03 Dec What should we do to apply for the 2025 ANCHOR?

Q. We’ve looked all over the ANCHOR website and we haven’t been able to get through on the phone. We want to know what we’re supposed to do to apply for the 2025 ANCHOR benefit.
— Homeowners

A. Nothing, at least not now.

To be clear, the current benefit year is for 2021 — even though it’s being paid out in 2025. That may be part of the confusion.

We expect big changes soon because the Stay NJ property tax benefit, set to first pay out in 2026, will change how the application process happens.

As part of the Stay NJ law, the state will create a new application that includes all three of the state’s tax benefits — Senior Freeze, ANCHOR and Stay NJ itself. The combined application is supposed to make it easier to keep track of and apply for the benefits.

But the important thing to know is that this summer, when the new state budget is negotiated, will be key. Stay NJ needs additional funding to make all of the law’s promises happen.

We’ll be following closely how that all goes. So for now, you’ll just have to wait for the Legislature to do its thing.

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This story was originally published in December 2024.

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