Property Tax in Hunterdon County, New Jersey
The median real estate tax bill in Hunterdon County, New Jersey is $10,001 per year, and the median home is worth $498,800. Both figures are the US Census Bureau's survey medians for owner-occupied households (US Census Bureau, American Community Survey (ACS) 5-year estimates, 2023).
What the Hunterdon County numbers mean
A median is the middle household: half of owner-occupied households in Hunterdon County pay more than $10,001, and half pay less. Your own bill is set by your home's assessed value, the exemptions you qualify for, and the local taxing districts your property sits in — so individual bills vary widely around the median.
Dividing the median tax by the median home value gives a derived effective rate of 2.00% for Hunterdon County. It is an estimate built from two survey medians, not the county's official rate, but it is a fair way to compare the local tax burden with other counties where home values are very different.
Hunterdon County by the numbers
| Measure | Hunterdon County | New Jersey | United States |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median real estate taxes paid | $10,001 | $9,541 | $2,969 |
| Median home value | $498,800 | $427,600 | $303,400 |
| Derived effective rate* | 2.00% | 2.23% | 0.98% |
| Median tax per month | $833 | $795 | $247 |
*Estimate derived from Census medians (tax ÷ value), not an official rate.
Hunterdon County at a glance
- Median tax rank in New Jersey: #1 of 21 counties
- Median home value rank in New Jersey: #6 of 21
- Population rank in New Jersey: #18 of 21 (129,448 residents)
- Population density rank: #19 of 21 (303 people per square mile)
- Land area rank in New Jersey: #8 of 21 (427 sq mi, 5.8% of the combined county land area)
- Median tax as a monthly figure: $833; per $1,000 of home value: $2.00
How Hunterdon County compares
Set against its state, Hunterdon County's median bill of $10,001 is about 5% higher than the New Jersey median ($9,541). Against the country as a whole it is about 237% higher than the US median ($2,969). That places the county #1 of 21 New Jersey counties ranked by median taxes paid.
Remember what drives the ranking: bills follow home values as much as rates. Hunterdon County's median home, at $498,800, ranks #6 by value in New Jersey, while its derived rate of 2.00% compares with a derived US figure of 0.98%.
Some extra context for Hunterdon County: the median bill works out to about $833 a month, and the derived rate equals roughly $2,005 of tax per $100,000 of home value. The county is home to 129,448 people — the #18 most populous county in New Jersey, spread over 427 square miles, a density of about 303 people per square mile. Its median home value, $498,800, ranks #6 among the state's 21 counties with data.
Nationally, Hunterdon County's median bill of $10,001 ranks #4 of 3133 counties with published data — inside the top 1% of counties by tax paid. The county accounts for about 1.4% of New Jersey's population, its median home value is about 17% above the state median, and at the derived rate the median home would hand over roughly 20.05% of its value in tax across a decade. Within the state, the distance from Hunterdon County to the most expensive county, Bergen County ($10,001), is $0 a year.
Counties nearest Hunterdon County in the New Jersey ranking
| County | Median tax paid | Median home value | Derived rate* |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bergen County, NJ | $10,001 | $593,200 | 1.69% |
| Essex County, NJ | $10,001 | $494,400 | 2.02% |
| Monmouth County, NJ | $10,001 | $566,500 | 1.76% |
| Morris County, NJ | $10,001 | $557,000 | 1.80% |
Hunterdon County and its population peers
Population is a useful lens on these figures, so the table below sets Hunterdon County beside the counties closest to it in population anywhere in the country — communities of a similar scale operating under different state and local tax systems. Ranked by median tax paid within this peer group of 9, Hunterdon County's $10,001 bill is the highest.
| County | Population | Median tax paid | Median home value | Derived rate* |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Skagit County, WA | 130,407 | $4,008 | $486,200 | 0.82% |
| Washington County, RI | 130,073 | $4,954 | $469,800 | 1.05% |
| Wichita County, TX | 129,842 | $2,501 | $141,600 | 1.77% |
| Linn County, OR | 129,794 | $3,130 | $344,600 | 0.91% |
| Clarke County, GA | 129,267 | $2,444 | $271,900 | 0.90% |
| Bossier Parish, LA | 129,134 | $1,380 | $215,100 | 0.64% |
| Ascension Parish, LA | 128,593 | $1,419 | $265,300 | 0.54% |
| Rapides Parish, LA | 128,470 | $1,024 | $179,100 | 0.57% |
The closest population match is Clarke County, Georgia (129,267 residents), where the median real estate tax paid is $2,444 on a median home value of $271,900 — $7,557 more than Hunterdon County pays.
Staying within New Jersey, the counties nearest Hunterdon County by population are Cumberland County (152,915 residents, median tax $5,048 on a median value of $205,600); Sussex County (145,117 residents, median tax $8,462 on a median value of $342,800); Warren County (110,238 residents, median tax $8,156 on a median value of $323,100); Cape May County (95,236 residents, median tax $5,233 on a median value of $395,000). The spread in their median bills — all under the same state framework — shows how much of the property tax burden is decided county by county and district by district.
How the tax is worked out
Think of the final bill as three ingredients: the assessed value of the property, the exemptions subtracted from it, and the combined rate of every district the property sits in. Hunterdon County's medians imply a derived rate of 2.00%; applied illustratively, a $400,000 home would owe about $8,020 a year, or around $668 a month spread evenly. Individual properties depart from the illustration in both directions.
Illustrative bills in Hunterdon County at the derived rate
The derived rate of 2.00% is only an estimate built from medians, but applying it to different home values gives a sense of scale for Hunterdon County — and a quick way to compare with the state derived rate of 2.23% and the US figure of 0.98%:
| Home value | Illustrative tax / year | Per month |
|---|---|---|
| $150,000 | $3,008 | $251 |
| $250,000 | $5,012 | $418 |
| $350,000 | $7,018 | $585 |
| $500,000 | $10,025 | $835 |
| $750,000 | $15,038 | $1,253 |
Illustration only: real bills are computed from the assessed value, exemptions, and the combined rates of the property's actual taxing districts.
Checking your assessment in Hunterdon County
Believe your assessment is too high? The practical order of attack is: obtain your record card and audit it line by line; collect comparable recent sales in Hunterdon County; ask the assessor's office to correct anything plainly wrong; and, if the value still seems off, lodge a formal appeal ahead of the deadline printed on your assessment notice. Windows are short — often 30 to 90 days — and late appeals are usually rejected outright, however strong the case.
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Frequently asked questions
What is the median property tax in Hunterdon County, New Jersey?
The median real estate tax paid in Hunterdon County, New Jersey is $10,001 per year, on a median home value of $498,800 (US Census Bureau, American Community Survey (ACS) 5-year estimates, 2023).
What is the effective property tax rate in Hunterdon County, New Jersey?
On a derived basis, 2.00%: the county's median tax bill of $10,001 divided by its median home value of $498,800. Because it is calculated from two survey medians, read it as a comparison estimate rather than an official rate.
How does Hunterdon County compare with the rest of New Jersey?
By median taxes paid, Hunterdon County stands at #1 among the 21 New Jersey counties the Census publishes figures for. Its $10,001 median bill is about 5% higher than the state median ($9,541), and 0 counties in the state record a higher median.
How are property taxes calculated in Hunterdon County, New Jersey?
Three steps produce the bill: an assessment of market value by the local assessor, a reduction for exemptions you qualify for (a homestead exemption is the common one), and multiplication by the combined rates of the county, municipality, school district and any special districts covering the property. The median result in Hunterdon County is $10,001 of tax on a $498,800 median home value.
Can I appeal my property tax assessment in Hunterdon County, New Jersey?
You can. Pull your property record card from the Hunterdon County assessor, verify its details, and compare the assessed value against similar homes that sold recently. If the value still seems too high, submit a formal appeal to the board named on your notice before the stated deadline — usually a 30-to-90-day window.