final 2027 assessed value after December 31
Appraisal Systems, Inc. handles questions about inspections and the revaluation at (201) 493-8530. The Township Tax Assessor's office is at the Municipal Building, 58 Meyersville Road, and is open 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. on weekdays. Updates are posted on the Township's tax assessor page and on Appraisal Systems' Chatham Township project page. The full step-by-step timeline is in the Township's revaluation announcement, and the reasoning behind the revenue-neutral approach is in its owner letter and FAQ.
This post is general information about a public process. It isn't legal, tax or financial advice. Before you make decisions about an assessment, an appeal or the terms of a contract, check your own situation with a real estate attorney or tax professional.
If you're buying or selling in Chatham Township while the new assessments roll out, Best Jersey Burbs can go over the revaluation calendar with you and help plan the timing of your listing or offer around it. Schedule your free consultation.
