Going up again?

From CNBC:

Home prices could be on the verge of heating up again, according to CoreLogic

Home prices in January rose at the slowest pace in nearly seven years, but buyers shouldn’t feel too confident just yet. Prices might be on the verge of picking up yet again.

Home values in January were 4.4 percent higher than a year earlier, smaller than the 4.7 percent annual gain in December, according to CoreLogic. Price gains have been shrinking since April, when they peaked at a 6.6 percent gain. January’s read was the smallest gain since August 2012.

“The spike in mortgage interest rates last fall chilled buyer activity and led to a slowdown in home sales and price growth,” said Frank Nothaft, chief economist for CoreLogic. “Fixed-rate mortgage rates have dropped 0.6 percentage points since November 2018 and today are lower than they were a year ago. With interest rates at this level, we expect a solid homebuying season this spring.”

The average rate on the 30-year fixed mortgage rose above 5 percent at the start of November but then began sliding. It now sits around 4.5 percent, right around where it was a year ago, when price gains were in the 6 percent range annually.

So that could mean the end of the current price chill, as more buyers this spring compete for a still-slim supply of listings for sale. Inventories have started to rise nationwide, but mostly on the higher end of the market, which is not where the bulk of current demand is. The supply of entry-level homes for sale is still very, very low, as builders continue to focus on more expensive homes, given today’s high costs for land and labor.

This entry was posted in Demographics, Economics, Employment, Housing Recovery, National Real Estate. Bookmark the permalink.

175 Responses to Going up again?

  1. Mike says:

    Good morning new jersey

  2. Bruiser says:

    Ooooohhhh, pant up demand is back again?

  3. 1987 Condo says:

    I found more interesting than the fact that Newark sold the lot for $1, when it had a $10 million value, the exchange below:

    On Wednesday, the lease was approved in a 5-4 vote, with Councilmen Carlos Gonzalez, Augusto Amador, Anibal Ramos and Luis Quintana voting no. But the meeting turned heated when resident Lisa Parker questioned whether Council President Mildred Crump had a conflict of interest in voting for the lease.
    Crump’s son, Lawrence Crump, is general counsel for the parking authority.
    “How dare you?” Crump said from the dais. “How dare you question his integrity? How dare you question mine? Why are you asking this question?”

    https://www.nj.com/essex/2019/03/city-agrees-to-lease-back-parking-lot-for-27m-that-it-sold-for-1.html

  4. Fast Eddie says:

    Friskies!

  5. Bruiser says:

    Bababababababa…..booooooooooooyyyyyaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!!!!

  6. Bystander says:

    Swap out Puxatawney Phil for first article about pent up demand and great buying opportunties from the realtor pieholes. It is the official sign that spring is almost here.

  7. The Original NJ ExPat says:

    Anybody else making money?

    The Original NJ ExPat says:
    February 22, 2019 at 12:41 pm
    BTW, in the last six months I think I endorsed two issues. NGLOY in September and VEDL a few days ago. I’m not a pump and dumper, obviously.

  8. ExEssex says:

    Pretty typical…. LOS ANGELES — California’s rainy season could be the wettest in 40 years, but experts say the state is missing a major opportunity by failing to collect the trillions of gallons of storm runoff that currently flows wastefully into the ocean.

    “We will never capture it all, but we need to do a better job of capturing what we can,” said Peter Gleick of the Pacific Institute.

    In February alone, an estimated 18 trillion gallons of water fell on the state. In urban areas and coastal cities, 80 percent ends up diverted into the ocean, as Los Angeles and other cities built long concrete channels for flood control. The Los Angeles River, for example, is a 51-mile-long canal as wide as a football field. Almost none of the water seeps into the underground aquifer.

    “The challenge is: How do we capture more of that water to use it so we can use it during dry parts of the year? And cities in California have not historically done a good job of capturing what we call stormwater,” said Gleick, who helped author a study showing how San Francisco and Los Angeles could harness nearly as much water as they consume.

  9. 1987 Condo says:

    Such a quandry..how could we capture more water..I wonder…..

  10. Blue Ribbon Teacher says:

    How dare you? haha…yeah nothing to see there

  11. Bruiser says:

    Be like New Jersey.
    Tax the rain.

  12. Blue Ribbon Teacher says:

    I thought California just imports all its water in bottles from Fiji?

  13. Libturd says:

    The problem with building reservoirs in California is that they haven’t perfected the homeless filter. Second, there is no undeveloped land to put it.

  14. 1987 condo says:

    I think there is plenty of undeveloped land (inland)..they “just” have numerous protections and environmental concerns.

  15. 1987 Condo says:

    California is among the five U.S. states with the most undeveloped land for sale by overall acreage. With an average price of $608,184, the total value of approximately 77,380 acres of undeveloped land recently listed for sale in California was $746 million

    https://www.landandfarm.com/search/California/Undeveloped-Land-for-sale/

  16. joyce says:

    How to capture the water?
    Step 1) Un-develop a massive amount of the concrete jungle that is LA

    Libturd says:
    March 7, 2019 at 9:49 am
    The problem with building reservoirs in California is that they haven’t perfected the homeless filter. Second, there is no undeveloped land to put it.

  17. Juice Box says:

    California allows the Delta water system to drain into San Francisco Bay, last time they dammed it up the environmentalists sued over the Delta smelt, a small local fish that might be affected by the dam.

    They really are crazy there, last time I was there people were partying away in Napa as the whole area was burning with raging fires.

  18. joyce says:

    The idea of government setting up “autonomous” agencies that end up accountable to no one (Newark Parking Authority, just to name one) is ridiculous.

    1987 Condo says:
    March 7, 2019 at 8:24 am
    I found more interesting than the fact that Newark sold the lot for $1, when it had a $10 million value, the exchange below:

  19. Bruiser says:

    If only there were some legal mechanism to take private property and put it to use as part of a public works project for public benefit, after providing fair compensation of course…

  20. Blue Ribbon Teacher says:

    I think California has reached the critical point that is it unable to solve any major infrastructure or resource issues because of NIMBYism and their fake misguided environmental fanaticism.

  21. Libturd, can't say I didn't warn you. says:
  22. 3b says:

    Nothing but us older people on my train line. No flocks of young people buying houses by me. Away from immigrant multi generation buyers that’s about it. I don’t think that will change this year either.

  23. Libturd says:

    Montclair’s municipal budget has no increase. School and county budgets to be seen. All that development is paying off (at least in the short term). Of course, no cuts made and lots of spending with the extra money.

  24. ExEssex says:

    Yes indeed. I have lived all over the Country and California is a really unique place.
    One is not completely instilled with confidence that the place is a model for anything other that vast sprawl and areas that qualify as frightening. The are plenty of areas that need to be demolished. It’s really fascinating. Fortunately, I am out in the ex-burbs. The places around the ocean in areas that we’ve all heard of are lovely but come at a very steep price. Think Mid-Town prices. Otherwise, it’s just a whole lot of people from Mexico.

  25. Juice Box says:

    They delivered my new FIOS ONE set top boxes today. The remote set top boxes are completely WIFI and a very small form factor 6 inch wide. I actually taped the set top boxes to the back of the TVs, so no exposed wires or box visible and the new set top boxes are blazing fast, the voice recognition remote is pretty neat too. An internet speed test on my rig wired with a cat 5e came back with nearly 940 bps down and 880 Mbps up. New router is great too long range coverage. I eliminated my repeater and got rid of lots of extra cabling around the rooms. I am going to build a portable TV/set top box Rig for the Summer and wheel it out to watch TV while relaxing outdoors when the warm weather comes.

  26. Fast Eddie says:

    Nothing but us older people on my train line. No flocks of young people buying houses by me. Away from immigrant multi generation buyers that’s about it. I don’t think that will change this year either.

    By me, houses go up for sale and are sold just as fast. Families with kids occupy the place. I’m not sure what you’re seeing. As for that train line, half the crowd is the late 20s to late 30s variety. Again, I’m really not sure what you’re seeing.

  27. Blue Ribbon Teacher says:

    On that list, a mercer county superintendent of a newly formed Charter school is making $250k. I looked up the staff there and the few teachers they have on staff are making $50k. Seems like a dog and pony show…given I’ve never seen or heard of the school and it’s a few miles from my home.

    This is where all your abbott money is getting funnelled to.

  28. Blue Ribbon Teacher says:

    You know…I would bit at least $10 on that Newark property. They could have increased their revenue tenfold.

  29. Bystander says:

    By me, it is really uneven. Most kids get off at Stamford. It has Reuters, NBCsports, Henkel, Charter Comm, Elizabeth Arden etc so lots of lower paying jobs basically. Older people (40+) stay on for another hour into NYC. Forunate minority % find a good paying job in Stamford that can support family. If Purdue Pharma declares BK and leaves then expect it to get worse. Diageo moving to NYC screwed many older folks. On real estate, my brother closes in 2 weeks after 10 most on market and 100k loss for late 09 purchase. New construction continues around me. Seems like 750k 3bd 3ba are wanted. Old inventory sits.

  30. Leftwing says:

    Ex, spread on bmy/celg widened to 35 today from 33. May have missed my window.

    I’m good, but got rammed hard on cvs. Had right call, down, and an otm put spread. Got too creative and sold 2x naked beneath that to get a credit on the whole trade. My exposure started well over 1sd out and, well, i’m getting fcuked.

    Freaking hate making the right call and having the wrong trade. Drives me nuts, like michael Douglas falling down nuts….

  31. Mike says:

    Juice did verizon charge you a set up fee for the fios one for 50.00 ? Was told I had to pay that even though I’m hooking them up and renting for 12.00 a month

  32. 3b says:

    Fast I don’t what train line you are on. But I am on the Pascack Valley line and for 30 years! And there is no way the people on that line are late 20s early 30s. Not even close! 40s and all the way up! And some recent college grads still living at home. That’s it. Late 20s and early 30s packing the train with houses and kids. Sorry not buying that. You are talking about the suburbs when I was starring out. Not now. You are new to the Bergen Co suburbs I have seen the evolution over the years and it’s not as you describe.

  33. Libturd, can't say I didn't warn you. says:

    Our line tends to be older too. Mostly late thirties to fifties. There are some younger ones mixed in, but the ratio is definitely skewing older.

    If you have the time, I think NJ Transit publishes the raw data from their quarterly questionnaires. They do ask your age, so it may be in there. Start digging sleuths.

  34. 3b says:

    Lib Not surprised. Even when we pull into Hoboken in the morning it’s a sea of middle aged gray haired men and women with some younger filtered in. All of the people we have known in town for years their kids are only starting to get married now. Forget about kids and houses. A couple of older mid 30s recently had kids they are staying in the city and JC. My oldest Son just recently got engaged. He almost bought a house in Rutherford 2 family and then changed his mind. Not sure he wants the hassle. None of my friends in town kids have moved back to town and don’t appear to have any inclination to. These kids are all college educated from state schools to Ivy League and are all working. Almost all have student loans except for my kids with amounts ranging from 25k to 150k! There simply is no rush or in many cases desire to move to the suburbs. The birth rate is declining across the board with the exception of white women over 40. No point of moving to the suburbs now if kids are 5 to 10 years away. Of course there are exceptions but for the most part this appears to be the reality now. Plus in many cases those who do finally have kids have one and done. They may never go to the suburbs. It’s a different world.

  35. Bruiser says:

    How do you get line-of-sight from your remote to the box, if the box is taped to the back of the television?

  36. Grim says:

    Bluetooth – Apple TV is Bluetooth too.

  37. The Great Pumpkin says:

    3b,

    You describe a depressing world. No families, no kids, and everyone lives in some cramped apartment in a city they split with other roommates.

    I promise you this is not the future. I promise you that suburbs will return on one simple factor….cost. People get married and don’t want roommates all their life. Once married, no one wants to live in the city when they can get much more for their money in the suburbs. I honestly don’t know how cities currently fill their housing when it is so overpriced. I rather commute all day than live in some overpriced little apartment.

    The only way normal people in their 20’s afford to live in the city is by being rich or rooming with a bunch of people. Who the hell wants roommates in their late 30’s or 40’s? Get out of here with this crap.

    Just remember, the millennials were a bigger demographic bloc than the boomers. Their huge demand for rentals in their 20’s is what you are talking about with housing trends. They are getting older now, and they will drive the trend back to suburban housing. Don’t think millennials in their 20’s will live the same way in their 40’s when they are married and have kids.

    I mean do you really expect the majority of millennials to not have kids and live like they are in college for their entire life? Come on, mannn!

  38. The Great Pumpkin says:

    Oh really? Why? Do they finally realize that you can’t live like you are in college for your entire life?

    You said the trend here….they are having kids in their 40’s now. Now, why? They are just later to the game due to the Great Recession pushing back opportunities by a decade to the millennials. Also, this generation is much more educated than the previous generations….so it’s only logical that educated people have kids later on in life.

    “The birth rate is declining across the board with the exception of white women over 40.”

  39. The Great Pumpkin says:

    Now realize that now is the time to buy suburban housing while the demand is low. This will all change, so get in while it’s affordable. There is going to be a huge highly educated demographic group going to work buying in the suburbs very shortly. In the next 10 years… You see what impact they had on prices in the cities….now understand what their impact will be on the suburbs.

    “There simply is no rush or in many cases desire to move to the suburbs.”

  40. 3b says:

    Pumps I won’t debate with you. Simply not worth the effort. I will say this however, if you have one and done, and the age of the mothers giving birth is rising there simply is not the same need or desire to move to the suburbs. Urban living is now an alternative for many of these people which was not the case when my wife and I started out.

  41. The Great Pumpkin says:

    3b,

    You are telling me that you and your wife would pay a million plus for an apartment in a desirable city? Highly doubt it, hence, why you still live in the suburbs. I’m sure if you had to choose between nyc/hoboken and your current commute, you would take your current choice based on the cost of sq footage.

  42. The Great Pumpkin says:

    I wonder how much corruption would drop in a cashless society where every dollar is traced. Wonder if they are against this in the name of self-preservation?

    “Philadelphia is the first major U.S. city to ban cashless stores, placing it at the forefront of a debate that pits retail innovation against lawmakers trying to protect all citizens’ access to the marketplace.

    Starting in July, Philadelphia’s new law will require most retail stores to accept cash. A New York City councilman is pushing similar legislation there, and New Jersey’s legislature recently passed a bill banning cashless stores statewide. A spokesman for New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy, a Democrat, declined to comment on whether he would sign it. Massachusetts has gone the farthest on the issue and is the only state that requires retailers to accept cash.”

    https://www.wsj.com/articles/philadelphia-is-first-u-s-city-to-ban-cashless-stores-11551967201?mod=hp_lead_pos4

  43. JCer says:

    3b where I live late 30’s-early 40’s is where it’s at. I’m seeing lots of toddlers moving in. City folk eventually leave for the schools 1-2 kids at anywhere between 20-40k per kid quickly becomes untenable. The age of mothers is rising, the number of kids is dropping but eventually they are moving to the burbs, you can trade a 2 bedroom apartment in brooklyn, hoboken, or JC straight up for a 5000 sqft 6 bedroom house and the school tuition more than covers the disgusting property taxes that go with it.

    I have preschool age kids still in school in JC and most parents are in late 30’s early 40’s and are looking at suburbs. Bigger places in JC or Hoboken are not cost effective and elementary school is a tough nut between getting a spot and the cost. Most people at the most have a 2 bedroom and can sell for 800k-1m, most intend to spend less in the burbs 600-800k seems to be the ideal budget because of taxes/commute/the need for 2 cars. People want 3-4 beds, 2 baths 2000-2500 Sqft.

    Coveted towns include Westfield, Summit, Montclair, Maplewood, Glen Ridge……

  44. JCer says:

    I’m in suburban essex county, aka tax h*ll

  45. The Great Pumpkin says:

    “The Catholic Church, which controlled many areas of Europe, enforced holidays, where no work was allowed. In addition, things like weddings and births demanded time off, meaning your average peasant worked about 150 days per year.

    Your average American works a lot more. With a five-day work week and 52 weeks per year, there are about 260 work days in any given year. US workers receive an average 8 paid holidays and 8 vacation days. Which brings the average worker to 244 days of work per year–considerably more than our peasant ancestors.”

    https://www.inc.com/suzanne-lucas/even-medieval-peasants-got-more-vacation-time-than-you-do.html

  46. The Great Pumpkin says:

    Well said, JCER.

  47. 3b says:

    JCER. I don’t argue that but someone should note the ages you reference which proves my point. As well for those who move to the suburbs there will also be those who stay in the urban areas for good. That coupled with a declining birth rate also impacts the demand. I would think those that opt for only one child in more than few cases may skip the whole house thing. What’s the point? If a 30 year old today does not plan on kids until late 30s early 40s there is no need to go to the suburbs now. When I was starting out in the late 80s we all had houses and kids before 30 and that was the norm. That is not the case today and as such I believe that is and will affect the desirability of houses and the suburbs going forward.

  48. Bystander says:

    There are no jobs left in the suburbs, idiot. Those millienials are looking around at massive commutes, massive congestion, increasing transit costs and failing infra..probably thinking “why bother”? You move there and never make family dinner or kids games. Here in CT we have seen GE, Alexion Pharma, Diageo, UBS, RBS, GE Capital, Starwoods etc.. abandon the state in recent years. Aetna tried before CT got on it’s knees and humiliatingly performed a blumpkin. Giving up a car saves a thousand a month or more. Realize that suburbia offers space but not convenience.

  49. The Great Pumpkin says:

    3b,

    30 is the new 20….. you need to accept this.

  50. ExEssex says:

    Suburbia offers some semblance of safety, but at the cost of quiet slow death by boredom…….j/k

  51. The Great Pumpkin says:

    That’s why millennials had no problem living like they were in college in their 20’s. They can’t afford the city without roomates. Living with roommates in your 30’s gets old quick. Going to work with a hangover gets old quick in your 30’s.

  52. The Great Pumpkin says:

    Bystander,

    Give up your car and now replace that cost with ubur or mass transit. Not gaining much and now can’t pick up and go as please. Always on someone else’s time anywhere you go.

    Again, living in the city is for rich people. Any avg joe stuck living in the city has a terrible quality of life.

  53. The Great Pumpkin says:

    Man, I hope this trend makes a comeback, but most likely, family dinners are dead. As are “family” outings to watch a sibling play.

    You saw the article I posted above…americans work way more than peasants ever did. Here lies the problem…. we are worked to death in America. Even though you got the job done quickly, the boss won’t let you go home. He would rather see you do nothing than let you go home to your family. Even though you got the job done, he wants it on his time, so he doesn’t feel like he is getting ripped off. Now he expects you to rush like a maniac all the time as he piles on more work for being so efficient and productive, even though the pace is not sustainable on a daily basis. Welcome to America, the land of the free….

    “You move there and never make family dinner or kids games.”

  54. chicagofinance says:

    People don’t think of it, but they should include Fair Haven….. better across the board except fast NJ Transit….. tradeoff is the beach…. nice nice nice area and reasonable taxes (by NJ standards)……

    JCer says:
    March 7, 2019 at 3:39 pm
    Coveted towns include Westfield, Summit, Montclair, Maplewood, Glen Ridge……

  55. chicagofinance says:

    ExEssex says:
    March 7, 2019 at 5:08 pm
    Suburbia offers some semblance of safety, but at the cost of quiet slow death by boredom…….j/k
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-VCqAjYO3NM

  56. 3b says:

    Pumps You need to accept that there will be no mass in exodus of people to the suburbs driving no up housing prices in the process. I understand how things have changed over the last 25years or so you don’t.

  57. The Great Pumpkin says:

    Things come and go.

    You are completely missing the millennial trends, therefore not understanding their impact on the housing market.

    Cities are very expensive. Money talks, bs walks. Only the naive believe that the millennials will not return to their suburban roots.

    3b says:
    March 7, 2019 at 5:43 pm
    Pumps You need to accept that there will be no mass in exodus of people to the suburbs driving no up housing prices in the process. I understand how things have changed over the last 25years or so you don’t.

  58. 3b says:

    There is almost nothing to do in the suburbs after you raise your kids. Dull and boring accept for concerts at PNC and Meadowlands in the summer. Also I am amazed close to NYC as we are, the suburbs can be quite provincial.

  59. 3b says:

    It’s you having trouble understanding the millennial trend and all that entails. The suburbs simply do not have the same draw as they did. That’s a fact. And for those when are moving to the suburbs now in their late 30s early 40s they are going to be carrying two mortgages well into their 60s and 70s with one or two kids in daycare schleping to jobs jobs in NYC and getting home at 7 or 8 every night. Feed and bathe the kid/s and go to bed. Sounds like a dreary existence.

  60. Bystander says:

    My friend and wife are raising kids in Hoboken to enjoy their pool tournaments and drinking binges. They are 42 and youngest turns 5 in August. I noticed on their FB feed that they suddenly started championing changes to Connors school. It would bet a majority of white city dwelling parents are going to make a run at sending kids these poor schools in hopes that they will change it. 95% probably can’t afford 40k to send two kids to private even with dual income. Let’s be real.

  61. The Great Pumpkin says:

    Yes, and then you move to a retirement community.

    It’s just so much easier to raise your kid in cedar grove in comparison to Hoboken/NYC. That’s all I can tell you my man. People will have kids, life is pretty meaningless if you don’t have a kid. These towns will be hit with a wave of demand in the not too distant future…

  62. 3b says:

    Bystander I am not arguing your point. Simply stating people are doing it. Your friends you reference are a case in point. The youngest is 5 you say so I assume they have another one who is let’s say 7 or 8. They should be in the suburbs by now but they are not. I can’t imagine being in my 40s with a 5 and 7 year old. No offense to anyone. Just my opinion.

  63. 3b says:

    People with one kid don’t need a 4 bedroom house in the burbs that sits empty everyday.

  64. The Great Pumpkin says:

    3b,

    Why did you move to the suburbs? I bet it was because it was much cheaper and lots of space. Why do you think the millennials will be any different?

  65. chicagofinance says:

    Grace-Marie Turner is correct that Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is living the American dream and inspiring many young people to follow her into political activism. Whether it’s a failure of our public-school system or the eternal optimistic naiveté of our young people, it’s a reality that a pretty young bartender has risen to be a powerhouse in the Democratic Party. It’s like promoting a third-grader to be the head of the MIT physics department because she won the school spelling bee.

    I’m relieved this young activist only killed 25,000 Amazon jobs.

    Benjamin Franklin was asked what kind of government our founders had given us as he left the Constitutional Convention. His answer, “A republic, if you can keep it,” reflects a prescient doubt that America could hold together this wonderful but fragile form of responsible freedom. That it should end in such ignorance would be a shameful tragedy.

    Steve Tanberg
    Denver

    She went from bartender to elected firebrand, ready to turn the U.S. into a soc!alist paradise. Reminds me of the bus driver turned despot who turned Venezuela into a soc!alist paradise.

    How’s that working out?

    Robert I. Recker Jr.
    Travelers Rest, S.C.

  66. Nomad says:

    Yesterday Axios had an article that teens not interested in sex. Talked to friends kind in college and he said his peers scared to have kids due to cost and lack of good jobs and no job security. See article below and focus on the statement about shrinking population. Deflation will be the issue and potentially destroy the economy. No coincidence GM closed their biggest factory, Lordstown. PS, author of article is Bain guy. Upcoming recession and deflation makes for very tough times and AI has not kicked in yet. New jobs will be created but unlikely enough to replace what will be lost.

    https://www.autonews.com/commentary/demographic-time-bomb-awaits-automakers

  67. 3b says:

    As for my kids one engaged not buying a house yet but they may. Second one will be engaged soon and will be living in PA they will buy at some point. They won’t be paying NY area prices and taxes and both have great jobs. Third one living in JC working in the city too early to tell yet.

  68. Blue Ribbon Teacher says:

    I’m pretty sure AOC never won a spelling bee.

  69. DuctTape Pumkin says:

    Larry Summers as consultant economistopposed the Japanese Central Bank bailout of Japanese banks and industrial conglomerate in the 1989. His argument was by not let the debt destruction occur, the debt will be fostered on the next generation. What happened to Japan since 1989 -debt deflation, birth rate reduction, and the birth of the herbivore males.

    Larry Summers said the Fed needed to bail out the Wall Street bankster.His argument was different, but the results have been the same he predicted, by not letting the debt destruction occur, the debt will be fostered on the next generation. What happened to USA since 2007 -debt deflation, birth rate reduction, and the birth of the herbivore males/lgbt/ I don’t know if I have 2 nuts or 2 melons.

    Finally, Pumkin head. People went to the suburbs to escape crime. The famous NY Post headline ” Headless corpse found in topless bar” explained everything.

    https://youtu.be/Q1zISlFfCyc

  70. Yo! says:

    I was at International Builders’ Show a few weeks ago in Vegas. Three themes stood out. Everybody worried about fewer young workers entering the trades and see it as a generational problem, homebuilders can’t figure out how to market to millennials and get them excited about buying houses, and the houses expected to rise in value fastest are medium size infill houses close to jobs and social amenities.

    Hudson, southeast Bergen, southern Westchester, Nassau should be fine. Further out areas in big trouble, such as Sussex, Warren, Hunterdon, Monmouth, northern Westchester, Fairfield, Suffolk.

  71. 3b says:

    Pumps I have answered this question before. Last time. Here goes. In the 80s NYC was falling apart. One neighborhood after another was falling apart. We all left. That’s no longer the case. Simple as that

  72. The Great Pumpkin says:

    Yo,

    I don’t buy it. If people abandon those locations, the price will drop so much so that they will be a complete bargain and worth the commute in comparison to those city locations. So how much could Monmouth county really fall? Are people this desperate to live in the city? Seems as dumb as McMansion craze in the poconos.

  73. The Great Pumpkin says:

    3b,

    The older you get, the more you want to get the f’k away from people. You take for granted the lifestyle you live. I want nothing to do with the idea of living in Hoboken at my age. Give me the two car garage, yard, and privacy. Priceless…

    Nomad,

    What a bunch of clowns. Cars are so much fun to drive and these losers are willingly giving that up… logic need not apply. I LOVE DRIVING! ONE OF THE BEST THINGS IN LIFE!

  74. The Great Pumpkin says:

    Sounds about right…1 for 3 with city living. Proves my point.

    3b says:
    March 7, 2019 at 6:17 pm
    As for my kids one engaged not buying a house yet but they may. Second one will be engaged soon and will be living in PA they will buy at some point. They won’t be paying NY area prices and taxes and both have great jobs. Third one living in JC working in the city too early to tell yet.

  75. 3b says:

    It does nothing to prove any of your points. I simply put it out there for transparency purposes.

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    Please look on it http://dc-btc.pro and tell me what you think
    It says +10% each other day and aytomaticall payout.

    Waiting for your reply!

  77. leftwing says:

    “Hudson, southeast Bergen, southern Westchester, Nassau should be fine. Further out areas in big trouble, such as Sussex, Warren, Hunterdon, Monmouth, northern Westchester, Fairfield, Suffolk.”

    Yo, oh yeah, in trouble. I would argue that ones like below are even at a discount to other comparable areas. 40 or so miles, directly off 78, less than an hour to Tunnel non-rush hour. Hair over a million.

    https://www.zillow.com/homes/for_sale/2132044053_zpid/priced_sort/40.727876,-74.611416,40.595054,-74.831143_rect/11_zm/3_p/

  78. The Original NJ ExPat says:

    Two days ago I spoke for about 45 minutes with an Xfinity salesman, a nice guy about my age, having been a Comcast captive for about 15 years we had a lot to talk about. As we got to the end of our pretty good hour of conversation, I suddenly realized he was not only an idiot, but also an AOC acolyte. He just couldn’t save himself after beginning his slide down that slippery slope.

  79. The Original NJ ExPat says:

    Here’s who I’ll buy cable from: The first person who comes to my door that shows me a remote that backs up the DVR buffer 20 seconds and turns the closed captions on with one button press. The next press turns it off.

  80. The Original NJ ExPat says:

    FYI, the one thing that I did learn form the cable guy was that whatever plan you sign up for, from whatever provider, with or without contract, your price is going up a shitload in 2 years.

  81. The Original NJ ExPat says:

    The other thing is that no package includes HBO except the top package. You’re better of getting it ala carte.

  82. The Original NJ ExPat says:

    LOL. Joe Kernan on CNBC a few minutes ago: AOC has 3.5 million Twitter followers, that shows you what trouble we are in.

  83. grim says:

    AOC and MOMO the same person?

    Suspect they are.

  84. The Original NJ ExPat says:

    A federal judge known for his impatience in court sentenced former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort on Thursday to less than four years behind bars, defying a requested prison term of 19 to 24 years by special counsel Robert Mueller.

    T.S. Ellis III, who was appointed by President Ronald Reagan and serves on the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia, called Mueller’s recommended sentence “excessive.” Instead, the former U.S. Navy aviator, who piloted an F-4 Phantom before heading to Harvard Law School and then Oxford University, handed down a 47-month sentence.

    “To impose a sentence of 19-24 years on Mr. Manafort would clearly be a disparity. In the end, I don’t think the guidelines range is at all appropriate,” Ellis said.

    https://njrereport.com/index.php/2019/03/07/going-up-again/#comment-999078

  85. The Original NJ ExPat says:

    LOL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Steve Leisman 2 minutes ago on CNBC:

    The government can print as much money as it wants….to pay it’s bills…until it can’t!

  86. D-FENS says:

    Private wells in NJ polluted and undrinkable due to oversalting.

    https://www.njherald.com/20190308/state-rebuffs-knowlton-on-road-salt-issue#

    On Monday, resident Pam Rusweiler sent her own letter to Gov. Phil Murphy.

    “I cannot drink my water nor use it for cooking; showers are terrible because if you get water in your eyes it burns like crazy,” she wrote. “Appliances are replaced frequently; toilets need to be removed and taken outside to clean the salt residual (sic) scrubbed off.”

    The letter also included her own observations from the night before of salt trucks from the bridge commission, which, she wrote, “was a very clear indication of the over-salting issues.”

    Between 7:45 and 11:16 p.m. there were eight passes of trucks, each involving multiple vehicles either plowing or plowing and salting. In addition, she said, at least two additional saltings were done before she began keeping her log.

    In addition to the bridge commission’s trucks, she noted, “the state trucks (generally five in a row) were constantly going up and down State Route 46 at basically the same intervals as the DRJTBC plowing/salting over and over again.”

    She also asked for a dialogue and not use the “litigation” excuse: “I ask you not to send up a smoke screen. … I repeat that as of this date we have NOT filed suit!!!”

    The letter was copied to Warren County freeholders, a couple of newspaper reporters, U.S. Rep. Josh Gottheimer, D-5th Dist., and 24th District state legislators.

    Helen Curlew, director of constituent services for the 24th District, said her office wrote a letter to Murphy in March 2018. That letter was also signed by Gottheimer, whose congressional district includes Knowlton.

    As of earlier this week, her office had not heard from anyone in the governor’s office.

  87. Leftwing says:

    Thousands of New Millionaires Are About to Eat San Francisco Alive https://nyti.ms/2HkN3yb

  88. 1987 says:

    Jobs: + 20,000. Stunningly low

    UE:3.8

  89. grim says:

    crazy jobs numbers.

    wages coming in above estimates

    UE lower than estimates

    U6 looking great, on trend.

  90. 3b says:

    A family member has their house on the market out by Climton. Realtor said if they get what they paid for it 20 years ago they will be lucky. And they made a ton of improvements to it. No one wants that commute to NYC and all the corporate jobs that were out there are gone.

  91. The Original NJ ExPat says:

    I wonder where they’ll poop??

    Thousands of New Millionaires Are About to Eat San Francisco Alive https://nyti.ms/2HkN3yb

  92. Libturd, can't say I didn't warn you. says:

    “I can’t imagine being in my 40s with a 5 and 7 year old.”

    I’ve got a 13-year old and a 6 year old with brain damage at 48. It’s not as bad as you think. Though they do tire me out, my tenure allows me to have the flexibility to attend their school and sports events as well as be there for them when they need it. Not sure I could have pulled myself away from the office in my 30s. Additionally, I would consider myself much wiser in the arts of child-rearing than my counterparts. Trust me, it’s weird at back to school night at the 6-year old’s school. But I know better than to panic at the first report of lice or bullying. I don’t think I would have done it any other way. Even if I could. Plus, the financial security is helpful. The twenty something families will still be paying off their own college loans when they could have been providing tuition to their offspring if they waited. Of course, to each their own. I’m sure there are advantages to being younger, like being alive at graduation. :P

  93. 401k Q says:

    So I’m currently in the process of rolling over all my 401k money that I’ve had with various employer plans over the years into Vanguard. Luckily, I happened to sell @ DOW 26,100 about a week ago, money is currently sitting in Vanguard Federal Mutual Funds.

    Looks like the DOW will open @ 25,200 today – any thoughts how long I should wait before reinvesting? Was thinking to get it in there today but kind of nervous there could be a correction happening.

  94. The Great Pumpkin says:

    This guy describes exactly how capitalism turns into a disease if it’s not held in check.

    “Real tired of reading articles like this. Here’s the deal…all these millennials with big appetites, cars, parties, houses, whatever, are buying up properties for more than asking prices. Good for them. I think it’s greed at its finest. Wait for the next crash, you’ll see prices come down again. Companies will start building campuses in cities like Topeka and Akron. The swarms will invade the mid-west, because housing is a fraction of the cost, and the companies can build their campuses for so much less. Having been born and raised in SF, I have seen many changes. There will be more. There’s what’s called a saturation point of the wealthy, and it’s almost hit that. Once they’ve completed their invasion, it will be boring, because there will be no diversity. Part of what fascinates and interests the newly wealthy is having someone to show it off to. When everyone else is in the same class, the competition is over. You can only change so many burger joints to eclectic sea urchin pancake houses before someone says, “I miss a good ol’ fashioned BURGER.” And then the trend will start turning towards retro foods, clothing and housing. The cycle will start over. And watch for the financial collapse if we have bad trade deals overseas. Being rich one day and bankrupt the next is more of predictable trend than expecting a larger influx of new IPOs. I’ll come back when I can bask in Valencia Park by myself.”

    Leftwing says:
    March 8, 2019 at 8:17 am
    Thousands of New Millionaires Are About to Eat San Francisco Alive https://nyti.ms/2HkN3yb

  95. 3b says:

    Lib I meant no disrespect. To each their own. And what works for one does not work for another. There are pros and cons for both. Paying a big mortgage and then college into 60s and beyond is not something I would find desireable. Plus being older with young kids and being concerned with getting laid off due to age would also be a worry. Some also spend all their money then rush to do the marriage kid and house thing all at the same time. I know some people just having kids now in their 50s . I don’t know what the ideal cut off is age wise but in my opinion it’s too old. Money or not. Then of course there are those who should not have kids at any age and do.

  96. No One says:

    Libturd,
    Eat Paleo and do kettlebells 3 times per week and you should make it to graduation. High school at least. Do what I say not what I do.

  97. Ottoman says:

    Covfefe

    Blue Ribbon Teacher says:
    March 7, 2019 at 6:35 pm
    I’m pretty sure AOC never won a spelling bee

  98. The Great Pumpkin says:

    Greed is a hell of a drug.

  99. Ottoman says:

    She’s doing to the Fox crowd what Momo does to kids.

    grim says:
    March 8, 2019 at 6:40 am
    AOC and MOMO the same person?

    Suspect they are.

  100. Ottoman says:

    Nothing a guillotine can’t cure.

    The Great Pumpkin says:
    March 8, 2019 at 9:20 am
    Greed is a hell of a drug.

  101. The Great Pumpkin says:

    Look at how bad inequality messes up the balance in society. Just disgusting. Education is the foundation for society, good luck when teachers can’t take the job out of a need to survive.

    “DON’T COUNT YOUR ICE SCULPTURES Before they melt. It remains to be seen how San Francisco, that most romantic of cities, with a past history of being one of the centers of the youth revolution of the 60s, is going to turn into an exclusive colony for the next generation of the nouveau riche tribe. Already in the Silicon Valley, it is extremely difficult to find workers, since local housing is out of reach for them. And, for example, school teachers might prefer to choose a district where they can live, rather than teaching the kids of the very rich with the huge sacrifice of a 1 to 2 hour commute both ways. I can tell you as a person who taught in a large city, but lived nearby, the 20 minute commute was long enough. Being in front of a class of more than 30 kids during 7 hours each school day is exhausting. Tack a long commute on to that and only marathon runners need apply. The outsized power of the 1% and the 0.1% over the 99.9% is going to change the Bay Area profoundly. Not necessarily for the better. This latest gold rush in Northern California is going to cause greater upheaval than those of the past. I envision seeing statistics about how many pedestrians are injured or killed per year, being struck by electrified bikes costing upwards of $10 K. Well at least the bikes don’t cause air or noise pollution. People literally won’t know what hit them, because they won’t see or hear the electric bikes coming. Is that going to be the new San Francisco. WHEEEEE!”

  102. Fast Eddie says:

    Poor Ottoman, forever resentful at her lot in life.

  103. Fast Eddie says:

    So, my eyes deceive me when I see a house go up for sale, get sold and watch a new family move in. Is that what you’re telling me? More times than not, a dumpster is parked on the driveway as they’re renovating some room(s). But no… everyone is cramming into Edgewater and Hoboken. What am I missing?

    Or, should I just come out and say that some here are blinded by bias and choose to believe what they want to believe? I will indeed say that towns further out in Morris, Hunterdon, etc. might feel the affects but towns on train lines within an hour or less? Not a problem when it comes to sustained sales and pricing. And that’s with all the over-priced sh1tholes that still make me rage.

  104. The Great Pumpkin says:

    Amen!

    Fast Eddie says:
    March 8, 2019 at 9:36 am
    So, my eyes deceive me when I see a house go up for sale, get sold and watch a new family move in. Is that what you’re telling me? More times than not, a dumpster is parked on the driveway as they’re renovating some room(s). But no… everyone is cramming into Edgewater and Hoboken. What am I missing?

    Or, should I just come out and say that some here are blinded by bias and choose to believe what they want to believe? I will indeed say that towns further out in Morris, Hunterdon, etc. might feel the affects but towns on train lines within an hour or less? Not a problem when it comes to sustained sales and pricing. And that’s with all the over-priced sh1tholes that still make me rage.

  105. The Original NJ ExPat says:

    I was a great parent even before I was a parent. My wife and I lived together for almost 10 years starting when I was 30 and she was 28. We got married when I was 40 and she was 38, our first born happened 2 years after that, we were 42 and almost 40 for our first and 42 and almost 4o for our second.

    Luckily, we fit well in Boston as most parents of our kids friends are our age. Having your shit together and being a little bit older makes all of the difference. I’m the oldest of 5 so I grew up with kids, I started babysitting when I was 11 years old (for OTHER people!), and I had a good sized cadre of nieces and nephews before my wife and I had our own kids. My 22 year old nephew is now 6′ 4″ tall and I took him to his first playground ever. That same dude was almost 5 years old when he started to throw a tantrum in the foyer of Highlawn Pavillion as the cocktail hour of our wedding reception was just kicking off. I swept him up into my arms and carried him right into the cocktail party and told him that all of these people wanted to see how loud he could scream and encouraged him to do so. He shut right up. That’s one of the keys to being an older parent. You somehow know exactly the sweet spot for reverse psychology. He still says that that day was one of the best days of his life because he got to dance and sing with cousins he didn’t know he had.

    I’ve got a 13-year old and a 6 year old with brain damage at 48. It’s not as bad as you think. Though they do tire me out, my tenure allows me to have the flexibility to attend their school and sports events as well as be there for them when they need it. Not sure I could have pulled myself away from the office in my 30s. Additionally, I would consider myself much wiser in the arts of child-rearing than my counterparts. Trust me, it’s weird at back to school night at the 6-year old’s school. But I know better than to panic at the first report of lice or bullying. I don’t think I would have done it any other way. Even if I could. Plus, the financial security is helpful. The twenty something families will still be paying off their own college loans when they could have been providing tuition to their offspring if they waited. Of course, to each their own. I’m sure there are advantages to being younger, like being alive at graduation. :P

  106. Bystander says:

    Lib,

    I am 46 with almost 5 and almost 3 year old. Minority in my immediate family or close friends started before 37. I was 41, my sister was 39 and my bro was 37. Only one sister started at 29 and old college bud started at 33. More recently, a good buddy started at 37 and another started at 48. Another friend just starting at 43. There are lots of reasons for above but I think just being settled in life seems to take longer and people really want to avoid being like their parents with split marriages, money problems and drinking. I saved hundred of thousands in my 30s and put that down so my loan balance is no more than usual for my age. I do worry about job and (w)age discrimination as companies seem to only want cheap, young Indian labor. It is pathetic out there in real job market.

  107. The Original NJ ExPat says:

    I was a great parent even before I was a parent. My wife and I lived together for almost 10 years starting when I was 30 and she was 28. We got married when I was 40 and she was 38, our first born happened 2 years after that, we were 42 and almost 40 for our first and 42 and almost 4o for our second.

    Luckily, we fit well in Boston as most parents of our kids friends are our age. Having your shit together and being a little bit older makes all of the difference. I’m the oldest of 5 so I grew up with kids, I started babysitting when I was 11 years old (for OTHER people!), and I had a good sized cadre of nieces and nephews before my wife and I had our own kids. My 22 year old nephew is now 6′ 4″ tall and I took him to his first playground ever. That same dude was almost 5 years old when he started to throw a tantrum in the foyer of Highlawn Pavillion as the cocktail hour of our wedding reception was just kicking off. I swept him up into my arms and carried him right into the cocktail party and told him that all of these people wanted to see how loud he could scream and encouraged him to do so. He shut right up. That’s one of the keys to being an older parent. You somehow know exactly the sweet spot for rev3rse psych0logy. He still says that that day was one of the best days of his life because he got to dance and sing with cousins he didn’t know he had.

    I’ve got a 13-year old and a 6 year old with brain damage at 48. It’s not as bad as you think. Though they do tire me out, my tenure allows me to have the flexibility to attend their school and sports events as well as be there for them when they need it. Not sure I could have pulled myself away from the office in my 30s. Additionally, I would consider myself much wiser in the arts of child-rearing than my counterparts. Trust me, it’s weird at back to school night at the 6-year old’s school. But I know better than to panic at the first report of lice or bullying. I don’t think I would have done it any other way. Even if I could. Plus, the financial security is helpful. The twenty something families will still be paying off their own college loans when they could have been providing tuition to their offspring if they waited. Of course, to each their own. I’m sure there are advantages to being younger, like being alive at graduation. :P

  108. The Original NJ ExPat says:

    I was a great parent even before I was a parent. My wife and I lived together for almost 10 years starting when I was 30 and she was 28. We got married when I was 40 and she was 38, our first born happened 2 years after that, we were 42 and almost 40 for our first and 42 and almost 4o for our second.

    Luckily, we fit well in Boston as most parents of our kids friends are our age. Having your shit together and being a little bit older makes all of the difference. I’m the oldest of 5 so I grew up with kids, I started babysitting when I was 11 years old (for OTHER people!), and I had a good sized cadre of nieces and nephews before my wife and I had our own kids. My 22 year old nephew is now 6′ 4″ tall and I took him to his first playground ever. That same dude was almost 5 years old when he started to throw a t@ntrum in the foyer of Highlawn Pavilli0n as the cocktail hour of our wedding reception was just kicking off. I swept him up into my arms and carried him right into the cocktail party and told him that all of these people wanted to see how loud he could scream and encouraged him to do so. He shut right up. That’s one of the keys to being an older parent. You somehow know exactly the sweet spot for rev3rse psych0logy. He still says that that day was one of the best days of his life because he got to dance and sing with cousins he didn’t know he had.

    I’ve got a 13-year old and a 6 year old with brain damage at 48. It’s not as bad as you think. Though they do tire me out, my tenure allows me to have the flexibility to attend their school and sports events as well as be there for them when they need it. Not sure I could have pulled myself away from the office in my 30s. Additionally, I would consider myself much wiser in the arts of child-rearing than my counterparts. Trust me, it’s weird at back to school night at the 6-year old’s school. But I know better than to panic at the first report of lice or bullying. I don’t think I would have done it any other way. Even if I could. Plus, the financial security is helpful. The twenty something families will still be paying off their own college loans when they could have been providing tuition to their offspring if they waited. Of course, to each their own. I’m sure there are advantages to being younger, like being alive at graduation. :P

  109. Fast Eddie says:

    Who the f.uck is going to believe a guy at 40 is going to raise two kids in a condo in Hoboken or along River Road? Sure, some are but please stop making me laugh that nobody’s buying the houses in these suburbs. I’m watching it happen. They’re not having four kids anymore, they’re having two but a house goes on the market and it gets sold. And here’s the kicker… and I know this is going to shock you: It’s quiet at night. You actually sleep!! Having space between houses is a real novel ideal. Having a yard with grass and a grill and maybe even a pool is pretty cool! Who would of thunk it!!

    And sometimes… f.ucking get this… sometimes there’s a green barrier and enough space behind your yard and a neighbor’s yard so that you don’t have to see a neighbor staring out the window! Go f.ucking figure. Please stop with this madness. Everyone doesn’t want to live in “Queeens.”

  110. 3b says:

    Fast I never said your eyes deciece you. I do find your comment yesterday that the people you see are late 20s early 30s. That’s simply for the most part not happening. As for blinded with all due respect I could accuse you of that. I have been in the leafy suburbs of Bergen Co for 30 years. You are a newbie with a romanticized 1950s view of suburbia that simply does not exist anymore. It’s not long ago you were complaining about camel cigarettes and Rheingold beer smelling houses not to mention the gig economy. Now you have the house in a leafy Bergen Co suburb and a good job and all is well. I think you might want to reevaluate your comment as to who is blinded. I owned two houses in Bergen Co in the past so I do have grounds to be able to comment and certainly be more neutral then you are. Talk to the older people with grown kids they will tell you the same. Perhaps when I am on the Pascack Valley train tonight I will convince myself that most of the people on the train are late 20s early 30s. As for people packing into Hoboken and Edgewater well that does appear to be the case and has been for sometime.

  111. The Great Pumpkin says:

    3b,

    30 is the new 20. You are not going to see a ton of 20 somethings on the train. It’s just a reflection of a new trend in which people don’t grow up until they are 30. Yes, there are 20 s0methings starting their career, but they don’t start off their career living in a suburb starting a family. They live at home or live with multiple roommates in some urban location so they don’t have to pay for a car or the train. When you start having a family, you NEED A FU!KING CAR. It’s too expensive otherwise to sit there and call an ubur for every little errand when you have a family and multiple needs. It’s also too expensive and difficult to raise a family in the city. Just accept it. Do people do it, no doubt. They are rich or hating life.

  112. The Great Pumpkin says:

    Regular joes are pissed! Seattle and Sf have experienced first hand how too much money is a bad thing.

    “San Francisco has been my home for 45 years. It is a jewel that has been sullied by the greed easy wealth seems to generate. It takes half a day to run an errand in a car. Narrow streets that were in quiet neighborhoods are clogged with cars, mostly Ubers and Lyfts.

    I raised my son as a single parent working as a college professor. Now I’m begging him to leave his hometown, a city he loves because he is an artist and will never be able to have a life here. Trying to find a restaurant that has tablecloths where people can have a normal conversation is impossible unless you are ready to cough up a week’s salary for the pleasure. Yet the streets are filthy and the ranks of homeless grow daily.

    All this is bad enough but the true heartbreak is how rude and self serving people are now. San Francisco is no longer livable. I looked forward to retiring here, but that is out of the question.

    The magic and, oh my word, there was Magic in San Francisco, is gone. There is no community, no kindness, nothing but self-involved greed. And now this. I am heartbroken.

    My city has been stolen by greed”

  113. The Original NJ ExPat says:

    I guess he’s not a good artist?

    Now I’m begging him to leave his hometown, a city he loves because he is an artist and will never be able to have a life here.

  114. Phoenix says:

    “And that’s with all the over-priced sh1tholes that still make me rage.”

    I agree FastEddie.

    But you forgot overtaxed as well.

  115. The Original NJ ExPat says:

    And then buy a house on a double yellow….never. Your yard is pretty level so you probably won’t notice the equity draining out.

    30 is the new 20. You are not going to see a ton of 20 somethings on the train. It’s just a reflection of a new trend in which people don’t grow up until they are 30.

  116. Fast Eddie says:

    Stop taking it personally… it was the consensus on this board and it’s not what I see. And by the way, I’ve had relatives in River Vale, Haworth, Fair Lawn and Hillsdale since i was a baby. It’s changed a little but it hasn’t. It still has a small town feel with small town events… more than I even imagined. So much so that I was surprised. And some houses still smell like Rheingold and Chesterfields which is the reason they’re gutting these places.

  117. Bystander says:

    3B,

    There is a guy wearing burnt orange makeup #9 with R next to his name in the WH. That is all it takes for Ed. Personally my best years were 2013 – 2015 where I was making 125 hr and had multiple interviews and even some offers I turned down. I ended up getting hired in 2015 for more money than ever before in my career. 2018 was the worst year in terms of lack of interviews, absurdly low hourly rates and 10% pay reduction at new gig. That is why I am not in awe of ‘the greatest economy in the history of mankind’.

  118. The Great Pumpkin says:

    Perspective….it’s a beautiful thing.

    If the poor have it so good in this country, why doesn’t anyone want to live in poor areas? Why is the real estate in East Orange worth almost nothing, and a block over in the next town, it’s the complete opposite. If the poor have it so good, why don’t the real estate prices and rent reflect it? I wouldn’t wish poverty on anyone.

    Put it this way, if the poor have it so good, why the hell am I working so hard? I should just join the ranks of the poor and enjoy my ac, phone, tv, and food on the plate. NO THANKS.

    “Or it is greed and wealth that brought us to this place of prosperity. Only in america do those below the “poverty line” have air conditioning, health care, smartphones, cable flat screen TVs, and food on their plates. Even the “poverty line” stats don’t include entitlements.

    The poor here are living higher quality of life than 93% of humans on the planet.
    Only the politics of envy, hate and division make us worry.”

    “To start, read “Evicted” by Matthew Desmond (or anything by Matthew Desmond). No, the poor don’t all have air conditioning, health care, smartphones, TVs, and sufficient food. And even if they did, all except TVs are necessities for safe and healthy living (smartphones are vital to check in with others for safety’s sake, as well as to perform tasks for work. Just one example: at my jobs where I make under $10 an hour, I clock in and out with a smartphone). And I don’t think having a TV in itself means that a person or family doesn’t need additional support. I don’t buy the idea that if one is poor, one must eschew absolutely all pleasure in life.
    And the “it’s worse for others” line is an excuse, not a rational argument. If everyone believed that was an excuse to not care, everyone would see no motivation to work and make others’ lives better. Someone does not have to be the worst off person in the world for us to care about them.”

  119. Trick says:

    Seems like this years listing are going on a lot earlier then last year. One house lasted a week, now two of their neighbors just listed for $40,000 higher. We are in western Morris, were tax’s are still lower then most surrounding towns.

  120. leftwing says:

    I love how all these people complain about the bazillionaires, especially contrasting the ‘value added’ to society contrasted with, say, teachers.

    It’s really simple people……you create the bazillionaires by YOUR sets of values.

    If you (the generic you, society) value ‘free’ shoot ’em up games much more than classical music, gaming software developers are going to be more wealthy than piano teachers.

    If you value regulatory arbitrage to shave a few bucks off a taxi ride or a vacation rental more highly than literature, app developers are going to be more wealthy than English teachers.

    If you value fame and digital social interaction more highly than post-secondary education, then secretaries at Facebook and Kylie Jenner are going to be more wealthy than university professors.

    Everyone likes to say how important education and educators are, do you walk the walk. How much time over the last thirty days have you spent on Facebook and its ilk (or this blog) versus reviewing your child’s academics and personally – you – sitting down with them to further their knowledge in reading, writing, or the sciences, one on one?

    The wealthy of Silicon Valley and their hangers-on didn’t spring from some circle of hell.

    You create them. With your own individual decisions. Every. Single. Day.

    So stop complaining about the inequity and enjoy your Frankensteins. You birthed them.

  121. The Great Pumpkin says:

    The equity can drain all it wants. It’s about quality of life. I enjoy living there, therefore, no money is lost in my mind. Could I have bought in Hoboken and made a ton of money on appreciation? Sure, but I have one life to live, one chance to raise my daughter the right way. I’m not putting her through city life because I’m chasing appreciation or following “hot” trends.

    Wayne provides everything I need to enjoy my LIFE IN THE NOW.

    The Original NJ ExPat says:
    March 8, 2019 at 10:40 am
    And then buy a house on a double yellow….never. Your yard is pretty level so you probably won’t notice the equity draining out.

  122. Juice Box says:

    re: “There is a guy wearing burnt orange makeup #9”

    That is Racist, Ageist and Sexist since for the first time in centuries, men wearing makeup is not completely taboo.

    Did I leave anything out?

  123. 3b says:

    Fast I am not taking it personally you are. I don’t know what consensus you see on the board but I don’t see it. It’s you and pumps. You claim you see the train filled with late 20s and early 30s. And that they are snapping up houses and popping out kids. That’s simply not true. Then it’s 40 something. You accused me of being blinded and that’s simply not the case. I am observing how it was when I was in my 20s vs now. It’s changed radically changed. You don’t seem to be able to accept that. You don’t want to live on River road with kids in an apartment. But some do perhaps many. I see it. I simply maintain that the environment has radically changed and while my generation fled the urban areas many today are not for a variety of reasons. I simply don’t subscribe to your view and pumps that hordes of people will be flocking out to the suburbs to buy houses. Some will and just as many may never. I am the older guy and I recognize that. That would be the case whether I owned or rented in Bergen Co. I don’t ignore the reality of what the environment is today simply because it does not reflect my view of what life should be like or that it may negatively impact me financially. And on that note I will end the discussion as I appear to have struck a nerve. Away from that glad you are happy.

  124. The Great Pumpkin says:

    Every single day….

    And stop blaming the consumer for inequality. It’s not that simple.

    Do you understand why public education was adopted by every single successful nation? But blow it off….it’s not important to the economy or society.

    “Everyone likes to say how important education and educators are, do you walk the walk. How much time over the last thirty days have you spent on Facebook and its ilk (or this blog) versus reviewing your child’s academics and personally – you – sitting down with them to further their knowledge in reading, writing, or the sciences, one on one?”

  125. JCer says:

    Here is the thing, mortgage? What is that? Many of these homes are being bought all cash or with a small mortgage. Being older(~40) and many owning apartments, albeit small 1-2 bedrooms in hot markets like Jersey City/Hoboken/Brooklyn/LIC and the desired homes being smaller and in closer suburbs it is quite common for the sales price of a 1 bedroom to satisfy the existing mortgage and throw off enough cash to buy a home outright and that is the windfall most of these parents of young children I talk to want to accomplish. They want good schools and decent space in the 600-800k because they can buy without a mortgage or with a small mortgage.

    I could have paid cash for my house but it would have involved selling my JC condo or liquidating investments, neither things I wanted to do so I borrowed at 3.5%. I would have stayed in JC or Hoboken or Weehawken or NYC but I simply couldn’t afford it and we have ~500k in annual income most years(parking for 2 cars was $600 a month, a 3 or 4 bedroom place was at minimum 1.5m, 15k in property taxes/NYC tax or more, if in a cond0 the maintenance fees would run 1k per month and school tuition seems to cost the people I know 3k per month per kid). Pumpkin is not wrong for a family of 4 to live in a city is hard, even for people who bought homes before the run-up the school issue is a killer.

    Also everyone with kids in Hudson County or the outer boros has a car, maybe a used car that isn’t used daily but they still tend to have them with the expenses for convenience.

    Here is the deal I trade 1 hr added commute(30 min each way) and disgusting property taxes for schools, space, and lower cost. From an economic standpoint it makes sense. I can from the essex suburbs drive to harrison in 20 minutes and catch a path train downtown or take NJ transit(which if running on time) is only marginally longer than the Grove St.commute to midtown.

  126. Yo! says:

    Leftwing 9:55 pm, did you see the price history on that one?!

    In 2010, put on market for $3,750,000 and pulled. Returned to market in September 2018 at $1,700,000. Cut to $1,625,000, $1,425,000, now $1,199,000.

    Today’s homebuyers seem smarter about property tax and maintenance burdens. That Tewksbury propert probably runs $50,000 to $100,000 per year in taxes and maintenance.

  127. Blue Ribbon Teacher says:

    I still can’t get over how she openly stated people are more concerned with being factually right than morally right.

  128. Comrade Nom Deplume, looking for the pink mist says:

    “Ottoman says:
    March 8, 2019 at 9:24 am
    Nothing a guillotine can’t cure.”

    People like you are the reason people like me own guns

  129. The Original NJ ExPat says:

    I think this chick goes out of her way to find turds to step on. I bet she secretly loves bacon too.

    Omar says the “hope and change” offered by Barack Obama was a mirage. Recalling the “caging of kids” at the U.S.-Mexico border and the “droning of countries around the world” on Obama’s watch, she argues that the Democratic president operated within the same fundamentally broken framework as his Republican successor.

    https://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2019/03/08/ilhan-omar-dean-phillips-minnesota-democratic-party-225696

  130. Blue Ribbon Teacher says:

    Everyone likes to say how important education and educators are, do you walk the walk. How much time over the last thirty days have you spent on Facebook and its ilk (or this blog) versus reviewing your child’s academics and personally – you – sitting down with them to further their knowledge in reading, writing, or the sciences, one on one?

    You shouldn’t have to do that. It’s your child’s teachers job to your kid those things. And the only reason you have to is if the teacher is coming up short. Personally, I know for a fact, they are coming up very short in math, reading, and writing. Every year they get to me in 11th and 12th grade, their math and reading skills are worse than the previous year.

    My wife and I try to spend a half hour academically with my kids and they are 4 and 7. We are ensuring they learn their skills the proper way. The methods of learning being pushed on children and forced down teacher’s throats by administrators today are completely ineffective. Anyone that is doing their due diligence will supplement this shortfall by taking on this task or hire tutors to supplement this.

    This is no different in private school either. Many of the students I tutor, are from private school and the deficiencies are worse in many areas. It’s not uncommon for a parent that I tutor for to hire 4 or 5 different subject tutors each year.

  131. OdellBuh says:

    Hysear Don Walker Complete Expressions Vol 2
    The Lyman Woodard Organization Saturday Night Special
    Waylon Jennings Willie Nelson Jessi Colter Tompall Glaser Wanted The Outlaws
    Zenit Fr%C3%BCchte
    Weldon Irvine Sinbad

    http://twinducoinbeattagclub.info/1/different-people.php

  132. leftwing says:

    BRT, not disagreeing. My point was different.

    I was addressing all the bemoaning of where are the teachers going to live because workers at these ‘overvalued worthless to society’ companies are driving them out.

    My point is that society – the cumulative outcome of our daily individual decisions – dictates ‘worth’.

    It’s easy to say you value education and educators, but if your kid (the generic you) is 3hrs on fortnight, then three more on instagram and whatsapp each night while you are facebooking and typing on various blogs then you simply don’t value education. Regardless of what you say. Pretty simple.

    Many families I know, often of certain ethnic persuasions, have children that are outside of the social media and gaming environments, and have parents who were raised to value education more and who actually instill those values in their children.

    Everyone says they value fitness. But you still have guys who bang down filets and martinis on friday evening while others are in the gym. Which one actually values fitness?

    You are what you do, not what you say.

  133. leftwing says:

    “I think this chick goes out of her way to find turds to step on…”

    Young rad1cal female s0c1alists of the Democrat Party…the gift that keeps giving. Right through 2020….

    Turn the volume up, give them more podiums, and a megaphone. Please.

  134. D-FENS says:

    It’s ok to bang down filets and martinis on Friday nights…except during lent :(

    Workout the rest of the week.

    I’m more of a PBR and cheeseburger guy myself.

  135. D-FENS says:

    Once you knock a girl up the party stops and you realize…fcuk I need to be in a good school district. Your perspective changes.

  136. The Great Pumpkin says:

    “I’ve been an SF resident since 1976, since I was 19 years old. I’m now 62. I’ve seen it all. I never thought the prices would get this bad. If I’d known that, I would have bought a house many years ago. But now it’s too late. I’m a lifelong renter in a rent-controlled apartment. I am self-employed and work 7 days a week to pay my bills.

    An earthquake probably won’t help. When we had the big one in 1989, prices hardly reduced at all, even in the areas worst hit by the quake. That’s when I realized it was already too late to buy a house.

    If you accept the fact that you will never own a house, and that your rent money goes down the drain, you can live here. For me, SF still has the weather that I prefer, still has the diversity and progressive mindset that I prefer, still has good enough public transit (since I can’t afford a car).

    Much has been lost, of course, and it’s sad to see the changes. But I’ve travelled to plenty of places and none of them have a combination of the weather I like, public transit, and progressive diversity. So I’m sacrificing to get what is most important to me….

    These tech kids are going to crash and burn just like the last group did… They will be disillusioned soon enough…”

  137. chicagofinance says:

    Pretend you’re a freshman lawmaker who perpetually rails against dark money — but your chief of staff has funneled $1 million-plus in political donations to two of his own companies, Brand New Congress LLC and Brand New Campaign LLC.

    That’s the hypocritical pickle Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez finds herself in.

    At a House hearing last month, AOC made a big show of “a lighting-round game” to wax indignant about what’s legal under the campaign laws. Yet she’s left arguing that the moves by her then-campaign manager and now chief of staff, millionaire Saikat Chakrabarti, were legal (however smelly).

    It may not be legal, mind you: The watchdogs at the National Legal and Policy Center charge that Chakrabarti skirted reporting requirements and violated the $5,000 limit on donations from federal PACs to candidates.

    “These are not minor technical violations. We are talking about real money here,” said NLPC’s Tom Anderson. “In all my years of studying FEC reports, I’ve never seen a more ambitious operation to circumvent reporting requirements.”

    David Mitrani, a lawyer for the campaign and the PACs and LLCs (they all share the same lawyer!), claims the FEC doesn’t require disclosure of the embarrassing info.

    There you go: It stinks, but the camp of Rep. “Get the dark money out of politics” is arguing that it’s OK because it’s not outright forbidden. Hypocrite.

  138. The Great Pumpkin says:

    Don’t discount the importance of social media or gaming in the lives of children and teenagers. It’s not black and white world. Positive and negatives in everything.

    “When a Passion for Videogames Helps Land That Job
    Hiring managers are opening up to candidates who tout skills gained from making or playing videogames”

    https://www.wsj.com/articles/when-a-passion-for-videogames-helps-land-that-job-11551888001

    “Many families I know, often of certain ethnic persuasions, have children that are outside of the social media and gaming environments, and have parents who were raised to value education more and who actually instill those values in their children”

  139. The Great Pumpkin says:

    Kids learn at different rates. If your kid is slower when it comes to learning, it’s your job as parent to step up and keep them on grade level. Your bias when it comes to teaching shows that you do not deal with the avg student. Your expectations scream it out.

    I honestly don’t think you could handle teaching kids 10 grades below their grade level. Then you would understand how important parents are to the equation.

    “You shouldn’t have to do that. It’s your child’s teachers job to your kid those things. And the only reason you have to is if the teacher is coming up short. Personally, I know for a fact, they are coming up very short in math, reading, and writing. Every year they get to me in 11th and 12th grade, their math and reading skills are worse than the previous year.”

  140. The Original NJ ExPat says:

    BRT – Have you seen this shit?
    http://wgquirk.com/TERC.html

    I had to jump in and teach my kids all basic math functions because borrowing, carrying, long division, and times tables were being PURPOSELY NOT TAUGHT!!!

    You shouldn’t have to do that. It’s your child’s teachers job to your kid those things. And the only reason you have to is if the teacher is coming up short. Personally, I know for a fact, they are coming up very short in math, reading, and writing. Every year they get to me in 11th and 12th grade, their math and reading skills are worse than the previous year.

    My wife and I try to spend a half hour academically with my kids and they are 4 and 7. We are ensuring they learn their skills the proper way. The methods of learning being pushed on children and forced down teacher’s throats by administrators today are completely ineffective. Anyone that is doing their due diligence will supplement this shortfall by taking on this task or hire tutors to supplement this.

    This is no different in private school either. Many of the students I tutor, are from private school and the deficiencies are worse in many areas. It’s not uncommon for a parent that I tutor for to hire 4 or 5 different subject tutors each year.

  141. The Original NJ ExPat says:

    Ten years ago when I was going through this shit, they were f.ucking kids up in Ridgewood too.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HwdELHKB0Tw

  142. ExEssex says:

    BRT should be given a gold star just for having the patience to work around kids all day. From what I hear, they can be incredibly tedious, especially when they are in groups.

  143. leftwing says:

    BMY/CELG spread $34. Just got my electronic proxy and voted. Shareholder meetings in a month.

  144. The Original NJ ExPat says:

    gary – The houses are cheaper in the flood plain.

    By me, houses go up for sale and are sold just as fast. Families with kids occupy the place. I’m not sure what you’re seeing. As for that train line, half the crowd is the late 20s to late 30s variety. Again, I’m really not sure what you’re seeing.

  145. 3b says:

    Fast I won t argue the houses going fast comment don’t know your town. But you are not seeing late 20s early 30s on the train that bought those houses and had those kids. You might want to think that’s what you are seeing but you are not. I will end it now.

  146. The Original NJ ExPat says:

    Thanks for the reminder, I just voted too.

    BMY/CELG spread $34. Just got my electronic proxy and voted. Shareholder meetings in a month.

  147. The Original NJ ExPat says:

    I should have bought even more CELG last Wednesday when it was on sale after hours. I now have 1500 CELG and 750 BMY

  148. The Original NJ ExPat says:

    Pumps – your kid will drop out and work at the Post Office, so it really doesn’t matter for you.

    Kids learn at different rates. If your kid is slower when it comes to learning, it’s your job as parent to step up and keep them on grade level. Your bias when it comes to teaching shows that you do not deal with the avg student. Your expectations scream it out.

    I honestly don’t think you could handle teaching kids 10 grades below their grade level. Then you would understand how important parents are to the equation.

  149. leftwing says:

    Ex, why the BMY?

  150. The Great Pumpkin says:

    You have kids. Do you really expect a 20 something to purchase a home and have a career this day and age (not many people from the millennial generation were able to pull off what I did, actually I don’t know one person my age that bought a home at 20 years old)? Everything is getting pushed further down the line, from having babies, to starting a career, to buying that suburban home.

    You are lying if you claim there are no 30 somethings on the trains. You are telling me that there are no 30 year olds on the train? How is that even possible? You are telling me that labor force is going to fall off a cliff?

    3b says:
    March 8, 2019 at 1:15 pm
    Fast I won t argue the houses going fast comment don’t know your town. But you are not seeing late 20s early 30s on the train that bought those houses and had those kids. You might want to think that’s what you are seeing but you are not. I will end it now.

  151. The Original NJ ExPat says:

    I already had a position in CELG, so I bought the BMY when it dropped on the deal’s announcement, IIRC. Anyway, I bought the BMY at 44.92, so it’s been good to me so far.

  152. The Original NJ ExPat says:

    Your grandmother was smart to put you in debt before all that Post Office money went up your nose after you dropped out of HS, she already knew how your Dad turned out.

    You have kids. Do you really expect a 20 something to purchase a home and have a career this day and age (not many people from the millennial generation were able to pull off what I did, actually I don’t know one person my age that bought a home at 20 years old)? Everything is getting pushed further down the line, from having babies, to starting a career, to buying that suburban home.

  153. Blue Ribbon Teacher says:

    BRT – Have you seen this shit?
    http://wgquirk.com/TERC.html

    I had to jump in and teach my kids all basic math functions because borrowing, carrying, long division, and times tables were being PURPOSELY NOT TAUGHT!!!

    Yes, I got my first taste of it when I was in the provisional teacher program my first year teaching. The 4th grade 1st year teachers were showing me what they are doing and I was flabbergasted. It is not logical and doesn’t translate well to larger numbers. The old fashioned way should have been set in stone for the rest of eternity. Educational leaders, as they like to call themselves, continually try to reinvent the wheel and fail miserably at it.

    I get very frustrated when I’m trying to teach AP physics and the students can’t solve 10 = 5(x-2). What I do know is, my kids will learn it the old fashioned way from us from addition all the way to Calculus. They will have a leg up on the competition.

  154. The Great Pumpkin says:

    Meanwhile, old school parents complaining about their kids wasting their time on a video game.

    “Gamers are the kind of people you give a set of instructions to and they’ll just figure out it,” Mike Hetisimer, manager of customer service at Truno, a Lubbock, Texas, maker of technology for grocery workers. “They’ve done that with thousands of games.”

  155. Blue Ribbon Teacher says:

    Kids learn at different rates. If your kid is slower when it comes to learning, it’s your job as parent to step up and keep them on grade level. Your bias when it comes to teaching shows that you do not deal with the avg student. Your expectations scream it out.

    I honestly don’t think you could handle teaching kids 10 grades below their grade level. Then you would understand how important parents are to the equation.

    That’s why we are supposed to group them by ability. Parents shouldn’t have to make up for the shortcomings of those that get paid to do a job. And I would be fine teaching lower grades as well. I’ve dabbled in doing science lessons for elementary students at my son’s elementary school at their science nights and we also do one for the kids during bring your child to work day. Good teachers would be effective at any grade level.

    While I do teach my son….I suck at it and am woefully inefficient. I get the job done and the end product is still what I aim for. But when teaching my son or daughter, I have no patience for incompetence, laziness, or lack of focus. It’s entirely different when it’s your kid. I wish this task on no parent.

  156. The Original NJ ExPat says:

    Sometimes they just ignore you if you don’t have a group. When I was in fifth grade the teacher gave me a sixth grade book and told me to teach myself. I had to sit in the back of the room and literally just make my own way through sixth grade material. The following year they just shoved me directly into 7th grade, I never attended sixth grade.

    That’s why we are supposed to group them by ability. Parents shouldn’t have to make up for the shortcomings of those that get paid to do a job. And I would be fine teaching lower grades as well. I’ve dabbled in doing science lessons for elementary students at my son’s elementary school at their science nights and we also do one for the kids during bring your child to work day. Good teachers would be effective at any grade level.

  157. The Original NJ ExPat says:

    I created times tables for my kids in Excel. I would just clear out about half the cells, print it out, and have my kids fill in the blanks.

  158. The Great Pumpkin says:

    You are missing my point. If the kid is reading on a 3rd grade reading level in the 9th grade, is the teacher or parent to blame?

    Why are poor areas littered with kids like this? It’s parenting. I’m surprised with you being a teacher, you ignore this. Teacher can only do so much…

    “That’s why we are supposed to group them by ability. Parents shouldn’t have to make up for the shortcomings of those that get paid to do a job. And I would be fine teaching lower grades as well. I’ve dabbled in doing science lessons for elementary students at my son’s elementary school at their science nights and we also do one for the kids during bring your child to work day. Good teachers would be effective at any grade level.”

  159. Juice Box says:

    re: “It’s parenting”

    Nope it’s the grandparents’ fault.

  160. Provocateur says:

    No it’s the fault of the slaveowners of their great, great, great grandparents.
    Just as I’m pretty sure it’s because of my great, great grandpappy that I could only manage a b grade in my second year of French. I heard he was a sharecropper working alongside of the freed slaves and he probably picked up their accent and passed it along down to my relatives.

  161. The Great Pumpkin says:

    This is funny. I’m assuming you are pointing out how many grandparents are the parents of kids in the ghetto.

    Parenting plays an important role in education. Their most important role is holding the kids accountable for bad grades. That’s why teachers are setup for failure in the ghetto….how do you teach kids that don’t give a damn about their grades or education? No one at home holds them accountable for their education, hence, why they are on the 3rd grade reading level in 9th grade.

    If you want to have kids, well then you have to be a parent..

    Juice Box says:
    March 8, 2019 at 4:07 pm
    re: “It’s parenting”

    Nope it’s the grandparents’ fault.

  162. 3b says:

    Pumps there you go again putting words in my mouth or perhaps you lack reading comprehension skills. Where in my posts did I say there were no 30 year olds on the train? No where. I said the majority of people on the train were 40 and all the way up with some recent college grads thrown in. That means there was a portion of those who would qualify as outside those two categories which would of course include those that are 30 to 40. Is it clearer now?

  163. The Great Pumpkin says:

    Then what is the problem? Isn’t that how it should be? There are lots of boomers not giving up their jobs. My company has people in their 70’s that won’t let go. They love working and making money. I can’t make sense of it, some of these guys are well off executives. Each to their own..

  164. Blue Ribbon Teacher says:

    Same reason your wife insists on going back to work

  165. Blue Ribbon Teacher says:

    You are missing my point. If the kid is reading on a 3rd grade reading level in the 9th grade, is the teacher or parent to blame?

    Why are poor areas littered with kids like this? It’s parenting. I’m surprised with you being a teacher, you ignore this. Teacher can only do so much…

    Your point has nothing to do with the conversation. There are plenty of good parents that have to supplement bad teaching.

    But I’m not surprised you can’t follow the argument. You fall into a very rare specific type of learner that I’ve seldom run across. That category is the one that is impossible to teach anything.

  166. 3b says:

    Well boys and girls I am on my train tonight home same as always for the last 30 years and I must say the majority of people in the one car I am in (I did not have to walk through the cars to get a seat so will just comment on the one car I am in) have gray and white hair (men specifically but women too) so either many 30 year olds are turning gray and white in their hair color and the 30 year old women look like 45 and up or I just happened to pick the older people car. Yeah that must be the answer. Of course many mornings and evenings when I do have to walk through the cars and I see the same thing well I am just going to pretend I don’t.

  167. Stan says:

    3b and Eddie are both right.

    I live in brigadoon, packed with kids. Packed! 2-3 is the norm per family, tearing down smaller houses for larger houses every day. Train line town, brooklyn hoboken set moving in.

    Took the train today I was on the younger end by ten years. In my early 40’s with three kids, I am one of the younger parents at every elementary school event. Most parents here seem to have there last kid at mid 40’s. So I have no clue where these people are working but it ain’t Manhattan. Newer employees are foreign or millennials who live in the city or boroughs. We call it the vanishing old white man at work, they don’t exist over 55. I don’t know where people are working in the brig, but they seem to be earning enough to pay the taxes and up keep.

    As an aside family in hunterdon, 1990’s McMansion land, beautiful house well maintained,, they can’t get 60% of what they paid for it. Merck leaving and changing commuting habits have crushed those areas.

    Any way, I miss JJ. Long ago poster, still a lurker.

  168. No One says:

    Stan, Back in my thirties 18 yrs ago I moved to Scotch Plains and later sent my kid to Christopher Academy Montessori School in Westfield while I took the Raritan Valley Line to work in downtown NYC. I never really understood the Westfield demographics. I’ve been living and working in Bridgewater for the last 9 years and do not miss Union county.

  169. homeboken says:

    Pumpkin says: Put it this way, if the poor have it so good, why the hell am I working so hard?”

    Based on the volume of your daily postings, I don’t think you have any clue what it means to work hard. You like to think you work hard but you simply can’t read and post to a non-work related blog all day long and be considered a “hard worker”

Comments are closed.