deedplatState guides / New Jersey / Essex County
Essex County property data
Where Essex County's property records live, how its tax and foreclosure sales work, and what Deedplat puts on one map, including Newark.
- 22Cities and towns
- 178,000Parcels
Where the records are
The county offices an investor deals with in Essex County, and what each one puts online.
Deeds and mortgages
Essex County Register of Deeds and Mortgages. Deeds, mortgages, liens and foreclosure filings recorded from May 1, 2001 to today can be searched online in the Register's PRESS system, and older books back to the 1700s are viewable in the office's Public Vault; certified copies cost $8 for the first page and $2 for each added page.
Owners and values
Essex County Board of Taxation (with each town's tax assessor). Each town's assessor sets values; the Board of Taxation posts tax rates, ratios, appeal forms and a directory of all municipal assessors and tax collectors, and statewide assessment lists can be searched free through the New Jersey Property Tax List Search.
Tax sales
City of Newark Department of Finance, Division of Revenue Collections. Newark posts its annual tax sale notice on the city website and holds the sale as an online auction; tax balances can be paid online.
Foreclosure sales
Essex County Sheriff's Office. The Sheriff's foreclosure sale list, with sale dates, plaintiffs, defendants and addresses, is free online at salesweb.civilview.com and is refreshed every 30 minutes on weekdays.
Parcel maps
New Jersey Office of GIS statewide parcels. Essex County parcels with block, lot, assessed values, deed book and page and last sale price can be viewed and downloaded free from the state's parcel layer, with owner names hidden under Daniel's Law.
How property is sold here
Essex County follows New Jersey's rules, with its own calendar and offices. Read the New Jersey guide for how the state works.
Tax sales
New Jersey sells tax sale certificates (liens), not the property, and each of Essex County's 22 towns runs its own sale through its tax collector. Newark holds its tax sale once a year as an online auction, most recently announced for December 6, 2024 at 8:00 AM for delinquent 2023 taxes and other municipal charges, and the notice is posted on newarknj.gov. Bidders bid down the interest rate from 18%, then bid a premium once the rate reaches 1%, and the certificate holder can file to foreclose in Superior Court after two years if the owner does not redeem.
Foreclosure sales
Essex County sheriff sales of foreclosed property are held Tuesdays at 1:30 PM, on a bi-weekly schedule since August 2022, in the 14th floor conference room of the Leroy F. Smith, Jr. Public Safety Building, 60 West Market Street, Newark. Sales are advertised in the Star-Ledger and a local paper for four weeks before the sale, and the list is posted on the Sheriff's website through salesweb.civilview.com; winners must pay a 20% deposit right after the sale and the balance within 30 days.
Assessed values
Each Essex County town's assessor sets values and files the assessment list with the Board of Taxation by January 10 each year, but values are only reset to market in a town-wide revaluation; Newark's 2025 effective tax rate of 1.845 against a general rate of 3.999 shows its assessments are well below market value.
Transfer tax
New Jersey charges a graduated Realty Transfer Fee paid by the seller when the deed is recorded, and since July 10, 2025 sales over $1 million also pay a seller-paid Graduated Percent Fee of 1% to 3.5% of the price; Newark adds no city transfer tax.
Land bank
The Newark Land Bank, run by the city's economic development agency Invest Newark since 2021, acquires vacant and abandoned property and sells it, including homes offered to Newark residents.
Worth knowing
Newark is the largest municipality in Essex County with about 42,000 of the county's roughly 178,000 parcels in the state parcel layer.
Worth knowing
The Register offers a free Record Alert service that notifies you when any document is recorded under your name or block and lot.
Worth knowing
Sheriff sale buyers take title subject to unpaid taxes, water bills and assessments, pay the Realty Transfer Tax, and owe interest on the balance from the 11th day after the sale.
Every town in Essex County
The cities, towns and townships inside the county line.
- Belleville township
- Bloomfield township
- Caldwell borough
- Cedar Grove township
- City of Orange township
- East Orange city
- Essex Fells borough
- Fairfield township
- Glen Ridge borough
- Irvington township
- Livingston township
- Maplewood township
- Millburn township
- Montclair township
- Newark city
- North Caldwell borough
- Nutley township
- Roseland borough
- South Orange village
- Verona township
- West Caldwell township
- West Orange township
Questions
Where are deeds recorded in Essex County?
Deeds are recorded by the Essex County Register of Deeds and Mortgages, Hall of Records, Room 130, 465 Martin Luther King, Jr. Blvd., Newark. Records from May 2001 on can be searched online in the Register's PRESS system, and recording a deed costs $45 for the first page and $10 for each added page.
When is the Essex County tax sale?
There is no single county tax sale. Each of the 22 towns holds its own tax sale certificate sale; Newark holds one online auction a year, most recently announced for December 6, 2024, with the notice posted on newarknj.gov.
How do I find who owns a property in Essex County?
Contact the town's tax assessor, listed in the Essex County Board of Taxation's assessor directory, or use the New Jersey Property Tax List Search. The deed itself is in the Register of Deeds' PRESS search.
Are Essex County property records online?
Yes. Deeds from 2001 on, assessment lists, the Sheriff's foreclosure sale list and a statewide parcel map are online; owner names are hidden on the public parcel map under Daniel's Law.
Sources for this guide
Office hours, fees and sale dates change. We checked these sources in October 2026; confirm with the county before you act.
- essexregisternj.gov/
- essexregisternj.gov/fees/
- essexregisternj.gov/faq/
- press.essexregister.com/prodpress/index.aspx
- essexsheriff.com/foreclosure-listings/
- salesweb.civilview.com/Sales/SalesSearch?countyId=2
- essexcountynjtaxboard.org/
- essexcountynjtaxboard.org/info-forms/
- nj.gov/treasury/taxation/pdf/lpt/Tax_List_Search_Public_Webpage.pdf
- nj.gov/treasury/taxation/pdf/lpt/gtr/2025taxrates.pdf
- nj.gov/treasury/taxation/pdf/lpt/GraduatedPercentFeeNotice.pdf
- nj.gov/dca/dlgs/programs/tax_collector_docs/elements_of_tax_sales_nj.pdf
Every parcel in Essex County, on one map
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