New Jersey county to move $240B real estate deeds on-chain in AVAX RWA migration

New Jersey’s Bergen County Tokenizes $240B in Real Estate on Avalanche Blockchain

Bergen County, New Jersey, has embarked on a groundbreaking initiative to tokenize $240 billion in property records, marking the largest real estate tokenization project in U.S. history. Partnering with blockchain firm Balcony, the county will digitize 370,000 property deeds across 70 municipalities, serving nearly 1 million residents, using Avalanche (AVAX) blockchain infrastructure.

Project Details and Impact

Under a five-year agreement, Balcony leverages AvaCloud to migrate these records onto an immutable, searchable ledger. The system aims to slash deed settlement times from 90 days to just one, reduce fraud, and enhance transparency. Posts on X highlight the initiative’s expansion across New Jersey, including Camden, Orange, Morristown, and Fort Lee, covering over 460,000 properties. In Orange, the system uncovered nearly $1 million in previously uncollected tax revenue, demonstrating its potential for operational efficiency.

Broader Tokenization Trend

This move aligns with the growing trend of real-world asset (RWA) tokenization, projected by Boston Consulting Group and Ripple to reach $18.9 trillion by 2033, with real estate as a major driver. Avalanche is becoming a hub for such projects—California’s DMV digitized 42 million vehicle titles on AVAX in 2024, and Dubai’s Land Department tokenized $16 billion in real estate on the XRP Ledger. These efforts underscore blockchain’s role in modernizing public infrastructure, though they raise questions about scalability and long-term data privacy.

Critical Perspective

While the project promises efficiency, it’s worth scrutinizing the centralization risks of relying on a single blockchain like Avalanche, especially for public records. The involvement of private firms like Balcony could also introduce profit-driven motives into public systems, potentially prioritizing cost-cutting over accessibility for residents. Moreover, the environmental impact of blockchain operations, even on a relatively efficient network like AVAX, remains a concern amid broader sustainability debates in crypto.