Chatham Township's school tax rate for 2026–27 is estimated at 1.3527 per $100 of assessed value. Chatham Borough's is 1.0724. Both towns send their children to the same School District of the Chathams, and both rates fund the same budget. Recalculated against what the homes are actually worth, the two rates are 0.8983 and 0.8973. That is a difference of one-thousandth of a point.

The whole gap comes from how much of a home's value each town writes on the tax rolls. It matters to a buyer this fall because the Township is in the final months of a county-ordered revaluation. Proposed 2027 assessments are scheduled to reach owners after November 10, 2026. Anyone comparing a Borough house with a Township house on the numbers shown on a listing today is comparing figures that use two different scales.

Why a Township Assessment Lags So Far Behind

The Morris County equalization table certified in February 2026 puts Chatham Borough's average assessment at 83.67% of true value and Chatham Township's at 66.41%. The Township's ratio is low because its assessments have had a long time to drift. According to its assessor, the last reassessment before the current one took effect in the 2005 tax year. The Borough revalued much more recently. District and news sources disagree on whether the new values took effect in 2023 or 2024, but either way its rolls sit closer to market.

A lower assessment ratio forces a higher rate to raise the same money. Divide $1 million of assessed value by each town's 2026 ratio and you get roughly $1.195 million of market value in the Borough and $1.506 million in the Township. On paper the two homes look identical. In the market, the Township home is worth about a quarter more.

The full municipal tax rates follow the same pattern. Morris County lists 2025 general tax rates of 1.701 for the Borough and 2.104 for the Township. The 2026 county table also prints each town's ratio from the prior year: 89.96% for the Borough and 72.22% for the Township. Multiplying each 2025 rate by its matching ratio gives about $1.53 per $100 of market value in the Borough and about $1.52 in the Township. That is an illustration built on town-wide averages. Any single house can sit above or below its town's ratio. Still, the illustration shows how much of the headline gap disappears once both towns are measured on the same scale.

The District Already Splits the Bill by Market Value

The rates converge because the school district does not split its levy by assessed value. In 2023, Patch quoted the district's business administrator explaining that the regional levy is apportioned by each municipality's share of combined equalized property value. Patch reported a split of roughly 58% Township and 42% Borough.

The 2026–27 budget follows the same method. It lists estimated equalized valuations of $3,695,405,402 for the Borough and $5,258,723,987 for the Township, with total school levies of $34,510,065 and $49,142,967. The Township's share of value and its share of the levy both come to about 59%. Each town pays school tax in proportion to the value it holds. The assessed-value rate a buyer sees is that proportion translated back into whatever scale the local assessor uses.

The district's own homeowner estimates show the distortion. The preliminary 2026–27 budget, which represented a 5.99% increase, was projected to add $71 a month for the average-assessed Borough home and $51 a month for the average-assessed Township home. Those averages were $1,004,213 assessed in the Borough and $878,576 in the Township. Apply the county ratios and the average Township home works out to roughly $1.32 million of market value, compared with about $1.2 million in the Borough. The Township home carries the smaller monthly increase because its paper value is so low.

The January Referendum, Read in Market Dollars

The district's proposed $54 million capital referendum is the most current example. In a September 21, 2026 report, TAPinto Chatham published the district's estimates. A home assessed at $1 million would pay $37.38 a month more in the Borough and $46.51 a month more in the Township.

Converted at the 2026 county ratios, both figures land near $31 a month per $1 million of market value. The Borough comes to about $31.28 and the Township to about $30.89. The Township's higher number reflects the same assessment scale described above. The district's slide does not show its exact formula, so this conversion is an approximation, but it points the same way as every other figure in the budget.

Before any cost becomes real, the referendum itself may change:

• The board expects $11,367,347 in state aid, which would bring the net cost to $42,832,653.
• At the September 14 meeting, board member Jill Critchley Weber suggested moving a second turf field at Cougar Field into a separate question. She also suggested setting aside the Haas bleachers and press box and the conversion of a team room into classrooms, a possible savings of $11 million.
• Superintendent Emily Sortino said any changes need to be completed sometime in November for a January 2027 vote. The district has scheduled a public tour on November 9 at Chatham Middle School.

The Township estimate is also stated in assessed dollars that are about to be replaced. By the time voters decide in January, the Township's 2027 assessments are scheduled to be final.

What the Township's Revaluation Changes This Season

The Morris County Board of Taxation ordered the revaluation on December 21, 2023. It set a completion deadline of September 30, 2026, with new values taking effect in the 2027 tax year. The contractor is Appraisal Systems Inc. Its project page was last dated June 16, 2026, and the Township's published schedule was always labeled tentative. As a result, the public record does not confirm whether every inspection finished on time. The remaining steps, as the Township has published them:

1. Every property is valued as of October 1, 2026, the statutory valuation date, using comparable sales.
2. Preliminary values are due by November 1, 2026.
3. Letters with proposed 2027 assessments go out after November 10, 2026.
4. Informal review meetings with the revaluation firm run through November and December 2026.
5. Final values are set by December 31, 2026, and the tax list goes to the county by January 10, 2027.
6. The appeal deadline for 2027 assessments is May 1, 2027. Owners of properties assessed above $1 million can file with the Morris County Board of Taxation or directly with the Tax Court.

The Township describes the revaluation as revenue-neutral. It moves the tax burden among properties rather than raising more money, and the Township expects the larger tax base to produce an adjusted 2027 rate. It specifically warns owners not to apply the 2026 rate to their new assessments, and it does not expect the 2027 rate to be available until late summer 2027.

For a buyer, this affects how a Township home's tax figure should be read during the next few months. The assessment on a listing today is about two-thirds of market value on average. Its replacement is meant to sit close to market. The tax rate should fall by a corresponding amount. Whether a particular home's bill moves up or down depends on how its new value compares with the rest of the Township, and those figures are still being set. On a Township purchase this fall, the proposed 2027 value letter will be the most current tax information about that home, and it is worth requesting from the seller once it arrives.

Questions Buyers Ask About the Two Chathams

Do both towns attend the same schools? Yes. Chatham Borough and Chatham Township together form the School District of the Chathams. The district splits its levy between them according to each town's share of combined equalized value.

What does a Borough tax bill look like for 2026? The Borough's April 27, 2026 budget presentation estimated that the total bill on a $1 million assessed home would rise from $17,007.85 to $17,629.45. The largest single piece of the increase was school tax, at $492.80.

If I buy in the Township before the new values take effect, which assessment applies? The 2026 assessment governs 2026 bills. Revised values take effect for the 2027 tax year, and the 2027 rate will not be known until late summer 2027. Questions about a specific property's assessment should go to the Township tax assessor or to Appraisal Systems at (201) 493-8530.

Comparing a Borough listing with a Township listing this fall means converting both tax figures to market value before deciding which home costs more to own. Karen Canniffe can walk you through the comparison home by home. If you already own in Chatham Township and want to see how your home's market value compares with what the revaluation letter shows, request a complimentary home valuation.

This article is general information, not legal, tax or financial advice. Consult a qualified professional about your situation.