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The New Jersey Association of Realtors® has commended Governor Chris Christie and his partners in the legislature for providing an exemption from New Jersey bulk sales notification process. This should reduce unnecessary bureaucracy on the individual sale of homes and seasonal rentals, and should prevent closings on homes from being delayed or even from falling through.

The bulk sales notification process was established in 2007, and requires the purchaser to notify the Director of the Division of Taxation of the sale at least 10 days prior to the closing. This is to allow the Division of Taxation to notify the purchaser whether or not it has a claim against the seller, and the amount of any claim. If the purchaser fails to comply with these conditions then they become liable for any taxes owed by the seller. The whole purpose of this law was to help with state collect taxes from business entities before they left the state or disposed of assets, but lack of clarity meant individual house sales and seasonal rentals were also subject to these requirements.

The measure was championed by the New Jersey Association of Realtors® through the legislative process and has brought the notification requirements back into line with the intent of the original law. On September 14 Governor Chris Christie signed the new measure into law. The bill was sponsored by Sens Jeff Van Drew, Tom Kean, Steve Oroho, Jim Whelan, Shirley Turner and Linda Greenstein as well as Assembly members Patrick Diegnan, Gary Schaer, Pamela Lampitt, Jack Conners, Matthew Milam, Nelson Albano, David Rible, Vincent Polistina, Scott Rumana, and Albert Coutinho.

Jarrod Grasso, Chief Executive Officer of the New Jersey Association of Realtors® said “In this fragile real estate market, advocating for the passage of this consumer friendly initiative is just one of the many avenues NJAR® is pursuing in our efforts to promote home ownership. Cutting red tape consumers have to content with is yet another way we can help spur home sales.”