Property Tax in Somerset County, New Jersey
In Somerset County, New Jersey, the typical homeowner pays $10,001 a year in property taxes on a home worth a median of $523,900. The figures on this page are the Census Bureau's published medians (US Census Bureau, American Community Survey (ACS) 5-year estimates, 2023), shown exactly as released.
What the Somerset County numbers mean
Read the two medians together: $10,001 is the middle tax bill among owner-occupied households in Somerset County, and $523,900 is the middle home value. Neither figure describes a specific property — together they describe the typical homeowner's situation in the county.
The derived effective rate for Somerset County is 1.91% (median tax ÷ median value). Treat it as an estimate for comparison only: it comes from survey medians of different households, not from the county's rate schedule.
Somerset County by the numbers
| Measure | Somerset County | New Jersey | United States |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median real estate taxes paid | $10,001 | $9,541 | $2,969 |
| Median home value | $523,900 | $427,600 | $303,400 |
| Derived effective rate* | 1.91% | 2.23% | 0.98% |
| Median tax per month | $833 | $795 | $247 |
*Estimate derived from Census medians (tax ÷ value), not an official rate.
Somerset County at a glance
- Median tax rank in New Jersey: #1 of 21 counties
- Median home value rank in New Jersey: #4 of 21
- Population rank in New Jersey: #13 of 21 (346,203 residents)
- Population density rank: #10 of 21 (1,147 people per square mile)
- Land area rank in New Jersey: #13 of 21 (301 sq mi, 4.1% of the combined county land area)
- Median tax as a monthly figure: $833; per $1,000 of home value: $1.91
How Somerset County compares
Set against its state, Somerset 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. Somerset County's median home, at $523,900, ranks #4 by value in New Jersey, while its derived rate of 1.91% compares with a derived US figure of 0.98%.
Some extra context for Somerset County: the median bill works out to about $833 a month, and the derived rate equals roughly $1,909 of tax per $100,000 of home value. The county is home to 346,203 people — the #13 most populous county in New Jersey, spread over 301 square miles, a density of about 1,147 people per square mile. Its median home value, $523,900, ranks #4 among the state's 21 counties with data.
Zooming out: of 3133 counties nationwide with published Census figures, only 7 record a higher median tax bill than Somerset County — it sits in the top 1% nationally. The county holds roughly 3.7% of New Jersey's people. Its homes are worth more than the state norm (median $523,900 versus $427,600), and a decade at the derived rate of 1.91% adds up to about 19.09% of the median home's value in tax. The cheapest county in the state, Cumberland County, medians $5,048 — $4,953 less than Somerset County per year.
Counties nearest Somerset County in the New Jersey ranking
| County | Median tax paid | Median home value | Derived rate* |
|---|---|---|---|
| Morris County, NJ | $10,001 | $557,000 | 1.80% |
| Passaic County, NJ | $10,001 | $439,400 | 2.28% |
| Union County, NJ | $10,001 | $488,800 | 2.05% |
| Middlesex County, NJ | $9,684 | $439,300 | 2.20% |
How the tax is worked out
The bill is built in stages. First the assessor puts a market value on the property. Exemptions — a homestead exemption above all — then reduce the taxable amount. Finally the combined local rate is applied. To see the scale: at the county's derived rate of 1.91%, each $100,000 of value corresponds to about $1,909 of tax a year, and a $400,000 home to roughly $7,636. Real bills use the official assessment and district rates, not this derived figure, so treat the example as a sense of scale only.
Checking your assessment in Somerset County
Most successful appeals are won on facts, not arguments. Start with the property record card held by the Somerset County assessor: wrong square footage, an extra room, or a missing homestead exemption are common and fixable. Next, line your assessed value up against recent sales of genuinely similar homes nearby. Many disputes end at an informal conversation with the assessor's office; if yours does not, file the formal appeal with the review board named on your notice before its deadline, evidence attached, and keep paying the bill in the meantime so penalties do not build up.
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Frequently asked questions
What is the median property tax in Somerset County, New Jersey?
The median real estate tax paid in Somerset County, New Jersey is $10,001 per year, on a median home value of $523,900 (US Census Bureau, American Community Survey (ACS) 5-year estimates, 2023).
What is the effective property tax rate in Somerset County, New Jersey?
The derived effective rate is 1.91% — the median bill ($10,001) expressed as a share of the median home value ($523,900). No authority sets a rate this way; it exists to make counties with different home prices comparable.
How does Somerset County compare with the rest of New Jersey?
By median taxes paid, Somerset 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 Somerset 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 Somerset County is $10,001 of tax on a $523,900 median home value.
Can I appeal my property tax assessment in Somerset County, New Jersey?
You can. Pull your property record card from the Somerset 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.