Earlier this year, Norwood's appraisal firm published a worksheet with two example homes. Both were assessed at $560,000. After the revaluation, one was valued at $921,800 and the other at $940,000. The firm estimated that the first owner's tax bill would fall by $184 and the second owner's would rise by $133. The two homes started at the same assessment, and the new values were only $18,200 apart. That small gap was enough to send the two bills in opposite directions.
Harrington Park is about to go through the same process. The firm doing the work there is the same one that did Norwood's, and the same arithmetic applies.
The Order Behind the Notice
On September 25, 2026, the borough posted a notice titled "Harrington Park Revaluation - Starting Soon," with a brochure attached. The borough didn't choose to do this. Its request for proposals says the Bergen County Board of Taxation ordered a borough-wide revaluation to take effect for the 2027 tax year. In July, the council gave the contract to AS Appraisal Systems, Inc. of Glen Rock. The firm was the only responsive bidder. The contract is capped at $260,000 and runs up to 24 months.
The order follows from a ratio. New Jersey measures how closely a town's assessments track what homes actually sell for. The Division of Taxation's revaluation guide treats a ratio of 85% or lower as out of line with the true-value standard. The state certified Harrington Park's average ratio at 69.92% for tax year 2025 and 66.17% for 2026. The state's Table of Equalized Valuations, promulgated October 1, 2026, puts it at 61.22%. That table shows $944.1 million in assessed value against $1.54 billion in equalized market value.
That 61.22% figure is an average across every property in the borough. A home that has been expanded, or one on a street where sales have run hot, may sit well below it. A home that hasn't changed in decades may sit above it. Because everyone is taxed on the same outdated scale, the homes whose values have risen fastest have been paying less than their share, and the slowest-rising homes have been paying more. A revaluation corrects those differences.
The Arithmetic of a Slice
The borough's revaluation brochure says the revaluation "will not increase the total amount of revenue to be raised by taxation." Assessments will rise across the board, and the tax rate will fall to balance them. The budget sets the total. The revaluation only decides how that total is split.
Norwood's preliminary study shows the mechanics. Its total assessed base grew by a factor of 1.665, so the estimated rate fell by the same factor, from $2.892 to $1.737 per $100 before any budget changes. Each home's own growth factor determined which way its bill moved:
| Norwood example, 2026 preliminary | Property 1 | Property 2 | Whole borough |
|---|---|---|---|
| Old assessment | $560,000 | $560,000 | $1.243 billion |
| New assessment | $921,800 | $940,000 | $2.069 billion |
| Growth factor | 1.646 | 1.679 | 1.665 |
| Estimated change in tax | down $184 | up $133 | none by design |
Property 1 grew a little more slowly than the borough as a whole, and Property 2 grew a little faster. A large jump in assessed value says almost nothing about a tax bill on its own. What matters is how a home's increase compares with the borough's overall increase. The firm marked these figures as preliminary and subject to change.
In Harrington Park, the Shift Happens Between Neighbors
In some nearby towns, part of the shift lands on businesses. Norwood's industrial share of the tax base rose from 8.0% to 11.3%. In Northvale, the residential share fell from 70.1% to 65.4% as industrial assessments grew faster than residential ones.
Harrington Park doesn't have that cushion. As of January 2026, the borough's base was 1,588 residential line items assessed at $867.45 million, 28 commercial properties at $63.6 million, and 49 vacant parcels at $13.1 million. Homes make up roughly 92% of the assessed base. That's close to Old Tappan, where the firm's study showed the residential share barely moving, from 92.4% to 92.8%. With so little commercial property, nearly all of the redistribution in Harrington Park will happen among homeowners, depending on how each house compares with the others.
The stakes are real. The state's 2025 figures put Harrington Park's average residential assessment at $545,400, its average tax bill at $17,840, and its general tax rate at $3.271 per $100 of assessed value. When a home's share moves by a few percentage points against a bill that size, the change shows up on every quarterly payment.
What the Inspector Writes Down
If the revaluation is about relative value, the inspection is where each home's relative value gets recorded. According to the brochure, value is based on total living area in square feet, and room counts are listed only for description. The other factors it names are remodeled kitchens and bathrooms, finished basements, central air conditioning, decks and patios, pools, garages, overall condition, and the topography of the land. The firm also studies every sale from the three years before the revaluation date and groups properties by neighborhood. That sales record is thin. The state's 2026 residential statistics count 35 sales in Harrington Park, with an average price of $889,728.57. When a small number of sales sets the benchmark for nearly 1,600 homes, the accuracy of each home's recorded details matters more.
The firm's project page, dated September 15, 2026, describes these steps:
- The first inspection visit is unannounced and happens between 9:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m.
- If no one is home, the inspector leaves a card with a return date and a phone number for rescheduling.
- Inspectors carry photo identification, and their names are registered with the Police Department and the Borough Clerk's office.
- Owners are asked to sign the field form to confirm that an interior inspection took place.
- Owners of rental units are asked to let their tenants know.
- Documentation about a property's unique condition can be mailed to the firm at 139 Harristown Rd, Suite 103, Glen Rock, NJ 07452.
The borough brochure says that if a second visit also fails, the inspector estimates the interior and leaves a card. The owner can then call to set up an actual inspection. The state's older brochure describes three attempts. In either case, an estimated interior is a guess, and the guess counts in the comparison with every other home.
Why a 2026 Tax Bill Is the Wrong Number to Price Around
For anyone buying or selling in the next year, this is where the revaluation matters most. Any tax figure on a listing today comes from the old scale. The firm says the 2027 values will reflect estimated market value as of October 1, 2026. A buyer's first full year of bills may fall under the new split. Whether that bill is higher or lower than the old one depends on the house's growth factor, which no one will know until proposed values go out.
Executors and long-time owners face the same uncertainty from the other side. A home that hasn't been updated in decades could come out of the revaluation with a smaller share. A heavily renovated home could come out with a larger one. The firm's published examples from nearby towns show that the change can go in either direction. In Old Tappan, one modeled home went from $826,000 to $1,281,100 with an estimated $95 increase, and another went from $990,000 to $1,516,100 with an estimated $181 decrease.
The timing isn't settled. The RFP's original deadline of October 1, 2026 has passed. In mid-September, the firm still described inspections as starting "in the coming months," and the sources reviewed don't show the effective year changing from 2027. The steps happen in this order:
- Every property gets an exterior measurement and an interior inspection.
- Owners receive a written notice of the proposed assessment, along with the right to an informal review with the firm.
- The final tax list is filed. In Norwood and Northvale, the firm reported this finished as of March 1, 2026.
- The county board appeal window applies. The Division of Taxation's appeals page sets the deadline at May 1 in a revaluation year, instead of the usual April 1. Tax Court appeals of a county board judgment must be filed within 45 days of that judgment.
Bergen County's revaluation schedule, dated January 7, 2026, also lists Haworth for 2027. Haworth's certified ratio for 2026 is 62.09%. A buyer comparing the two boroughs is comparing two tax bills that are both about to be recalculated.
A Few Distinct Questions
Will everyone's taxes go up? The borough's brochure says the revaluation does not raise the total revenue collected. Budgets set that total each year, separately from the revaluation. Hillsdale went through the same county process, and its mayor described it to Pascack Press this way: "There will be winners and there will be losers."
When was Harrington Park last revalued? The public sources reviewed for this post don't give that year. The borough tax assessor's office is the right place to ask.
Who answers questions about the inspection? The firm lists (201) 493-8530 for questions about inspections and the revaluation process.
If you plan to list a Harrington Park home, or settle an estate there, between now and the 2027 tax year, timing your sale around the revaluation is part of the plan. Rebecca Day works with sellers, families, and executors to line up inspection readiness, pricing, and closing dates with the borough's calendar, with one point of contact throughout. Request a private consultation to talk through your timing.
This article is general information, not legal, tax or financial advice. Consult a qualified professional about your situation.
