Monthly Archives: March 2009

January Case Shiller HPI

The January S&P/Case Shiller Home Price Index is due out at 9am this morning. I’ll be on the road this morning, so check the comments for more details. From Bloomberg: Housing Prices in 20 U.S. Cities Probably Dropped in January … Continue reading

Posted in Economics, National Real Estate | 289 Comments

Trenton Unemployment – 17.5%

From the Times of Trenton: Trenton jobless numbers climbing When Mayor Douglas Palmer saw the city’s latest unemployment figure, he literally couldn’t believe his eyes. The unemployment rate hit 17.5 percent in January, soaring from 12 percent a year earlier. … Continue reading

Posted in Economics, New Jersey Real Estate | 341 Comments

Weekend Open Discussion

This is the time and place to post observations about your local areas, comments on news stories or the New Jersey housing market, open house reports, etc. If you have any questions you wanted to ask earlier in the week … Continue reading

Posted in General | 253 Comments

NYC jobless rate as bad as NJ

Are you really sure New York City jobs are going to save New Jersey real estate? From the Ledger: N.Y.C. jobless rate hit 8.1 percent in February New York’s unemployment rate jumped in February to its highest level since June … Continue reading

Posted in Economics, New Jersey Real Estate | 169 Comments

NJ Home Prices Down 9.31% In January – LoanPerformance

From First American CoreLogic: Double-Digit, Year-over-year Home Price Declines Continued in January National resale housing prices fell 11.6 percent in January from a year ago. Home prices have declined by at least 10 percent on a year-over-year basis for 11 … Continue reading

Posted in Economics, National Real Estate, New Jersey Real Estate | 325 Comments

Last one out, turn off the lights.

From the Jersey Journal: MAYOR CAN’T HANDLE TRUTH IN ADVERTISING Mayor Dave Roberts pulled out the political big guns yesterday to take down a billboard that offended him. Jersey City real estate firm Metropolitan & Waterfront Residential Brokerage paid for … Continue reading

Posted in New Jersey Real Estate, Politics, Property Taxes | 86 Comments

Northeast Home Sales Down 20%, Prices Down 5%

From the AP: Northeast posts 20 pct February home sales drop Home sales in the Northeast tumbled nearly 20 percent in February from last year, the worst region in the country, as the recession and layoffs made buyers cautious, the … Continue reading

Posted in Economics, Housing Bubble, New Jersey Real Estate | 376 Comments

February Home Sales Down 4.6% YOY, Prices Down 15.5%

From Bloomberg: U.S. Economy: Home Resales Unexpectedly Increased in February Sales of previously owned homes in the U.S. unexpectedly increased in February as record foreclosures pushed down prices and lured first-time buyers into the market. Purchases rose 5.1 percent to … Continue reading

Posted in Economics, Housing Bubble, National Real Estate | 123 Comments

“Where’s the bottom?” Not in 2009…

From the Record: Where’s the bottom? Mounting economic woes worsened conditions in North Jersey’s stumbling housing market at the end of 2008, sending prices down another 8 percent and the number of sales down to levels not seen in nearly … Continue reading

Posted in Foreclosures, Housing Bubble, New Jersey Real Estate | 215 Comments

North Jersey Febuary Home Sales

Preliminary February sales and inventory data for Northern New Jersey (GSMLS) is in. Please note that this data is subject to revision. The first graph plots the unadjusted sales data (closed sales) for the counties listed. Please note the lower … Continue reading

Posted in Economics, New Jersey Real Estate | 364 Comments

Double Digit Unemployment Hits NJ Cities

From the AP: N.J. has 24 cities with double-digit jobless rates The number of larger New Jersey cities and towns with double-digit unemployment rates rose to 24 in January from 11 the prior month. That’s according to data released Thursday … Continue reading

Posted in Economics, National Real Estate | 808 Comments

“This will probably be the worst price correction the city has seen”

From Bloomberg: Lost Bonuses Mean Manhattan Home Prices to Drop Most Since ‘80 Manhattan apartment sales declined 23 percent last year as the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell the most since the Great Depression. Now co-operative and condominium prices are … Continue reading

Posted in Economics, Housing Bubble, National Real Estate | 434 Comments

Otteau: NJ prices to fall 9% in 2009, no bottom this spring

From the Record: N.J. homes prices still falling New Jersey home prices are dropping by an average of about 1 percent a month, and will likely not stabilize before the fourth quarter, appraiser Jeffrey Otteau said today. He predicted a … Continue reading

Posted in Economics, Housing Bubble, New Jersey Real Estate | 141 Comments

Freddie and Fannie own almost 100,000 foreclosed homes

From Inman: Fannie, Freddie REO inventory swells Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac boosted loan modifications by 76 percent in the last three months of 2008, but nearly doubled their inventories of real estate-owned properties over the course of the year … Continue reading

Posted in Economics, Housing Bubble, National Real Estate | 367 Comments

Losing Glitter

From the WSJ Developments Blog: Hard Times for Hovnanian’s Jersey City Condo During the boom, home builder Hovnanian Enterprises Inc. launched its biggest tower, a 48-story condo showpiece in Jersey City, N.J., offering Big Apple views just feet from the … Continue reading

Posted in Housing Bubble, New Development, New Jersey Real Estate | 102 Comments