Soon, a shopping trip at a Haddonfield business could earn you money toward your property taxes.
In an effort to bolster the local economy and provide property tax relief, the Partnership for Haddonfield and the borough announced the “Shop Haddonfield” Property Tax Reward Program.
The program will provide a discount on property taxes as an incentive to shop locally at participating businesses. Haddonfield residents will be able to swipe a card at participating local businesses, which will generate rebates that can be applied to their property taxes.
“Not only will residents of Haddonfield be encouraged to give their business to local merchants, but they will also be rewarded for doing so by receiving these property tax rebates with every purchase at a participating business,” Mayor Jeff Kasko said. “This is a win-win for every resident and business in our community.”
“We’re hoping to drive more business downtown, especially during the holiday season. This is mutually beneficial for the residents, getting a break on their taxes, as well as the merchants,” Remi Fortunato, retail recruiter for the Partnership for Haddonfield, said.
The Partnership for Haddonfield will mail “Shop Haddonfield” property reward cards, sponsored by Republic Bank, to all residents. Fortunato said she hopes the cards will be in the mail for the first week of December, just in time for the holiday shopping season.
“It is a program we’re very excited to get started,” Fortunato said. “We want to get (the cards) out there to take advantage of the holiday season.”
After registering the card, when shopping at a participating local business, together with the normal payment for goods and services, the cardholder can swipe the card through a dedicated processing machine that Fin Credit, Inc. — the managing company for the Property Tax Reward Program — will provide to each participating merchant. So far, Forunato said there are 15 to 20 stores signed up. Once the program launches, a list of all participating stores will be available online at www.propertytaxcard.com /shophaddonfield.
The swiped card will result in a rebate, which will be credited to the shopper’s Property Tax Reward Program account. Each individual business determines its own rebate amount.
For example, someone spending $100 at a business that accepts the card would get $10 toward their property taxes if the business sets its rate at 10 percent, Fortunato said. Rebates will then be applied to the customer’s property tax bill. Savings can be tracked online as well.
Renters and non-residents are eligible to sign up for a card and get a rebate in the form of a check once a year. However, there is a $7 fee to mail the check.
So far, 19 other towns have signed up with the property tax reward program, according to Fortunato. One town that has the program in place is Haddonfield’s neighbor, Voorhees. In June, Voorhees Mayor Michael Mignogna said last year, 972 Voorhees residents received tax credits from using their Shop Voorhees card, with more than 30 residents realizing more
than $100 in savings. The single largest credit realized last year was $668.
Fortunato hopes this will make residents more aware of the downtown shops and get them to shop locally.
“It’s a reminder to shop locally and keep your dollars in the community,” Fortunato said.
For more information about the program, visit www.propertytaxcard.com/shophaddonfield.
