AARP New Jersey Statement on StayNJ

AARP New Jersey Commends New Jersey Leaders on StayNJ Agreement and their Commitment to Helping Older Residents Remain in their Homes and Communities

TRENTON, NJ (June 21, 2023) – AARP New Jersey Director of Advocacy, Evelyn Liebman, provided the following statement: 

“We are pleased that Governor Murphy, Senate President Scutari and Assembly Speaker Coughlin have come together on an agreement to implement the StayNJ property tax plan for homeowners and renters. 

“According to AARP’s Home and Community Preferences Survey, 77% of adults 50 and older want to remain in their homes as they age. However, New Jersey’s highest-in-the-nation property taxes have made it unaffordable for far too many. Forty-one percent of New Jerseyans age 50 and older have considered leaving NJ, with 83% of these residents saying they are likely to do so in search of lower taxes and a lower cost of living.

“We commend New Jersey’s leaders for reaching a compromise, which includes an income eligibility cap for the StayNJ program and increased relief for renters to help make NJ more affordable for those older residents who are struggling with our state’s high property taxes.

“The framework of the deal will provide the kind of bold and transformational relief that so many New Jerseyans – who are also struggling to afford rising prices on everything from groceries to gas along with the highest prescription drug prices in the world – need to stay in New Jersey. We look forward to seeing the details of the agreement soon, and we stand ready to work with our elected leaders to move this program forward.”

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About AARP 
AARP is the nation's largest nonprofit, nonpartisan organization dedicated to empowering people 50 and older to choose how they live as they age. With a nationwide presence, AARP strengthens communities and advocates for what matters most to the more than 100 million Americans 50-plus and their families: health security, financial stability and personal fulfillment. AARP also produces the nation's largest circulation publications: AARP The Magazine and AARP Bulletin. To learn more, visit www.aarp.org/about-aarp/, www.aarp.org/español or follow @AARP, @AARPenEspañol and @AARPadvocates on social media.