the staff of the Ridgewood blog
Hackensack NJ, in a groundbreaking move for government innovation and real estate modernization, Bergen County has entered a five-year agreement with blockchain land records platform Balcony to tokenize approximately 370,000 property deeds, representing a staggering $240 billion in real estate value. Powered by the Avalanche blockchain, this initiative marks the largest blockchain-based deed tokenization project in U.S. history.
🔗 A Blockchain Milestone in Property Records
This ambitious project will digitize every property deed across Bergen County’s 70 municipalities, which collectively generate more than $500 million annually in property taxes and serve nearly one million residents. The effort aims to establish a tamper-proof, fully searchable, on-chain chain of title, reducing deed processing times by over 90% and virtually eliminating fraud, disputes, and clerical errors.
“This is a turning point for real estate and public record systems,” said Dan Silverman, CEO of Balcony. “We’re demonstrating how secure, distributed systems can replace outdated infrastructure and deliver real-world value.”
🛡️ A Response to Ransomware and Record Vulnerability
With cyberattacks targeting local governments on the rise—72% of ransomware attacks in 2024 demanding over $1 million in ransom—Bergen County’s adoption of blockchain technology enhances data security, transparency, and disaster resilience.
“By digitizing property records, we’re making the process simpler, faster, and more secure,” said John Hogan, Bergen County Clerk. “This is about improving life for residents while protecting the integrity of our public records.”
🏘️ A Statewide Rollout in the Works
Bergen County is just the beginning. Balcony is actively expanding to other New Jersey municipalities including Camden, Orange, Morristown, Cliffside Park, and Fort Lee. In Orange, Balcony’s platform recently uncovered $1 million in lost municipal revenue due to outdated or incomplete records.
“Property records are the bedrock of public trust,” said Gregg Lester, President of Balcony. “Blockchain enables smarter, more transparent governance that benefits both officials and the public.”
🔍 How Balcony’s Technology Works
Balcony’s Digital Asset Registry transforms legacy land records into a unified, tamper-proof digital registry. The system:
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Uses AI to structure and analyze complex data
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Creates immutable records validated by government entities
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Offers real-time access and updates
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Reduces administrative overhead and title disputes
🚀 Powered by Avalanche Blockchain
Avalanche delivers the speed, scalability, and flexibility needed for high-volume government-grade applications.
“Balcony is setting the standard for the future of land recordkeeping,” said Luigi D’Onorio DeMeo, Chief Strategy Officer at Ava Labs. “Avalanche is proud to support this generational transformation.”
🌍 A Model for the Nation
Bergen County is the first top-50 U.S. county to fully commit to on-chain property tokenization. The success of this initiative could pave the way for other counties across the country to follow suit.
About Balcony
Balcony is revolutionizing land record management through blockchain-backed infrastructure designed specifically for government use. Its platform empowers agencies to digitize, tokenize, and unify property records, enabling more transparent, fraud-resistant, and efficient real estate systems.
🔗 Learn more: www.balcony.technology
📩 Government agencies: Contact partnerships@balcony.technology
About Avalanche
Avalanche is a high-speed, low-latency blockchain platform purpose-built for decentralized applications and scalable enterprise solutions. Its multi-chain architecture and near-instant finality make it the ideal backbone for digitizing real-world assets and transforming public infrastructure.
🔗 Learn more: www.avax.network
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Wait for a future news item identifying Bergen County as having an unusually high number of Home Title Theft since 2025.
Sure – spend tax payers hard earned money in fancy projects!
This has to be the most corrupt county. This year’s Bergen County Property Tax increase is close to 4.7%!
So, if putting title records on a blockchain makes all of the transfers visible and traceable wouldn’t that also mean that cash on a blockchain is also visible and traceable? Hmmm.
A simple database based application works just fine if properly secured. What a waste of tax payer dollars.