Union County's regular 2026 assessment appeal window is closed. Its revised filing packet used April 1 for ordinary municipalities and May 1 for a municipality implementing a revaluation or reassessment, with a separate 45-day rule tied to certain assessment notices. New Jersey's updated 2026 approval list contains no Union municipality, so April 1 was the ordinary county date. Online filing remained available through 11:59:59 p.m. on the applicable date, while a paper petition had to be physically received by 4 p.m.; a late-arriving postmarked envelope did not qualify. The petition challenges assessment fairness, not the amount of taxes produced by local budgets. FairPath organizes owner-selected evidence and sources but does not file, value property, represent petitioners, or reopen 2026.
Assessment context: Union County spans dense Elizabeth and Plainfield properties, rail-oriented suburbs, multifamily buildings, industrial corridors, and lower-density residential communities. Comparison quality depends on municipality, neighborhood, zoning, use, unit count, style, living area, age, lot, renovation, condition, parking, and location. Record the official block, lot, qualifier, class, land, improvement, and total assessment first. The county packet explains that the assessment is presumed correct and uses Chapter 123 to compare proved true value with the municipality's annual average ratio and range. A case can result in no change when the assessment-to-value ratio falls inside the permitted band, and the analysis is not a tax-bill comparison. For 2027, evidence should address market value as of October 1, 2026 and use that year's official municipal ratio materials.
Filing process: Union offered online and paper paths. In the online system, municipal assessor and clerk copies were transmitted electronically; a paper filer had to certify separate service on both offices. The county packet required paper petitions in the Westfield office by 4 p.m. and rejected postmarks as a substitute for receipt. It also described a required filing fee plus an online convenience charge and specified accepted paper payment methods. Real estate agents and appraisers may not file or sign for an owner, and assessed values over $1 million can have a direct Tax Court option under state law. For a 2027 filing, confirm the portal opening, current fee, exact deadline, municipality status, office address, and whether online service remains automatic. Preserve the submission confirmation or paper receipt, service proof, attachments, hearing notice, and any settlement.
Evidence to review: Union's packet limits a standard comparable-sales submission to no more than five sales and requires delivery to the assessor, clerk, and Board no later than seven calendar days before the hearing when not included with the petition. Each sale should include block, lot, price, and deed date, and a useful analysis also records style, use, living area, lot, age, condition, renovation, and location. The county states that comparable real-property sales are acceptable market evidence while comparable assessments are not. Photographs, surveys, cost data, property-record corrections, inspections, permits, and a qualified appraisal can explain material differences. An appraiser whose report is used must appear. The owner should describe adjustments factually rather than applying unsupported percentages or treating repair estimates as automatic value reductions. FairPath can index the exhibits but does not choose or authenticate a sale.
Current deadline guidance: April 1, 2026 for regular assessment appeals. Union's filing packet set April 1 for non-revaluation municipalities and May 1 for implementation-year municipalities, subject to the 45-day notice rule. No Union municipality appears on the state's updated 2026 approved list, so the ordinary 2026 date was April 1. The regular window is closed.
Union's official 2026 state list contained no implementation-year municipality, making April 1 the ordinary regular deadline despite the packet's general May 1 rule for future revaluation years.
Union gave online filers until 11:59:59 p.m., but paper filers only until the 4 p.m. office close. The selected channel changed both timing and municipal service mechanics.
Online filing carried a stated convenience charge in addition to the filing fee, while the packet limited accepted paper payment methods. Current charges must be verified for 2027.
Union permits no more than five comparable sales in the standard submission and rejects neighboring assessments as market-value evidence.
Official filing authority: Union County Board of Taxation. https://ucnj.org/board-of-taxation/
Source: Union County Board of Taxation, 2026 Tax Appeal Filing Packet, https://ucnj.org/board-of-taxation/wp-content/uploads/sites/41/2026/02/Tax-Appeal-Guidelines.pdf. Reviewed 2026-07-15.
Source: Union County Government, Union County Board of Taxation, https://ucnj.org/board-of-taxation/. Reviewed 2026-07-15.
Source: New Jersey Division of Taxation, 2026 Approved Revaluations and Reassessments, https://www.nj.gov/treasury/taxation/pdf/lpt/revaluation/2026RevalList.pdf. Reviewed 2026-07-15.
Source: New Jersey Division of Taxation, 2026 Common Level Ranges, https://www.nj.gov/treasury/taxation/pdf/lpt/chap123/2026CH123.pdf. Reviewed 2026-07-15.