Bergen County Clerk's Office

What Bergen County Clerk's Office does

The Bergen County Clerk's Office is an elected constitutional office of Bergen County, New Jersey, headquartered at One Bergen County Plaza in Hackensack. Established in the 1700s and one of the oldest offices in the State of New Jersey, it serves as the statutory custodian of county records and is responsible for one-third of the election administration process alongside the Superintendent of Elections and the Board of Elections. The office operates with a small staff of approximately 22 employees and a network of 19 satellite outreach locations serving 70+ municipalities.

The office delivers a broad portfolio of public services: business registration (incorporations, trade names, amendments, dissolutions), land records recording and searching via the Bergen County Land Records System (BCLRS), passport acceptance for the U.S. Department of State, notary public oath administration, naturalization records, photo identification cards (Senior Golden Key, Veterans Service, Exempt Firefighter, Gold Star Parent), veterans services, ceremonial wedding services, and full election administration including voter registration and vote-by-mail ballot processing. Its digital platform comprises the BCLRS Land Records Search Portal, an Agent Portal for document submission, a Property Alert notification service, and integration with the NJ State Voter Registration System (SVRS).

Revenue is generated entirely through transaction-based service fees — document recording fees, passport acceptance fees, certified copy charges, naturalization search fees, voter list fees ($0.25 per district/page), and campaign expenditure report fees ($0.25 per page). In 2025, the office generated $21,406,651.84 in fee revenue for Bergen County and $163,845,632.80 passed through to the State of New Jersey, while processing 87,707 land records documents, conducting 1,353 weddings, and administering elections for 671,000 registered voters with a 51.8% turnout rate. The current elected Clerk is John S. Hogan, serving a five-year term.

Name

Bergen County Clerk's Office

Legal name

Bergen County Clerk's Office

Website

https://bergencountyclerk.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1700

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

The Bergen County Clerk's Office is a New Jersey constitutional office that records property and business documents, administers elections, processes passport applications, and issues identification cards for residents across 70+ municipalities in Bergen County.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

County Government Administrative Services

NAICS

Libraries and Archives (519210), Title Abstract and Settlement Offices (541191), Offices of Notaries (54112), Document Preparation Services (56141), Courts (922110)

SIC

Real Estate (6500)

akta.pro primary industry

City Clerk/Records, Elections & Civic Engagement (BPAIACAB)

akta.pro secondary industries

Land Administration & Cadastral Services (Public Land Records, Parcel Management) (BPAIANAH), National Archives, Records & Information Governance (BPAIAAAG)

Keywords

• Government administrative services
• Land records management
• Election administration
• Passport acceptance services
• Document recording services

Headquarters

HQ city

Hackensack

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Others

Revenue model

1. Service Fees: The office generates revenue through various service fees including document recording fees, passport application fees, certified copy fees, naturalization record search fees, voter list fees, and campaign expenditure report fees. The office generated $21,406,651.84 in revenue for Bergen County and $163,845,632.80 for the State of New Jersey in 2025.

Pricing tiers

Distribution channels6 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

The Bergen County Clerk's Office delivers statutory county government services including business registration and trade name filing, land records recording and search (deeds, mortgages, e-recordings), passport application acceptance, notary public oath administration, naturalization records processing, photo identification cards (senior, veteran, gold star parent, exempt firefighter), election administration (vote-by-mail, voter registration, election results), and wedding ceremonies. The office maintains a 300+ year historical archive and operates an online land records system (BCLRS) with property alerts and an agent portal.

Product overview

Bergen County Clerk's Office is a government administrative office offering a comprehensive suite of public services centered around document recording, election administration, and identity verification. The office serves as the official keeper of records for Bergen County, providing business registration services (incorporation, trade names, business filings), land records management (deeds, mortgages, property documents), passport processing, notary public oath administration, naturalization records, photo ID cards (senior, veteran, firefighter), and full election services including vote-by-mail, voter registration, and election results. The office also performs wedding ceremonies and maintains historical municipal archives dating back over 300 years. Services are delivered through the main office in Hackensack, an online portal system (BCLRS), and a satellite outreach program reaching 19 locations annually.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Business Services Comprehensive business registration and management services for businesses operating in Bergen County, including incorporation filings, fictitious name registration, trade name amendments, business address changes, owner/partner additions and removals, and dissolution services.
• Land Records Services Recording, filing and maintenance of public records affecting property and business ownership, including document recording, deed copies, mortgage records, and e-recordings for property owners and real estate professionals in Bergen County.
• Passport Services Passport application acceptance and processing for Bergen County residents, accepting check or money order payment without requiring appointments, with passport tracking available through the U.S. Department of State.
• Notary Public Services Oath administration for notary public commissioning, apostille and state seal authentication, and county clerk certification for notarial documents used in international and domestic contexts.
• Naturalization Records Processing of naturalization filings, records search services, certificate replacement, and fee management for citizens completing the naturalization process and genealogical researchers.
• Photo ID Cards Issuance of photo identification cards including Senior Golden Key Card, Veterans Honorary Service Card, Exempt Fireman's Photo Card, and Gold Star Parent Identification Card for eligible residents.
• Elections & Voting Services Comprehensive election administration including vote-by-mail ballots, voter registration, sample ballots, election results, polling place information, and election petition processing for over 671,000 registered voters in Bergen County.
• Veterans Services Services for veterans including peddlers license issuance, veteran's service photo ID cards, and various veteran-related documentation services.
• Ceremonies (Wedding Services) Wedding ceremony services performed by the County Clerk, with 1,353 weddings performed as documented in 2025.
• Property Alert Service Notification service allowing property owners to receive alerts about recording activity affecting their properties, integrated with the Bergen County Land Records System (BCLRS).

Quantifiable outcome

• 87,707 documents processed in Registry Division (2025)
• +3 more outcomes

Segments7 records

Ideal customer profiles6 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Bergen County Board of ElectionscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe County Clerk's Office works with the Board of Elections as part of the three-branch election system in Bergen County. The County Clerk is responsible for one-third of the election process along with the Superintendent of Elections and the Board of Elections. Contact: One Bergen County Plaza, Room 310, Hackensack, NJ 07601, Tel: (201) 336-6225
• Superintendent of ElectionscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Superintendent of Elections/Commissioner of Registrations Office partners with the County Clerk on election administration. Responsibilities include voter registration, change of residence, maintaining custody of poll books and voting machines, and investigating voting discrepancies. Located at Room 380, Tel: (201) 336-6109
• Municipal Clerks (70+ municipalities)coreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorThe County Clerk's Office provides services through partnerships with all municipal clerk offices in Bergen County's 70+ municipalities. Municipal clerks assist with voter registration, Vote-By-Mail applications, and election information distribution.
• NJ Division of ElectionscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerState-level election authority for voter registration forms, election information, and campaign filing requirements. Handles state and federal candidate petitions and provides oversight of county election processes.
• U.S. Department of State (Passport Services)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe County Clerk's Office processes passport applications as an acceptance facility for the U.S. Department of State's passport services. Passport tracking available through travel.state.gov.

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Regional players

• First American Title: National title and settlement company that interacts with county land records during real estate closings; a downstream user of the same public records the Bergen County Clerk's Office records and certifies, with comparable title-abstract and document-preparation activities.

Broad incumbents

• CoreLogic: Large-scale property data and analytics provider that aggregates county-recorded land records into commercial datasets; comparable in land-records data domain and in servicing real estate professionals who are the Clerk's primary property-recording customers.
• Tyler Technologies: Large public-sector software provider offering land records, court, and election solutions used by many U.S. county clerks; comparable through its county-clerk product portfolio and the broader government technology platform play relevant to BCLRS modernization.

Others

• ES&S (Election Systems & Software): Major U.S. election systems vendor whose voting machines, poll books, and election management software are deployed across New Jersey counties; a key ecosystem counterparty to Bergen County's election-administration partnership with the Board of Elections.
• Granicus: Government technology provider for records management, public meetings, and civic engagement workflows used by county and municipal governments; comparable as a vendor enabling digital records and citizen services that augment clerk office functions.
• Dominion Voting Systems: Election technology vendor providing voting and tabulation systems used by U.S. jurisdictions; relevant peer as an infrastructure supplier to the same county-level election administration functions the Clerk's Office co-manages.
• Cott Systems: Vendor of land records, vital records, and official records software to county clerk offices nationwide; a key ecosystem participant whose product roadmap and pricing directly shape the Bergen County Clerk's BCLRS-type capabilities and operating costs.

Direct peers

• Essex County Clerk's Office: New Jersey county clerk performing identical constitutional duties including document recording, election administration, passport acceptance, and naturalization records; directly comparable in regulatory framework and service catalog, with similar satellite and online delivery models.
• Hudson County Clerk's Office: Another NJ county clerk office operating under the same state constitutional authority, providing land records, election administration, business filings, and notary services — a direct peer for benchmarking digital land records adoption and fee revenue.
• Middlesex County Clerk's Office: County clerk's office in New Jersey providing the same statutory suite of services — land records, business filings, elections, passports, and notary oaths — under the same state constitutional framework, making it the closest functional comparator for service mix, fee structure, and operational scale.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/electionsclerk
• Facebookfacebook.com/john.hogan.3194
• Instagraminstagram.com/johnhoganclerk
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/bergen-county-clerk's-office

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Bergen County Clerk's Office