Property Tax in Surf City, New Jersey

New Jersey Has Its Own Real Tax System — Not a No-Sales-Tax Framing

Surf City is a New Jersey market, and New Jersey has a real, functioning state sales tax and its own property-tax structure, genuinely different from a no-sales-tax state framing that would not apply here. Property taxes in New Jersey are assessed and levied locally, under state law, by each municipality and county — there is no single statewide rate that applies uniformly to every town, and Surf City's own rate is set through its own municipal budget process in combination with Ocean County and the local school district's tax levies.

This page will not state a specific current New Jersey state sales-tax percentage or a specific current Surf City, Ocean County, or school-district tax rate, because none was confirmed during this research pass. Rates and assessment practices change from year to year and vary by municipality even within the same county, so a figure quoted for one Long Beach Island town should never be assumed to apply to Surf City without direct verification.

No Confirmed Current Rate, and None Invented Here

A prospective buyer should expect to find an actual, current Surf City property tax rate published somewhere online, and reasonably so — but this page will not repeat a number it cannot independently stand behind. What is confirmed is scale: Surf City's 2020 census population was 1,243 residents, up only 38 from 2010's 1,205, a genuinely small permanent population and, by extension, a genuinely small year-round tax base for a borough that, like the rest of Long Beach Island, carries a much larger seasonal presence in summer months.

Median household income was reported at $63,375 in the 2006-2010 American Community Survey estimate — a dated figure, not a current one, and not a substitute for a current tax bill on a specific property. Get the actual current Surf City property tax rate, current assessed value for a specific address, and current total tax bill (municipal, county, and school components combined) directly from Ocean County property records and Surf City's own tax assessor's office before making an offer.

Six Decades of Political Continuity: What It Does and Does Not Tell a Buyer

Surf City operates under New Jersey's borough form of government, with a mayor and a six-member council that has been all-Republican since the early 1960s, per source material reviewed for this research. That continuity runs deep: Leonard T. Connors Sr. served as Surf City's mayor for 49 consecutive years, from January 1, 1966, to December 31, 2015, while simultaneously serving 26 years in the New Jersey State Senate's 9th Legislative District, from 1982 to 2008 — meaning for more than two decades he held both offices at once. His son, Christopher J. Connors, succeeded him in that State Senate seat in 2008. Leonard Connors was in turn succeeded as Surf City's mayor by Francis R. Hodgson Sr., who had already served 46 years on the borough council before becoming mayor himself.

That is an extraordinary run of continuity for a town of this size, and it is a real, documented fact about how Surf City has been governed, not a generic small-town claim. It is not, however, a substitute for a specific tax figure, and this page will not attribute any specific tax policy, tax increase, or tax decision to either Connors or Hodgson by name — no such connection was confirmed during this research pass. What continuity of this kind can reasonably suggest to a prospective buyer is a consistent, long-running local administration behind the municipal budget and assessment process that ultimately sets the tax rate, not a specific number.

A Small Footprint Carrying Municipal, County, and School Costs

At 1.32 square miles total, Surf City is a small footprint from which to fund a borough government, a county share, and a share of two separate school districts. Younger students attend the Long Beach Island Consolidated School District — Ethel Jacobsen School in Surf City serves preK through 2nd grade, reported at 111 students, while Long Beach Island Grade School in neighboring Ship Bottom serves 3rd through 6th grade, reported at 125 students. Older students attend the Southern Regional School District, with a middle school (grades 7-8) reported at 902 students and a high school (grades 9-12) reported at 1,975 students. These are dated snapshot enrollment figures, not necessarily current ones, but the structure itself — a small home borough sharing elementary schooling with Ship Bottom and secondary schooling regionally — is a real cost-sharing factor behind any property tax bill here.

Surf City sits within New Jersey's 2nd Congressional District and 9th Legislative District. None of this substitutes for an actual current municipal, county, or school tax rate, which this page does not have and will not estimate. Get that breakdown directly from Ocean County's tax records and Surf City's own tax assessor's office.

Distinct from Ship Bottom Next Door: Each Town Sets Its Own Rate

Surf City and Ship Bottom sit directly next to each other on Long Beach Island, but under New Jersey's home-rule tradition, each municipality sets its own budget and, through it, its own effective property tax rate — Ship Bottom's rate does not apply in Surf City, and vice versa, regardless of how close the two boroughs sit geographically. The two towns are not interchangeable on cost, either: per New Jersey Department of Community Affairs data compiled by NJ Spotlight and cross-referenced with U.S. Census figures, Surf City's housing stock damage from Hurricane Sandy in October 2012 was 27%, meaningfully lower than Ship Bottom's 46% — the worst on all of Long Beach Island — though still a significant figure in its own right. Storm-damage history is not a tax rate, but it is one of several real, town-specific factors, alongside each borough's own budget and assessment practices, that a buyer should expect to see reflected differently from one LBI town to the next.

What to Verify Before Budgeting a Purchase

What is confirmed here: Surf City is a 1.32-square-mile Ocean County borough with a 2020 census population of 1,243; it is governed by a mayor and six-member, all-Republican-since-the-early-1960s council, with a documented six-decade run of continuity through Leonard T. Connors Sr.'s 49-year mayoral tenure and Francis R. Hodgson Sr.'s subsequent tenure after 46 years on the council; it shares elementary schooling across the Long Beach Island Consolidated School District and secondary schooling through the Southern Regional School District; and its Hurricane Sandy housing-damage rate of 27% is a real, documented figure distinct from Ship Bottom's 46%. New Jersey itself runs a real state sales tax and its own locally administered property-tax system — not a no-sales-tax framing borrowed from elsewhere.

What this page will not do is invent a current Surf City property tax rate, current assessed value, current tax bill, or current New Jersey sales-tax percentage, because none was independently confirmed during this research pass. Get the actual current numbers directly from the Ocean County Board of Taxation, Surf City's own tax assessor's office, and a local real estate agent or accountant familiar with Long Beach Island before making an offer. Nothing on this page is legal, tax, or financial advice.