From Bloomberg:
Brooklyn Home Prices Jump 18% to Record as Buyers Compete
Home prices in Brooklyn jumped to a record in the first quarter as buyers clamoring to own real estate in New York’s most populous borough competed for the limited supply of listings on the market.
Condominiums, co-ops and one- to three-family homes sold for a median of $610,894 in the period, up 18 percent from a year earlier and the highest in 12 years of data-keeping, according to a report Thursday by appraiser Miller Samuel Inc. and brokerage Douglas Elliman Real Estate.
The median price has reached a record six times in the past eight quarters.
Developers capitalizing on the borough’s growing cachet have focused on building rentals, drawing in new residents but leaving a void for those who wish to eventually put down roots and become homeowners. The 4,331 homes listed for sale in Brooklyn at the end of March was the second-lowest total for a first quarter in records dating to 2009, according to the firms.
“We’re not creating new housing stock that addresses the largest portion of housing demand,” Jonathan Miller, president of Miller Samuel and a Bloomberg View contributor, said in an interview. “We’re seeing expanded emphasis on the upper end of the market through new development, but also pressure in the resale market as people are being priced out of Manhattan.”
The inventory shortage depressed the number of purchases in the quarter. Sales fell 4.1 percent from a year earlier to 1,507, according to the report.
…
In Greenpoint and Williamsburg, the median price of all residential properties purchased in the first quarter climbed 13 percent from a year earlier to $956,000, according to a separate report Thursday by brokerage Corcoran Group. Resale condos accounted for most of the sales in those neighborhoods.Homes sold for a median of $700,000 in Fort Greene, Clinton Hill and Prospect Heights — an 18 percent jump. In the area that includes the rapidly gentrifying neighborhoods of Bedford-Stuyvesant, Crown Heights and Bushwick, the median price rose 17 percent from a year earlier to $510,000, the brokerage said.
“There’s just an unbelievable demand, and it’s happening in just about every neighborhood,” said Frank Percesepe, a senior vice president at Corcoran Group who oversees Brooklyn sales. “Last year, we didn’t have much inventory at all so people got discouraged. Now, the inventory that’s out there, they’re fighting for it.”
Good Morning New Jersey
diehipster.com seems to have died first.
Thought all the hipsters up and left for Peekskill, Pittsburgh, and Detroit. Brooklyn is all expensive strollers and $300 jeans now.
Misanthrope!
20 years of debate: State control of Newark schools entering third decade
http://www.nj.com/essex/index.ssf/2015/04/newark_schools_takeover.html#incart_river
1992 – 1993 cost per pupil: $10,700
Graduation rate: 53.9%
2013 – 2014 cost per pupil: $22,267
Graduation rate: 68.6%
5
NEWARK — By early 1995, the competition for control over Newark Public Schools was in its final inning and the winner was a clear.
Nearly nine out of 10 Americans now have health insurance, a sharp improvement from two years ago before Ocare was put in place.
http://money.cnn.com/2015/04/13/news/economy/obamacare-uninsured-gallup/index.html?iid=HP_LN
7-With over 300 million people in this country, that means that there are still over 30 million without health insurance. Isn’t that about the same number that was being bandying about before this mess?
#8
As of March 2015 a total of 16.4 million have enrolled in a Marketplace plan or stayed on their parents plan.
That is a huge number. Now tell me how the right can eliminate OCare without giving insurance to the 16.5 million people. O Care will be here to stay. Republican Pundits have hanged their walking shoes.
I don’t see a mess. I am not scared of getting sick and end up with hospital bills not paid by Insurance that I have to go into Bankruptcy. Kids can stay on their Parents Insurance while in School. Max Out of Pocket is $13,500
Thought about buying in Crown Heights in 2011 but decided it wasn’t worth it. Now all my friends live in Crown Heights and prices have doubled. Shoulda just bought a house to rent to my friends.
“Nearly nine out of 10 Americans now have health insurance, a sharp improvement from two years ago before Ocare was put in place.”
Let’s let this new wine age a little before we call it a victory. My taxes were significantly higher this year due to Ocare. What’s next? Universal Zip Car?
Not in my town you wouldn’t!
Dad: Affordable housing plan led to son’s demotion in league
DARIEN, Conn. (AP) — In one of the country’s richest towns — where Mercedes, BMWs and Land Rovers cruise tree-lined streets of multimillion-dollar homes — a man who proposed building more accessible housing says angry neighbors took out their frustration on his son: a 9-year-old boy who was demoted to a lower-level Little League team.
Christopher Stefanoni says in a federal lawsuit that residents of Darien are so worried that affordable housing will draw black people to town that they’ll do just about anything to stop it, including using his son to retaliate against him. Town and Little League officials say that’s completely false.
“Darien is a little white enclave, sort of a holdout segregated town,” said Stefanoni, 50, a Harvard-educated father of five who has lived in town since 2000. “The attitudes that people in Darien have are very exclusionary, demeaning. When they go after your kids, they’ve crossed the line.”
http://www.sfgate.com/news/article/Dad-Affordable-housing-plan-led-to-son-s-6194478.php
“I am not scared of getting sick and end up with hospital bills not paid by Insurance that I have to go into Bankruptcy.”
Really? I though Ocare was about insuring the uninsured? To bring them into the fold or maintain their position in the Democratic voting base? What does your fear of declaring bankruptcy have to do with it?
And what’s the difference whether you declare bankruptcy and ask all taxpayers to pay for it, vs. asking all tax payers to pay for your healthcare instead. Oh yeah, now your credit isn’t ruined.
Rewarding the unproductive is definitely the new order of the progressive base. Doing what’s best for the people is long gone.
Baa!
Back from vacation, thank god. The Bronx is the next Brooklyn, specifically, by Armory where they made it a huge skating rink by the four train, prices are starting to go up.
A two bed that rented for 900 in 2012 is now renting for 1,500. huge increase
Maybe I’m reading this incorrectly. The 2nd Amendment is scared and shouldn’t be taken lightly. Can someone explain this to me? And while you are at it, explain why now is the time to buy a house?
House bill bans fake guns — not real guns — near schools
The Tennessee House of Representatives passed a bill Monday night that makes it illegal to take a squirt gun — but not a real gun — within 150 feet of a school.
The new ban was included in a larger bill that would nix any local laws prohibiting people with gun permits from taking guns to parks.
The federal “Guns Free School Zones” act makes it illegal for anyone who doesn’t have a permit from taking a gun within 1,000 feet of a school. If that person has a permit from the state in which the school is located, though, they can take the gun near school property, the law states.
http://www.tennessean.com/story/news/politics/2015/03/31/house-bill-bans-fake-guns-not-real-guns-near-schools/70721508/
You don’t need a permit for a fake gun. This makes a lot of sense.
The Housing Market: Myth Vs. Reality
Disclosure: The author is short KBH, DHI, RYL. (More…)
Summary
• The housing market bubble that burst in 2005 is still deflating.
• The bounce in prices and volume since 2010 was artificially created by the Fed/Government.
• Underlying data shows continued deterioration in housing market fundamentals.
The mainstream media in this country has been promoting the idea that the housing market is recovering for a few years. A perfect example of this is an article by Bloomberg News about a week ago titled, “This New Indicator Shows There’s No Bubble Forming” (article link). The “indicator” is Nationwide Insurance’s “Leading Index of Healthy Housing Markets.” It was clear that Bloomberg did not research the validity of Nationwide’s new housing market “indicator” before it published its article. But I did.
Although Nationwide offers no detail regarding the sources for the data it uses, the variables in its index are employment, demographics, the mortgage market and house prices. The fact that Nationwide does not disclose any details about its index other than the parameter labels makes the quality level of the metric highly suspect. My email inquiries about the index went unanswered and phone call messages were not returned.
The section of Nationwide’s website that describes its housing market index contains a quarterly report that summarizes the company’s assessment of the housing market across the country. The report is a pdf file that reads like a marketing brochure for the housing industry. I was curious to understand Nationwide’s motive behind publishing this highly fatuous housing market report. As it turns out, Nationwide also owns a bank that offers mortgages, home equity loans and home equity lines of credit. I suspect that Nationwide is using this index as marketing tool for its mortgage and home equity underwriting business.
Let’s look at some facts regarding the housing market. Bloomberg is correct in one sense: a housing bubble is not about to burst. The housing bubble burst in 2005/2006. That bubble was never allowed to fully deflate. What’s occurred since the Fed began pumping $3.6 trillion of printed money into the banking system is a dead-cat bounce in the housing market:
http://seekingalpha.com/article/3063586-the-housing-market-myth-vs-reality
That is how O care system was designed . Eventually going to Universal Health Care.
O Care was about insuring the insured and some Mandates for the Insurance Companies. Even workers under employee Insurance, the Insurance Companies have to meet the $6500 Max Out Of Pocket per year for a single and $13,500 for a Family. That alone will let me sleep better at night . Check with your Insurance Company, How much is your Max out of Pocket.
Libturd Says;
What’s next? Universal Zip Car? Really? I though Ocare was about insuring the uninsured?
18
O Care was about insuring the UNinsured
How can a guy working for minimum wage be called unproductive? It does not mean you enrolled Ocare you don’t work. People can be making minimum wage. Some Employer don’t offer Health Care insurance.
Letting the Insurance Companies pay for the Insurance you paid for on the first place
“Rewarding the unproductive is definitely the new order of the progressive base.’
“And what’s the difference whether you declare bankruptcy and ask all taxpayers to pay for it, vs. asking all tax payers to pay for your healthcare instead. Oh yeah, now your credit isn’t ruined.”
“O Care was about insuring the UNinsured”
Really? Because it was sold to America as getting a handle on “Everyone’s” insurance costs. It quickly morphed into another treat for the traditional voting base. Much like the Bama phone.
18-When can we expect our Ohouse, Ocar and Ofood?
Like I said,It was always designed to go to Universal Health Care. This was the plan in the beginning but they were scared not to get the whole base in.
Americans will just be so disgusted with the Cost that Universal Health Care will make sense.
“Really? Because it was sold to America as getting a handle on “Everyone’s” insurance costs. It quickly morphed into another treat for the traditional voting base. Much like the Bama phone.”
Grim 3- How hip can Brooklyn still be? Hilary has set up shop there. http://www.latimes.com/nation/la-na-clinton-hq-brooklyn-20150413-story.html#page=1
Darien residents should really have no concerns. When and if those low income units come in, they will be scooped up by the sons and daughters of the higher demographic tiers. That’s what occurred in the Somerset/Hunterdon area when all this BS Mt Laurel stuff first went into effect twenty or so years ago. I can give an example of what typically transpired: A son or daughter just graduates college and needs a place to live, outside of parent’s home. They are making starter salaries and can’t afford a market priced townhome. So they apply for the low income unit. Price is $60k vs $180k. Parents loan them the downpayment. No where will a poor person be able to afford a downpayment even on that $60k price.
Nothing really changes except the town becomes another Woodbridge in terms of density and traffic.
If you did not pay your mortgage for 5 years and 6 years in NJ and Bank did not file for Foreclosure, Statute of Limitation is in your favor
“18-When can we expect our Ohouse, Ocar and Ofood?”
O’care was a gift to the poorest Americans and the insurance companies/hospitals ans a damn nightmare for the rest of us. Medical billing has always been a sh*tshow but now it is way worse. Even the hospitals and insurers cannot quite figure out what is owed, you keep getting these things from the insurers “pay your healthcare provider $114.2354345” where as before so much of this was co-payment of a fixed amount and only major procedures followed the deductible model up to the maximum. Oh yeah and I get to pay extra taxes, everything about my healthcare plan has gotten worse and costs more and I’m sure real soon I’ll be paying the cadillac tax on my plan….yes lets make healthcare affordable by adding taxes to healthcare and medical devices!!!! The republicans are usually wrong…well so are the democrats…but they are right that this abomination needs to be repealed. Ocare sucks and the economic recovery is a farce to a large extent as quality of life is declining for the average american in a period of supposed “economic growth”.
For the record, I support single payer health insurance. What I don’t support is this current scheme where we did absolutely nothing about the skyrocketing cost of health insurance but instead, made everyone pay for the uninsured and formally uninsurable. One need only look at the stock charts of any health care provider to see how ACA did nothing to hurt the enormous middle man profits made by the insures. You know, that 1% you guys hate so much?
http://i442.photobucket.com/albums/qq145/stuw6/ACA_zpsa0fb9gpq.png
[16] Libturd
Why is presenting this bill easier than making it illegal to have any (fake or real) gun near a school?
I don’t think I would have any more comfortable going to a park/school and seeing someone with real gun over seeing a kid with a water gun based on the fact that the real gun is properly licensed. This law will probably be selectively enforced, and will result in some Mom calling the cops on another kid because they squirted lil Johnny in the eye. While Bubba with only a HS education sitting on the bench, angry at the world because he got fired is left alone with a real one.
Americans will just be so disgusted with the Cost that Universal Health Care will make sense.
“the Cost that Universal Health Care will make sense.”
You are giving way too much credit to your fellow Americans.
[25] Xolepa
Wait, I thought only those people lived in low income housing?
#17,
Sure, Darien has some pretty spots but it is a rich, vanilla and boring. It is pronounced Dari-anne. Love how CT people change English language to up snootiness factor. The downtown has a made-up vibe that lacks any charm. It is new money and lots of pretenders. Move there and expect that treatment. Having lived in Greenwich, it is surprisingly diverse. Yes, there are mansions in North Greenwich and sea-side estates in Old Greenwich but Byram, Cos Cos and Riverside have lots of old middle class homes which they inherited from parents. They are house rich but drive pick-up trucks and play bocci. I was shocked by number of middle class Italian families in parts of Cos Cob.
You don’t find any minorities in low-income housing units around here. You can’t even tell the difference in the units, market priced vs low-income unless you walk inside. Only differences are no fireplace and minor stuff. You can’t tell by the appliances because the builder puts in crap across the board.
Darien pronounciation reminds that Colts Neck township name was changed from ‘Atlantic’ about 50 years ago. Look what renaming did for that town.
Why is gods name are you assuming that the price will come down with Universal Health Care? That is the problem, the high prices. Access to healthcare has and is still being restricted due to unjustifiably high costs and/or govt legislation and regulation.
yome says:
April 13, 2015 at 10:44 am
Americans will just be so disgusted with the Cost that Universal Health Care will make sense.
I said a few times during the Ocare “debate” before the law was passed that in comparison to what we have today, yes universal care would be better. [That still holds true. However, removing all the laws that created the mess in the first would and still would be the very best solution (“all the laws” now includes Ocare as well).] However, we can’t do that with the current astronomical prices.
Joyce is correct.
Healthcare in much of SouthEast Asia is higher ranked and 1/5th the cost of ours.
Move: Anonymous whistleblower appears to confirm fears of data theft by Zillow
Move and the National Association of Realtors state in a court filing obtained by HousingWire that Move received a letter from an anonymous whistleblower which “appears to confirm” their belief that Errol Samuelson, now the chief industry development officer for Zillow (Z), stole “multiple documents and entire databases” when he worked at Move, and that Zillow is using the stolen information, and is hiding evidence on non-Zillow electronic services.
Move and the National Association of Realtors filed suit against Zillow on March 17, 2014, after Samuelson, Move’s chief strategy officer, resigned from Move on March 5, 2014, and joined Zillow as the company’s second-highest paid executive on the same day.
The original lawsuit alleged breach of contract, breach of fiduciary duty and misappropriation of trade secrets and accused Samuelson of misappropriating trade secret information by acquiring it using improper means, and by copying it without authorization.
The lawsuit alleged that Samuelson’s knowledge of Move’s trade secrets and strategies would make it impossible for him to function in his new job at Zillow without divulging those secrets, but the whistleblower letter levies harsh charges against Samuelson.
In a new court filing obtained by HousingWire, Move and NAR say they received a letter from an anonymous whistleblower who appears to work at Zillow. In that letter, which was also obtained by HousingWire, the whistleblower says that Zillow has copies of Move’s private MLS contact database, listing count database and other databases stolen from Move.
“The plaintiffs have complained for months that the defendants are systematically hiding evidence in secret non-Zillow email accounts and file-sharing services,” Move said in the court filing. “The defendants have denied the claims, deriding them as ‘silly’ conspiracy theories and claim they have produced everything. The whistleblower’s letter appears to confirm, however, the plaintiffs’ worst fears.”
http://www.housingwire.com/articles/33530-move-anonymous-whistleblower-appears-to-confirm-fears-of-data-theft-by-zillow-samuelson
“Why do you keep plotting existing home sales volume as if it was a stock price? Like there is some kind of “psychological resistance” to higher volumes than your upper trend line. It is absurd. Volume is down because inventory is down. And if you take volume and divide by inventory, you see that in spite of low inventory, the market is turning over pretty quickly! It is nothing like when the housing market was crashing. http://bit.ly/1ymGTow”
“The key fundamental is that population growth and number of households grows at an average of just over one percent per year in the US.
In the last five years housing supply has grown at less than half that rate.
At some point, the pace of construction must double in order to stay in line with population growth.
Prices for homes have been rising for several years.
Some complain that they can’t or won’t buy at these prices.
They long for the prices of long ago. Wouldn’t that be nice!
I would also like to buy cars, gas, meals, etc. at long ago price levels.
But, the fact is that prices are up because enough people CAN pay the higher prices. And that will accelerate if banks loosen up on lending.
The biggest constraint to housing demand is tight lending.
Interest rates are very low. But, getting the loan is difficult.
You can thank Dodd-Frank for much/most of that.
Even Ben Bernanke was denied for a mortgage refinance.”
FKA 2010 Buyer says:
April 13, 2015 at 10:15 am
The Housing Market: Myth Vs. Reality
Disclosure: The author is short KBH, DHI, RYL. (More…)
Summary
• The housing market bubble that burst in 2005 is still deflating.
• The bounce in prices and volume since 2010 was artificially created by the Fed/Government.
• Underlying data shows continued deterioration in housing market fundamentals.
39- This applies to the fast eddies of the world.
“Prices for homes have been rising for several years.
Some complain that they can’t or won’t buy at these prices.
They long for the prices of long ago. Wouldn’t that be nice!
I would also like to buy cars, gas, meals, etc. at long ago price levels.”
In NYC a bare bones Bronze family plan for two adults and two kids who’s family income is 70k a year the plan has 6K deductible and $13K max out of pocket for expense with a $800 monthly premium for Blue Cross per month. Subsidy is about $200 so $600 a month premium.
That is enough to make a middle class income family broke. $7,200 out of pocket for insurance and the first $6k out of pocket real cost is $13,000 for someone living with a family in NYC is really still unaffordable. Costs need to come down.
What would this site be without the perpetual fcuktardery of Punkin’ and his ilk?
….ilk….
Blumpkin has elk?
Because just like Medicare,Fed Govt can pay Providers what they deem appropriate.
“Why is gods name are you assuming that the price will come down with Universal Health Care? That is the problem, the high prices. Access to healthcare has and is still being restricted due to unjustifiably high costs and/or govt legislation and regulation.”
Healthcare providers in the US gets paid 3x more than equally develop Countries. Can you imagine how much a Healthcare provider gets paid in a 3rd world Country? Some of you here Justify this with “how much they have to pay to go to school”.
Even Cuba provides better Health Care than we do.
You want the cost to come down? Open the borders to Healthcare providers and train them to US Standard,just like they put US Factory workers against the 3rd world
“Joyce is correct.
Healthcare in much of SouthEast Asia is higher ranked and 1/5th the cost of ours.”
Had the pleasure of looking at one place this weekend in Roseland priced at $550k. Very nice older guy. Great bones, yard, location, — needs about $100k of work.
Priced about $100k too high. Tick-Tick-tick…
If some don’t know, Medicare is a Universal Health Care for the Elderly.
I’d like to serve on a death panel. Where do I apply?
I’ll take single payer, but the middle man must be removed. Of course, the government would have to run it, so any savings from removing the profit from public companies would immediately be replaced by outsized benefits, pensions, short work weeks and tons of holidays and vacations. Costa Rica can’t come soon enough. Ranked 36th in the world, ahead of the US.
An expat interested in retiring to Costa Rica would simply need $1,000 a month income from Social Security, a pension, disability, or other source to qualify for pensionado (retiree) residency status—and their spouse joins them. Then they pay a low monthly fee based on income (usually between $60 and $120) to join Caja. After that all their care in the public system is free, including doctor’s visits, diagnostic testing, prescriptions, and major surgery.
I’ll take single payer, but the middle man must be removed. Of course, the government would have to run it, so any savings from removing the profit from public companies would immediately be replaced by outsized benefits, pensions, short work weeks and tons of holidays and vacations. Costa Rica can’t come soon enough. Ranked 36th in the world, ahead of the US.
An expat interested in retiring to Costa Rica would simply need $1,000 a month income from Social Security, a pension, disability, or other source to qualify for pensionado (retiree) residency status—and their spouse joins them. Then they pay a low monthly fee based on income (usually between $60 and $120) to join Caja. After that all their care in the public system is free, including doctor’s visits, diagnostic testing, prescriptions, and major surgery.
(retiree) residency status—and their spouse joins them. Then they pay a low monthly fee based on income (usually between $60 and $120) to join Caja. After that all their care in the public system is free, including doctor’s visits, diagnostic testing, prescriptions, and major surgery.
(retiree) residency status—and their spouse joins them. Then they pay a low monthly fee based on income (usually between $60 and $120) to join Caja. After that all their care in the public system is free, including doctor’s visits, d1agnostic testing, prescript1ons, and major surgery.
That bill in Tennessee makes my head hurt.
Toy Guns in America: The 1950s Versus Today
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=PouB1N0eYx0
I think perpetucal fcuktardery is believing prices should match what you want them to be. Housing will never be cheap in certain locations. People can think they are overpriced, but that doesn’t mean they are overpriced. That’s not the way it works.
Liquor Luge says:
April 13, 2015 at 11:27 am
What would this site be without the perpetual fcuktardery of Punkin’ and his ilk?
You can’t make this stuff up. I was driving home last week through West Chester, and I saw a storefront for a health food/supplements store. Real earthy-crunchy kind of place.
Yes, they have a website.
http://www.mygreatpumpkin.com/
Sorry Michael, its taken
If you think nj real estate is overpriced, please explain this. What kind of jobs are available 45 min outside of jacksonville?
The Great Pumpkin says:
April 11, 2015 at 8:44 am
This is St. Augustine, Fl. People complain that nj is overpriced, but look how much this goes for out there. It’s 3300 sq ft and asking 600,000.
See what I found on #Zillow!
http://www.zillow.com/homedetails/47761075_zpid
Ready to move? Why Newark — yes, Newark — might be N.J.’s next hot neighborhood
http://www.nj.com/realestate-news/2015/04/ready_to_move_everything_you_n_2.html#incart_river
Not in suburbia, Blumpkin. Only immediate Manhattan area locations have risen significantly. Only a fool would pay higher price than someone paid within last five years. The previous owners bought in 2011 (555k), added 35k in improvements (at least) then sold it to me for only 15k more than they paid. Of course, they listed it for 730k originally. Your thick head does not comprehend that market is full of overpriced dreamers. It is waiting game unless you want to be a sucker. It is not a car or boat. See Essex above. Price a good home at 2003 or 2004 level and it will sell quickly. Buy higher than that and you are generally overpaying, unless serious updates. I see it time and time again that people think they deserve more..
53. The market will decide. That is why some homes sit for hundred of days. Other sell in weeks. Simple.
Bonus- There are two attic storage spaces in backyard shed. Looked empty from below. Finally got a ladder to see what previous owner left behind. Found pool of speaker wire on one but a hardly used Dolphin robotic pool cleaner. Sweet…
No one is going to loan you money for an overpriced house. That scam was pulled in the last bubble. Why do you think the urban areas got hit the hardest, they were the locations with the biggest scams going on. Give this guy a 1,000 to sign some paper work and take out a zero down loan and buy your ghetto house. The seller gets their money, the buyer gets their 1,000 dollars, and the bank never sees a payment.
So right now, a seller can have an overpriced asking price, but there is no way in hell any appraiser will approved a loan for 100,000 more than a house is worth. I’m seeing clearly, you are not. The market is what it is. Transactions make a market. Prices are not based on what you personally feel it should cost.
Bystander says:
April 13, 2015 at 1:08 pm
Not in suburbia, Blumpkin. Only immediate Manhattan area locations have risen significantly. Only a fool would pay higher price than someone paid within last five years. The previous owners bought in 2011 (555k), added 35k in improvements (at least) then sold it to me for only 15k more than they paid. Of course, they listed it for 730k originally. Your thick head does not comprehend that market is full of overpriced dreamers. It is waiting game unless you want to be a sucker. It is not a car or boat. See Essex above. Price a good home at 2003 or 2004 level and it will sell quickly. Buy higher than that and you are generally overpaying, unless serious updates. I see it time and time again that people think they deserve more..
So why are you wasting time with a listing that an appraiser can’t even take seriously?
Essex says:
April 13, 2015 at 1:13 pm
53. The market will decide. That is why some homes sit for hundred of days. Other sell in weeks. Simple.
Totally agree! If I had to place a bet in an urban real estate location, it would be Newark. The writing is on the wall. The location is too valuable. NYC has hit a peak in price and the result is the expansion of the city to new limits outwards. Only a matter of time before newark sees the change. Believe me, no one thought hoboken, jc, or brooklyn had a chance either, now look at what happen. Same thing will happen to Newark.
That’s why I laugh at people writing of jersey. You are telling me that jersey is getting weaker as it’s cities grow stronger than they have been in the past 5o years? It’s only a transition period we are going through, and jersey will come out of it stronger than ever before.
D-FENS says:
April 13, 2015 at 1:02 pm
Ready to move? Why Newark — yes, Newark — might be N.J.’s next hot neighborhood
http://www.nj.com/realestate-news/2015/04/ready_to_move_everything_you_n_2.html#incart_river
61. I’m not. Just kickin’ tires now….
Anecdotal housing tidbit for the day.
Friends just recently sold in Maplewood. They are relocating to a lower tax state. House went for 12% over ask in one day with multiple bidders, which is 20% over what they paid in 2011. Place is not all that far from the Ivy Hill projects in Irvington or Vailsburg section of Newark yet people seem willing to pay premium for that town.
#62..don’t hold your breathe…Newark Renaissance started in 1982 with same exact promise…still waiting….
Newark: no bars, no restaurants (besides down neck), no views, ineffective policing….
80’s wasn’t the right time yet. Too close in memory to the riots and suburban sprawl was still happening.
1987 Condo says:
April 13, 2015 at 1:43 pm
#62..don’t hold your breathe…Newark Renaissance started in 1982 with same exact promise…still waiting….
[49] That’s the only reason I remain a registered Democrat, I want to be on one too.
I’d like to serve on a death panel. Where do I apply?
Democrats are Jackasses,
The Original NJ ExPat says:
April 13, 2015 at 2:07 pm
[49] That’s the only reason I remain a registered Democrat, I want to be on one too.
I’d like to serve on a death panel. Where do I apply?
Democrats are Jackasses
Actually, they’re not. They use other people’s money to shower the lesser crowd with goodies in exchange for votes that yield power and influence. I would say that’s genius.
Everyone can be a death panel of one today, no applications of political affiliation necessary. The only problem is if you do you’ll probably soon be on the receiving end of your very own death panel.
Con’t [71];
NTTAWWT.
“Manners are good when one may have to back up his acts with his life.” – R. Heinlein
Newark is still a ways off. Harrison and JSQ are far better bets, close to NYC, lower crime rates and more receptive government to developers. No developer in their right mind wants to make huge Newark investments with Ras Baraka as mayor. Newark land is still not cheap enough(especially downtown considering how ghetto it is) and outside of Downtown Newark it is too inconvenient to transportation.
“…it would be Newark. The writing is on the wall.”
It sure is. I particularly like the graffiti of the Sad King and works by Dap.
The problem with Newark is that it’s too close to Newark.
What will come to fruition first? The Newark Renaissance or the MidTown Direct train between the Poconos and NY?
What will come to fruition first? The Newark Renaissance or the MidTown Direct train between the Poconos and NY?
I would add a third item: A republican being elected president. All three may never happen in our life time.
gary… give it up, they’re ALL criminals
I don’t think Newark is a prime spot. NY is 10 mins away on Amtrak/NJT or 25 on the PATH. Access to multiple major highways within 5 mins. The Newark Airport for what it’s worth is 10 mins away. Prudential Center and NJPAC. Outside of that, there’s nothing there, no reason to move there. Give it a few more years.
If I were to invest in Newark today…I would look for nice sized parking lot and sit on it and let other build around it.
79 cont
Meant to say, I think Newark is a prime spot.
I think the only growth industry in Newark is check cashing bodegas.
#79..Here you go, the plan from 1981…from MIT…
http://dspace.mit.edu/bitstream/handle/1721.1/73732/08096533.pdf?sequence=1
Marble Hill I predict is next up and comer, wedged on Bronx/Manhatan border
[82] condo,
Don’t know what a woman who spent her formative years hiding from men in a Western Mass. convent knows about cities.
Newark is one of the few places where property values might go up after a neutron bomb exploded.
[76] Way back when I was Pumpkin-like idiot in the early 80’s I was sure that route 23 would become another route 80 and Sussex County would become the next Franklin Lakes. Skiing in the Winter and Action Park in the Summer, who wouldn’t want to build their palatial manse in Vernon or Wantage? It’s a good think I didn’t have any money to invest.
What will come to fruition first? The Newark Renaissance or the MidTown Direct train between the Poconos and NY?
Newark will eventually find it’s way back but it is a long way off as even Jersey City isn’t fully gentrified yet, the crime rate is sky high, the Mayor is not exactly welcoming to businesses and as you say buy a parking lot….land costs are high as parties are waiting for the resurgence to occur. Also really only downtown has those advantages and somehow the ironbound is the most vibrant part of the city despite a far less desirable location.
My thoughts on Sussex are a huge plot of land, build a compound for the wealthy that has daily heli-taxi service to downtown Manhattan, basically rich people disneyland in the middle of nowhere, field clubs, equestrian facilities, country club with golf, tennis etc.
[69] JJ – you didn’t complete the thought. I think you meant:
Democrats are Jackasses, just a half notch above South Shore Nassau County residents.
81. Tattoo removal.
Jacksonville? Geez pumpkinz. This is my thought. In a place like Jacksonville a fireman can have a nice house and truck and maybe send his kid to junior college. Here that same cat would be stretched beyond belief.
Strength in diversity I believe we say in the liberal wing of the party – Four New Jersey counties are among 78 across the country where whites no longer make up the majority of the population.
In Middlesex, Union, Passaic and Cumberland, no single group comprises at least 50 percent of the county’s people, according to a report on PewResearch.Org.
That reflects a growing trend across the country, where the percentage of the white population shrinks as the the share of Hispanics, Asians and blacks climbs, Pew Research said.
Of the nation’s 25 most populous counties, 19 are less than half white. On the other hand, just two of the more than 2,400 counties in the country flipped to a white majority from a white minority, the report says.
In Middlesex, the second most-populous of New Jersey’s 21 counties, 46.4 percent of its estimated 828,911 residents were white as of 2013. That’s a more than 15 percentage point drop from 2000, when 62.3 percent of 752,880 people in the county were white, the Pew report says.
One county north in Union, the share of the white population dipped from 54.7 to 43.2 percent. Union’s population climbed from 523,124 to 548,256 in that span.
Passaic County’s numbers were similar. Whereas in 2000 52.4 percent of the county’s 490,733 residents were were white, in 2013 those figures shifted to 43.7 percent of 505,672.
Finally, in sparsely populated Cumberland County, the share of the white population dropped about 10 percent — from 58.6 to 48.6 percent. The county’s population grew from 146,263 to 157,332.
Essex County was already made up of less than 50 percent whites. As of 2010, about 42.6 percent of the county’s 783,969 people said they were white.
Nationally, non-Hispanice whites make up 63 percent of the population
[92] As long as 15% or more of your whites are Jews* and you have a rising Asian population, your town is in good shape.
*majority must attend public school.
Absolutely brilliant move right now. Taxes will be nothing and you take almost no risk at current price levels of prices going any lower. All upside play for the reasons you stated in your whole post. Location and transportation avenues make this land too valuable for the poor to hold onto it for much longer. These people are about to be pushed out. You need to have vision and a vision you have my friend.
“If I were to invest in Newark today…I would look for nice sized parking lot and sit on it and let other build around it.”
Wish I could mark this post and show you how wrong you will be in time. They have a whole urban farming movement taking place in Newark right now, that’s a cutting edge industry and Newark is leading it.
Do you think people ever gave Harlem a chance? Well they were dead wrong just like you will be dead wrong about jersey and Newark.
Liquor Luge says:
April 13, 2015 at 3:59 pm
I think the only growth industry in Newark is check cashing bodegas.
Lol…I like that!
jcer says:
April 13, 2015 at 5:56 pm
My thoughts on Sussex are a huge plot of land, build a compound for the wealthy that has daily heli-taxi service to downtown Manhattan, basically rich people disneyland in the middle of nowhere, field clubs, equestrian facilities, country club with golf, tennis etc.
Exactly!! I was making a point by showing that listing. That place sucks for money making opportunities and you have a 3300 sq ft house going for 600,000. That same house in nj would command similar prices. So why the hell would I move down there? Cheaper taxes, but the schools are a joke compared to jersey.
Essex says:
April 13, 2015 at 6:11 pm
Jacksonville? Geez pumpkinz. This is my thought. In a place like Jacksonville a fireman can have a nice house and truck and maybe send his kid to junior college. Here that same cat would be stretched beyond belief.
If you would have bought anything around present day 287 back in the 80’s, you would have killed it. Finishing that highway and expanding rt 23 to the 287 connection made a lot of people rich.
Said it on this blog before, someone with knowledge of future nj development stated that it would be concentrated within the 287 boundary to nyc. They stated every buildable lot will be built up within that boundary.
The Original NJ ExPat says:
April 13, 2015 at 5:51 pm
[76] Way back when I was Pumpkin-like idiot in the early 80′s I was sure that route 23 would become another route 80 and Sussex County would become the next Franklin Lakes. Skiing in the Winter and Action Park in the Summer, who wouldn’t want to build their palatial manse in Vernon or Wantage? It’s a good think I didn’t have any money to invest.
What will come to fruition first? The Newark Renaissance or the MidTown Direct train between the Poconos and NY?
Man, if I had enough money, I would buy all the properties in Newark slowly and under the radar through llc’s. After you have bought all the poor out, you just made a crap load of money, your land is now super valuable. I can’t even fathom how valuable that land would immediately become to developers. The people living there are the only thing holding down prime real estate.
99. Chicago tried that with Cabrini Green. How’d that go?
Not great…..
I’ll take your word for it, don’t really know much about that.
I think you would win in Newark buying out the properties. You would be creating a wet dream for developers. All types of transportation infrastructure access with a blank canvas to build as you please.
Essex says:
April 13, 2015 at 8:30 pm
99. Chicago tried that with Cabrini Green. How’d that go?
Not great…..
They already hollowed out like half of Newark and gave it to developers, have yall driven through the wards in the last ten years? It worked OK.
“All developable land within 287” is not such a far off goal.
these were the 2002 #s:
http://www.njfuture.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/Built-Out-Permit-Activity-12-10.pdf
Section of San Antonio comparable to jersey and guess what 14,000 in taxes and they sure as hell don’t have the same education quality as jersey.
See what I found on #Zillow!
http://www.zillow.com/homedetails/26199613_zpid
Or this one with 20,000 property taxes in San Antonio, Texas. Selling in the 800k price range.
See what I found on #Zillow!
http://www.zillow.com/homedetails/26118878_zpid
Then in the same exact city, prob 15 min away and you have houses going for 35,000 with 800 dollar property taxes.
See what I found on #Zillow!
http://www.zillow.com/homedetails/26124503_zpid
Lesson here for the fast eddies of the world….location location location. If you live in a nice area with almost no crime and no poor people, get ready to pay high property taxes. Doesn’t matter where you go. Top of the food chain neighborhood = high property taxes.
Why anyone thinks this only applies to jersey is beyond me. NJ just gets the crown of highest property taxes because we have this on such a larger scale compared to any other state. No other state besides Cali coastline can you travel through town after town of complete millionaires. Our property tax stats for this state reflect this.
Fcuktard, Harlem is in Manhattan. Newark is in…well…Newark.
Urban farming is a hallmark of completely rock-bottom wasteland cities, such as Detroit and Memphis. Not really a great source of pride for those towns…
Luckily I live in the NJ equivalent of Darien.
COLTS NECK — A 22-year-old township man faces up to 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine after admitting Monday he exchanged explicit photos with a 12-year-old Pennsylvania girl, the office of U.S. Attorney Paul Fishman said in a statement.
Chad Weber pleaded guilty to one count of possessing child p0rnography after obtaining the images of the girl during online chats between February and April 2013, when law enforcement learned of the exchanges. The two had developed an online relationship, authorities said.
During their explicit online chats, Weber acknowledged the girl’s age. The photos were kept on his cell phone and computer, authorities said, both of which he will have to surrender.
Weber is scheduled to be sentenced in June.
How to separate the wheat from the chaff:
The Great Pumpkin says:
April 13, 2015 at 7:49 pm
Man, if I had enough money, I would buy all the properties in Newark slowly and under the radar through llc’s. After you have bought all the poor out, you just made a crap load of money, your land is now super valuable.I can’t even fathomhow valuable that land would immediately become to developers. The people living there are the only thing holding down prime real estate.Gourd [99];
Man, if I had enough money, I would buy all the properties in Newark slowly and under the radar through llc’s. After you have bought all the poor out, you just made a crap load of money, your land is now super valuable. I can’t even fathom how valuable that land would immediately become to developers. The people living there are the only thing holding down prime real estate.
Excuse me, Mr. Donald J. Chump, but don’t those poor people rent, not own? Then wouldn’t you need to buy up the property from their landlords? in which case your seller might not be as slow-witted as your comment would seem to imply.
Irony alert
http://abovethelaw.com/2015/04/nationwide-layoff-watch-lawyers-swept-out-for-spring-cleaning/
105 – Pumpkin – You are truly a f#cking idiot. You reference a property in your post as Selling for $800k. Read the entire post, if you are capable. That property has been for sale for over 5 YEARS without a buyer. It is not really for sale.
Asking prices don’t make markets.
I have a 2009 Jeep for sale. Price $150,000 – Wow, can you believe the markets for used Grand Cherokees?
111. Ding Ding Ding, besides the parking lot speculators urban areas are heavily effected by federal housing dollars some pretty big a*holes own really shoddy apartments and collect section 8 dollars, until they can make a killing…. redevelopment doesn’t happen. Right out front of liberty state park there are literally tons of vacant lots, burned out buildings, and basically shack housing won’t that likely get redeveloped before Newark? Why has the gentrification been so slow, why will Newark be gentrified before that area. Well a few reasons, vacant lots are owned by speculators, there is not a lot of demand to be in a neighborhood that looks like life after people and subsidized housing(projects, sec 8) abound and cause the hood to have an undesirable demographic as well as high crime rates, all o these things apply to Newark as well.
Yes, that’s why I said to strategically do it through LLC’s in a slow process as to not arouse suspicion as to what my plan is. Obviously, if people find out, they will raise the price on you. I was referring to the poor for the sole purpose of their impact on the value of the real estate. They bring it down. Obviously, poor people don’t own anything.
Anon E. Moose says:
April 14, 2015 at 8:52 am
Gourd [99];
Man, if I had enough money, I would buy all the properties in Newark slowly and under the radar through llc’s. After you have bought all the poor out, you just made a crap load of money, your land is now super valuable. I can’t even fathom how valuable that land would immediately become to developers. The people living there are the only thing holding down prime real estate.
Excuse me, Mr. Donald J. Chump, but don’t those poor people rent, not own? Then wouldn’t you need to buy up the property from their landlords? in which case your seller might not be as slow-witted as your comment would seem to imply.
By big a*holes I mean fairly large corporations and regional reits.
115 most of the people who own the housing that the poor lives in are speculators like you only they have resources and tend to know what their doing, they are speculating newark land and making a good return at the expense of the poor.
Leave the Great Pumpkin alone. He has shown himself to be a brilliant mind on all social and economic matters. His real estate investing prowess has been documentated thoroughly. Pumpkin, go with your gut instinct. Leverage some home loans and buy properties in Newark. You can’t go wrong as appraisers will protect you from paying over market value. I think you are a very smart young man.
I showed the difference in housing prices in san antonio. That’s one city where you have 20,000$ in taxes in one neighborhood and 799$ in another. 800,000 houses in one neighborhood and 25,000 in another. That’s insane. That was the purpose of my post. To show that leaving for a place with cheaper taxes than northern nj means you are moving to an undesirable area in that state. You wouldn’t live in an undesirable section of nj, so why would you live in an undesirable location in another state? No matter where you go, you will pay high property taxes in a desirable location.
homeboken says:
April 14, 2015 at 9:59 am
105 – Pumpkin – You are truly a f#cking idiot. You reference a property in your post as Selling for $800k. Read the entire post, if you are capable. That property has been for sale for over 5 YEARS without a buyer. It is not really for sale.
Asking prices don’t make markets.
I have a 2009 Jeep for sale. Price $150,000 – Wow, can you believe the markets for used Grand Cherokees?
In Newark the area in the ironbound closest to NWK Penn is likely the best investment available to the small investor wanting to invest in Newark. Unfortunately the local govt is so inept it has created problems with development there. The Portuguese and Brazilians have a much more vibrant neighborhood than the rest of Newark at least I can get some food and drink there.
Lol! You cats and kittens keep falling for the troll. lol! (S)he’s a satirist! Or, at least an attempt.
SOUTH BRONX SIZZLE: Once a symbol of urban blight, the formerly burned out neighborhood is now a major draw for investors
This time, if someone says the Bronx is burning, it’s because the real estate market is on fire.
Companies big and small are flooding into the once-troubled South Bronx at historic rates, an early sign that an area which long eluded gentrification may be getting its day in the spotlight.
“The last housing boom ran out of gas before it reached the Bronx,” said real estate appraiser Jonathan Miller of Miller Samuel. “But now, we’re finally at the cusp of something. The South Bronx is the natural next jumping-off point for people who are seeking out affordability.”
Investors are buying both existing multifamily buildings and vacant sites ripe for development, a sign that a wave of major renovations and new towers is coming to a neighborhood that was once a national symbol of urban blight from foreclosures, burned-out buildings, high crime rate, poverty and drugs.
Now investors are betting that what was once down is set to go way up.
“I didn’t want to end up as the guy who says, ‘I should have bought that 10 years ago,'” said Keith Rubenstein of Somerset Partners, a developer who is spearheading a massive new project on the South Bronx waterfront. “I want to be the guy that bought it. Now is the time.”
http://www.nydailynews.com/life-style/real-estate/south-bronx-real-estate-market-suddenly-burning-hot-article-1.2178095
There were speculators in other areas facing the same problems as Newark and they succumbed to gentrification. It’s not going to happen over night, but it will happen.
jcer says:
April 14, 2015 at 10:26 am
115 most of the people who own the housing that the poor lives in are speculators like you only they have resources and tend to know what their doing, they are speculating newark land and making a good return at the expense of the poor.
119 not an apple’s to apple’s comparison. One is the finest location in the heart of the city, suburban NJ is not as close to the CBD and spans a bigger area. If you’ve lived outside NJ you know that the downtown areas with bars and restaurants nearby always command a huge premium, there are still nice middle class areas that are commutable further out. Commute vs Commute, so a 40 minute commute in respective locales NJ starts to look expensive. I understand to some extent that metro NYC is more expensive, people make more money, plain and simple. Premium areas in other cities are expensive but in NJ there is no nice middle class suburb, 500k gets you a shack like house in waldwick not exactly exclusive.
123 as I said when they can really make a killing over the current rent roll, unfortunately it is usually easier to screw with the poor so running apartments for them comes with a higher margin.
Big data is being used everywhere now. Wonder if any areas in NJ showed up in their black box.
Racing to Buy Homes Sight Unseen
ATLANTA—It took Akuansa Graham seven minutes on a recent morning to craft a $124,000 bid for a three-bedroom Buford, Ga., home he had never seen.
The Starwood Waypoint Residential Trust executive went to public auctions in the years after the financial crisis looking to buy homes lost to foreclosure. Now the 38-year-old crouches over a computer and relies on algorithms that evaluate home values, proximity to schools and crime rates to outrace rivals for any remaining bargains offered by real-estate agents.
“You can’t see your competitors now, so it’s important we move before everyone else does,” said Mr. Graham, a regional director based in Atlanta.
With the low-hanging fruit from the housing bust mostly picked, Wall Street-backed buyers of real estate are increasingly turning to quantitative data analysis as a way of accelerating their search for a dwindling supply of available homes that can be transformed into rental properties. Math-driven models powered by historical patterns can size up homes sight unseen and calculate future income in minutes, allowing private-equity giant Blackstone Group LP, the Alaska Permanent Fund Corp. and other bulk purchasers to skirt neighborhoods with softer rental demand or properties that need costly repairs.
http://www.wsj.com/articles/racing-to-buy-homes-sight-unseen-1428940421
I agree, there really is no such thing as middle class in nnj anymore. It’s part of the reason why we must pay our teachers and cops more than other locations. No one in their right mind is going to pay and go through the hard work of college to make 50,000 in nnj. Just think of where you will be forced to live.
jcer says:
April 14, 2015 at 10:45 am
119 not an apple’s to apple’s comparison. One is the finest location in the heart of the city, suburban NJ is not as close to the CBD and spans a bigger area. If you’ve lived outside NJ you know that the downtown areas with bars and restaurants nearby always command a huge premium, there are still nice middle class areas that are commutable further out. Commute vs Commute, so a 40 minute commute in respective locales NJ starts to look expensive. I understand to some extent that metro NYC is more expensive, people make more money, plain and simple. Premium areas in other cities are expensive but in NJ there is no nice middle class suburb, 500k gets you a shack like house in waldwick not exactly exclusive.
126- Interesting article.
I was driving through Park Ridge this Sunday and there was open house sign at the end of one of the streets so I stopped by for ha ha’s. It was an expanded split and it was one of the nicest houses I’ve seen in a long time. It had proper size, layout and condition. It also had swarms of people because it was the only house worth looking at in this town and probably a few others.
Asking was 630K and it sold that evening. What it means is that there’s nothing worthwhile for sale and that people will overpay based on emotion. The actual list price should be 10% lower but again, there’s nothing else for sale. In a normal market, there would be four houses like this one and you could make a decision without feeling like the world is on fire. But, we’re not in a normal market.
Quants diving into asset classes in an attempt to pick over the threadbare goods that haven’t already moved is a sure sign of a market top.
Go ahead, Punkin’. Pull the trigger. Newark, Atlanta, Detroit…you know you want to…
Leverage up. Money is cheap now, right?
The investors who’ve made out big in urban, multi-parcel investments have already cashed out and moved on. Nothing left now but latecomers and the Punkinheads of the world.
gary (129)-
Irrational, yes. But, the market is the market. And, the market is never wrong. The value is the price that a ready, willing, able buyer can pay…whether any of us agree with it or not. The price paid for that house also now becomes a comp, for better or worse.
I would not be a purchaser in this market. That is for sure. However, there is a $$$ value involved in gas, angst, research, etc for any prospective purchaser…and I fear your $$$ already sunk into this miserable rotting zombie of a sick wildebeest market will be something you’ll never recoup.
At the end of our lives, nobody gives us back the time we spend beating our heads against a wall.
Meat,
I don’t disagree with you. It is what it is but it’s really not for me. People were like scavengers going through that house. I really want no part of it. When one house like this comes around every few months, it’s not normal. I really have no desire to play this game. I guarantee that the buyers did overpay and they will second guess themselves eventually. Buyers remorse. I own my second home now and each time I bought, there was no ill feeling inside. I was comfortable with the decision. Now, I get queasy thinking about it and these folks buying these houses are falling in love and will regret it.
http://www.northjersey.com/news/generator-trucks-arrive-at-powerless-revel-casino-site-1.1308370
ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. (AP) — Three portable generator trucks have arrived at the site of Atlantic City’s former Revel casino, which has been without utility service since Thursday.
Florida developer Glenn Straub says two main generator trucks and a backup unit arrived Tuesday and should be fully connected by Thursday.
He bought the shuttered casino a week ago, but the power plant that is its sole source of utility service cut it off two days later because the two parties could not agree on a contract for future service to the building.
That led the city to impose fines of $5,000 per day on Straub for not having operational fire prevention and suppression systems.
A lawsuit between Straub and ACR Energy Partners over the power standoff has been transferred to federal court.
http://www.northjersey.com/news/generator-trucks-arrive-at-powerless-revel-casino-site-1.1308370
ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. (AP) — Three portable generator trucks have arrived at the site of Atlantic City’s former Revel c@sino, which has been without utility service since Thursday.
Florida developer Glenn Straub says two main generator trucks and a backup unit arrived Tuesday and should be fully connected by Thursday.
He bought the shuttered c@sino a week ago, but the power plant that is its sole source of utility service cut it off two days later because the two parties could not agree on a contract for future service to the building.
That led the city to impose fines of $5,000 per day on Straub for not having operational fire prevention and suppression systems.
A lawsuit between Straub and ACR Energy Partners over the power standoff has been transferred to federal court.
132. the market is not really the market it lives and dies on cheap credit. Go look at properties where you would be unable to get good financing without a 30% down payment like condo’s with ongoing litigation. The buyers in this market are paper tigers depending on 3% interest rates and 10%. I’m with Gary that the wages just don’t support some of this pricing. There was a blip where things looked better but we have quickly returned to the insanity of 2006-2007.
Percy Sledge < Vigoda
FKA [122];
EN FUEGO!!! – Booyah Bob, circa 2006
Thanks for the memories.
I guess the millennials are going all out today. They live for today, forget about tomorrow.
Americans’ Spending on Dining Out Just Overtook Grocery Sales for the First Time Ever
Pass the menu, hold the shopping cart.
Grocery stores are finding it harder to make headway with shoppers as a surge in spending at restaurants over the past several months signals Americans are more likely to ditch the brown bags in favor of doggy bags.
Sales at restaurants and bars overtook spending at grocery stores in March for the first time ever, according to Commerce Department data released Tuesday that dates to 1992.
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-04-14/americans-spending-on-dining-out-just-overtook-grocery-sales-for-the-first-time-ever
Looking at a place tonight. 2x the square footage of my current place. Needs new kitchen and air systems and Gawd knows what else. A real fixer upper in a 9/10 school district. Prices to sell. Apparently.
It’s a split in Roseland. Been on the market for a many days. Not really keen on buying until I sell my current home. But more looking.
Last year I spent $2805 in restaurants and $3325 on groceries. In 2013 it was $4321 and $1723 respectively. Restaurants are cheap and groceries are expensive, is the main thing.
Exactly. The time it takes to cook and the cost of the groceries has really made eating out comparable for single people or couples. Unless you are buying in gross and eating the same crap everyday, you are not saving that much when you factor the time it takes to cook. The cut throat competition in the food industry has really brought down prices in eating out. Now, if we could only get this kind of competition to take place in healthcare instead of letting them charge whatever they want.
Wily Millenial says:
April 14, 2015 at 1:24 pm
Last year I spent $2805 in restaurants and $3325 on groceries. In 2013 it was $4321 and $1723 respectively. Restaurants are cheap and groceries are expensive, is the main thing.
You really put out some good posts. You might hate me, but I enjoy your posts.
The cheap credit is a part of this market, which makes the market normal. The market prices are only a reaction of current fundamentals. The fed govt didn’t want to let the real estate market crash, so people like fast eddie need to realize this is a normal market based on current fundamentals. They will keep rates low for forever if they have to. Prices are not going down.
jcer says:
April 14, 2015 at 12:15 pm
132. the market is not really the market it lives and dies on cheap credit. Go look at properties where you would be unable to get good financing without a 30% down payment like condo’s with ongoing litigation. The buyers in this market are paper tigers depending on 3% interest rates and 10%. I’m with Gary that the wages just don’t support some of this pricing. There was a blip where things looked better but we have quickly returned to the insanity of 2006-2007.
“Now, I get queasy thinking about it and these folks buying these houses are falling in love and will regret it.”
Gary,
I saw it over and over again and know that queasy feeling well. One house we bid on I offered way more than I thought it was worth and it took us up to the top of our spending range (which was less than half of what the banks approved us for). I literally couldn’t sleep knowing what we offered. Fortunately, the owners were a-holes and took a beating renting it out instead. I have that same feeling now. I really need to replace the original windows in my multi (I refurbed them for $150 each 10 years ago) but the sticker shock stops me from doing so. I’ve had a great Winter/Spring in AC (up over 40K) and I just got a bonus, so I might as well waste it on my depreciating asset. Right?
With the right approach, groceries can be much cheaper than dining out. The key is buying the right ingredients, staying away from processed stuff, and shopping in the right places (e.g. not Whole foods or the standard grocery store). Someone who buys meat and vegetables and does their own cooking can save a lot of money vs restaurants. Costco for meat, eggs, milk, some vegetables, fresh and frozen. The annual card discount will pay the membership fee. Asian groceries for produce, spices.
The key problem is that people who are poor don’t tend to be long run economizers who make good decisions. Look at what young people and people on food stamps buy and I’ll bet there’s a lot of anti-nutritious processed crap on the bills.
Why economize and cook & eat thoughtfully when there is personal and government debt available to finance something easier and junkier?
I’d love to see a modern re-write of The Grapes of Wrath, with the Joad family complaining that they have to eat the same Costco roast chicken every day, and they have to eat regular instead of organic eggs and vegetables to save money. While Rosasharn worries that the porkchops they buy have hormones in them and might make her baby have ADHD, then starts worrying that her baby might turn autistic from vaccinations.
Restaurants vs. groceries.
The problem with the grocery stores vs. the restaurants are the unions. Restaurant workers aren’t unionized obviously.
We buy our produce at a produce shop (The Route 46 Farmers Market). You can completely fill your cart with produce that is the same quality (if not better) than what they sell at the majors (Shoprite/Foodtown). Their pricing is usually 1/4 to a 1/3rd of what produce costs at the supermarket. It’s so inexpensive, you do not cringe when you throw it out uneaten. For example, Red/yellow/orange peppers are never more than $1/pound. At supermarket, they are a minimum of $2 and go up to $4. Green peppers are 60 cents. Tomatoes are usually $1 a pound too, all varieties. I fill the cart and it usually costs me $20. The fruit is cheap and good too. I can get a bunch of cilantro for 70 cents. At Shoprite it’s 1/2 the size, already wilted and $2.79. And no, it’s not organic (though some might be). Organic produce is cost most more than shellfish. That’s where I draw the line.
For dry goods, we tend to buy things when on sale and with coupons and store it in the pantry. We also do Costco but find ourselves going their less as we don’t buy enough to make the trip. Meat, we buy at Shoprite and I look for a lot of managers specials. Also, for the good steaks, we wait for sales on Prime at Fairway. We also buy a lot of premade Krap at Trader’s.
Believe me, eating at home is much cheaper than eating out and much healthier. But you can’t just shop at Whole Foods and expect to compete with restaurants on pricing. Also, the size of the family matters too.
122
During past RE markets, whenever talked turned to the likes of Newark, deep Queens, and various sketchy NYC neighborhoods and far flung exurbs being the “next big thing”, it was a sure signal that a top had been reached (or at least an excess of froth).
Harlem is a great case in point. From a location and cost perspective, it seems like a no-brainer for gentrification. But even after decades of investment and development, I’d opine that most readers on this board wouldn’t feel comfortable raising a family there.
So go ahead everybody. Mortgage your future out of fear and desperation. Listen to the industry insiders (after all, they have bills to pay, don’t they?) But soon enough the tide will recede, and you’re desperation will be manifested as negative equity in an asset that has thrown your life off its trajectory. Do it. You deserve the American Dream.
Jesus now we can’t even feed ourselves.
I agree. It can be a lot cheaper, esp the bigger the family. With bigger families it makes no sense to eat out, too much money. But picture a single individual or a married couple, if you factor in the time it takes to go grocery shopping, find recipes, and cook it, is it really worth it? I mean if you buy in bulk and eat the same meal 3 days in a row, I guess it can be worth it, but if you want a variety of fresh food every day you are better off eating out. The amount of money you save vs time spent doesn’t make much sense. If you make a low wage per hour, I guess it’s worth it, but if you make 40 dollars or more an hour, why are you wasting your time if you are single or a married couple?
Libturd in Union says:
April 14, 2015 at 2:06 pm
Restaurants vs. groceries.
The problem with the grocery stores vs. the restaurants are the unions. Restaurant workers aren’t unionized obviously.
We buy our produce at a produce shop (The Route 46 Farmers Market). You can completely fill your cart with produce that is the same quality (if not better) than what they sell at the majors (Shoprite/Foodtown). Their pricing is usually 1/4 to a 1/3rd of what produce costs at the supermarket. It’s so inexpensive, you do not cringe when you throw it out uneaten. For example, Red/yellow/orange peppers are never more than $1/pound. At supermarket, they are a minimum of $2 and go up to $4. Green peppers are 60 cents. Tomatoes are usually $1 a pound too, all varieties. I fill the cart and it usually costs me $20. The fruit is cheap and good too. I can get a bunch of cilantro for 70 cents. At Shoprite it’s 1/2 the size, already wilted and $2.79. And no, it’s not organic (though some might be). Organic produce is cost most more than shellfish. That’s where I draw the line.
For dry goods, we tend to buy things when on sale and with coupons and store it in the pantry. We also do Costco but find ourselves going their less as we don’t buy enough to make the trip. Meat, we buy at Shoprite and I look for a lot of managers specials. Also, for the good steaks, we wait for sales on Prime at Fairway. We also buy a lot of premade Krap at Trader’s.
Believe me, eating at home is much cheaper than eating out and much healthier. But you can’t just shop at Whole Foods and expect to compete with restaurants on pricing. Also, the size of the family matters too.
The main reason to eat fresh food as much as possible is to reduce your intake of salt. When you are younger it is just a good thing to do. As you get older, your body will simply let you know…….most restaurants serve warmed over crap and masquerade the low quality and processing by dumping in excess salt to stimulate their customers’ tastebuds …..
CostCo:
organic eggs
organic grains
organic chicken
organic salad, kale greens, carrots, apples (when available), blueberries, stawberries, mixed berries…..
their organic bananas are ok
prices on this stuff is seriously cheap…..
avoid juice and cow’s milk if you can tolerate missing them…..
Also, drop the $1800 for the screened outdoor room with furniture that they are selling…..
DirecTv? Good? horrible? considering for TV-only and keeping Optimum for Hi-Speed internet
Gov. Chris Christie failed to report as income or pay taxes on $380,000 in expense allowances he received from the state, according to a New Jersey Watchdog examination of Treasury data and the governor’s tax returns.
By not declaring the allowances on their joint returns, Christie and his wife, Mary Pat, avoided roughly $152,000 in federal income taxes over four years.
151, had it years ago it is ok, not sure what their offering is like today besides what we have on our boat. Doesn’t work in real bad rain storms. Cablevision isn’t that bad is it? Not like it’s Comcast.
Libby,
I use a Flemington based guy that charges $188 per double-insulated window installed. Size doesn’t matter. Hear that, JJ? They are vinyl, and I use them only for the income properties. He charges $50 more per window if it is a lead work area (house built prior to 1977). Only 1 callback in 10 years.
re: #150 – “Also, drop the $1800 for the screened outdoor room”
Chi is ghetto fab.
http://www.costco.com/.product.100159223.html?cm_sp=RichRelevance-_-categorypageHorizontalTop-_-PersonalizedClickCPInCategory&cm_vc=categorypageHorizontalTop|PersonalizedClickCPInCategory
re # 152 – Check O’s taxes.
Thanks Xolepa.
That’s quite an amazing price. Ask your guy if he knows any guys in Essex County for me will ya? Or see if he would want to do a place with >20 windows.
Directv, had it for 15 years. won’t go back to anything else. If you ask me what are the best benefits, I won’t tell you. Hee, hee. Their customer service is outstanding. Love talking to the gals, each time in a different state. All U.S.
I integrated a Yagi off-air antenna, which has a rotor on it, in my attic to the DTV signal. I can get 60+ mile off-air stations when the satellite signal disappears. That happens maybe twice a year, for about 15-30 minutes each. Signals coming off the antenna are higher quality because they are uncompressed. All providers these days use compression.
Xolepa,
My experience with DirecTV from 2000 through 2006 was the opposite. Hated their service. Hated the way they ran the wires, but then wanted me to pay insurance to cover fixing their wiring mistakes. Hated the way they lured me to buy equipment that then became obsolete and had to replace. Loved FIOS from 2007-2010.
Cablevision I like better than DirecTV, but their box in 2015 is slower and more outdated than the FIOS box of 2008. But I like the on-demand flexibility, and cannot complain about internet speed.
What I hated most about DirecTV customer service: Every time there was a problem, of course I already unplugged & replugged everything. But customer service demanded I do it again while on the phone with them, every time I called. Of course I told them, yes, I’ve already done that 3 times today. Too bad, we have to follow the process. That’s after waiting 10 minutes for someone to answer.
I’d only use DirecTV again if I had no half-decent alternative.
Try xfinity…great features….never works right….buggy as all get out…..customer service is nonexistant either overseas or a robot, I think I like the automated prompts more. Oh yeah the billing is impossible to follow and frequently wrong.
Rag,
Your situation is obviously different. There are online retailers that store reams of documentation, including wiring diagrams to fit all types of DTV layouts. I did all the wiring myself. Homeruns to every room that has a receiver. I won’t let ANY installer touch my house. The only time I did, they of course, screwed up. So, I mounted the dish my self with all the splitters et al. Helps if you designed electrical conduits to run from your basement to your attic. I paid for all DTV stuff myself, purchased on Ebay. Not much, about a $100 bucks, less wire costs. I used state of the art stuff. All receivers + dvrs, about 8 of them, run off the same dish. the DVRs all integrate thru the home-network along with the antenna signal so you can record on one and watch on another. Can watch thru my PC, too.
As a result, I never have any issues. Part of it has to do with me mounting the dish on the side of my fireplace chimney. The chimney has several flue pipes running thru it (massive width) and has a plywood frame within the brick. A couple uber-long lag bolts do the job. Brick does not expand and contract, throwing the signal off, as typical roof or side-mount installations do.
Libby, too far for my guy. Try
Nine and a seven and a three with a two and a double zero along with a zero and an eight a zero and a one.
158 Xolepa,
Re Yagi in the attic: you are the 1st person besides myself who I’ve ever heard did that. I did it when they were threatening to not have the world series on cable a few years ago because of a contract dispute.
Had a huge fight with my tenant over direct tv and installing it. Told him, not on my house. Wasted at least an hour of my time trying to convince me that it is safe to install. I told him does he think I was born yesterday. He finally got the point that it was not going to happen. Kept stressing that direct TV said it will not do any harm to your house. Told him that’s great, so go buy your own house and let them screw holes into your roof. Hate people that do not understand what no means.
Xolepa says:
April 14, 2015 at 3:59 pm
Rag,
Your situation is obviously different. There are online retailers that store reams of documentation, including wiring diagrams to fit all types of DTV layouts. I did all the wiring myself. Homeruns to every room that has a receiver. I won’t let ANY installer touch my house. The only time I did, they of course, screwed up. So, I mounted the dish my self with all the splitters et al. Helps if you designed electrical conduits to run from your basement to your attic. I paid for all DTV stuff myself, purchased on Ebay. Not much, about a $100 bucks, less wire costs. I used state of the art stuff. All receivers + dvrs, about 8 of them, run off the same dish. the DVRs all integrate thru the home-network along with the antenna signal so you can record on one and watch on another. Can watch thru my PC, too.
As a result, I never have any issues. Part of it has to do with me mounting the dish on the side of my fireplace chimney. The chimney has several flue pipes running thru it (massive width) and has a plywood frame within the brick. A couple uber-long lag bolts do the job. Brick does not expand and contract, throwing the signal off, as typical roof or side-mount installations do.
This tool was advocating at a town meeting how our fed govt is facing a major crisis. Guess what the crisis is? Yup, social security. Fatman, it’s impossible to ever become a major crisis. Worst outcome is reduced value in benefits, not exactly a crisis. At least not to me. Guy uses pure scare tactics to gain political power.
Essex says:
April 14, 2015 at 2:49 pm
Gov. Chris Christie failed to report as income or pay taxes on $380,000 in expense allowances he received from the state, according to a New Jersey Watchdog examination of Treasury data and the governor’s tax returns.
By not declaring the allowances on their joint returns, Christie and his wife, Mary Pat, avoided roughly $152,000 in federal income taxes over four years.
Cablevision is stiff arming me…… so I am going rogue on them.
I will keep $60 for internet…..stationary cell phone from AT&T for $20 and then the best other deal I can get for TV.
I just need sports, SNY, Nick Jr., Food, HGTV and local channels…..
That is the reason that I am balking at having to pay $180 for the triple play.
#167,
I fully intend on switching to Direct TV when my 2 year initial Cablevision contract is up. They’ll jack me up and not negotiatie from what I understand.
I still can’t believe their multi room dvrs can’t record and rewind live tv. I thought I was doing something wrong for a few weeks until I looked it up and saw they dont have the ability. I was dumbfounded.
Argghh just got a note from FIOS my contract is up…
re # 14 5- The problem with the grocery stores vs. the restaurants are the unions. Restaurant workers aren’t unionized obviously.
What workers?
http://factor-tech.com/robotics/17437-robot-chef-that-can-cook-any-of-2000-meals-at-tap-of-a-button-to-go-on-sale-in-2017/
[166] punk in
The report was cleverly worded but nowhere did it say he failed to declare taxable income. I don’t know the specifics but, in general, reimbursements of money paid with after tax dollars aren’t required to be taxed again.
Might as well call him a shameless extrovert and allege he hangs around with thespians.
To wit, from publication 463:
“Employee meets accountable plan rules. If you meet the three rules for accountable plans, your employer should not include any reimbursements in your income in box 1 of your Form W-2. If your expenses equal your reimbursements, you do not complete Form 2106. You have no deduction since your expenses and reimbursement are equal.
If your employer included reimbursements in box 1 of your Form W-2 and you meet all the rules for accountable plans, ask your employer for a corrected Form W-2.”
Menendez should be worried now.
http://www.nj.com/politics/index.ssf/2015/04/menendez_friend_indicted_on_medicare_fraud.html#comments
Juice Box,
Was everything the doctor owned confiscated via civil asset forfeiture?
By law, you cannot deny your tenant the right to install a satellite dish. You can, however, place “reasonable” restrictions on them.
Who the fcuck asks their landlord first anyway. This is Jersey. I would have bolted that sh1t to the side of the building, then sued you if you gave me any krap about it.
The Great Pumpkin says:
April 14, 2015 at 4:50 pm
Had a huge fight with my tenant over direct tv and installing it. Told him, not on my house. Wasted at least an hour of my time trying to convince me that it is safe to install. I told him does he think I was born yesterday. He finally got the point that it was not going to happen. Kept stressing that direct TV said it will not do any harm to your house. Told him that’s great, so go buy your own house and let them screw holes into your roof. Hate people that do not understand what no means.
“Argghh just got a note from FIOS my contract is up…”
FIOS has some new reasonably priced plans. 50/50 internet + local TV $50 per month. Not terrible.
#167 Chi
Sling TV, $20 a month for ESPN and basic services. I’m done with FIOS May 20th.
http://www.slate.com/articles/business/moneybox/2015/01/should_i_cut_the_cable_cord_decide_on_streaming_services_with_this_calculator.html
#171 Eddie Ray
Unless the expense is unsubstantiated at which point it is classed as a benefit and treated as taxable income.
That is the whole point of looking at CC’s expenses. At some point there may be more cases of the “campaign” picking up the tab for things like he did with the helicopter flights and trips to see the Cowboys. It is interesting that Jerry stepped up to pay the day after. I can see a campaign finance audit in his future.
Banner day for Rubio, welcome to the big dance?
First CC takes a dump with his Social Security plan. Retire at 69. Phase out, of benefits starts at $80K and no benefit at $200K. This will hurt the whole GOP field.
Then O dumps the status of Cuba as a Terr0rist nation into Congress.
#77 Fast Eddie
“I would add a third item: A republican being elected president. All three may never happen in our life time.”
Bingo, we have a winner. I said back in 2008 that the GOP is unelectable until at least 2020 and at this point its more like 2024.
In every election the most important criteria is not your positions, but your opposition. If you have no effective opposition, your positions don’t really matter. Just keep your mouth shut and wave!
So stop your b1tching at O and focus yourself on the real issue, which is that, the GOP need to provide an effective opposition to the Dems before they can think of replacing them.
At this point I put Rand Paul in the lead. Rubio just split Jebs vote. I suspect, he will stop campaigning and go quiet, when Jeb offers him VP under the table.
Sling is not a suitable substitute….already reviewed when it was introduced…..
Fabius Maximus says:
April 14, 2015 at 11:33 pm
#167 Chi
Sling TV, $20 a month for ESPN and basic services. I’m done with FIOS May 20th.
[177] Rory Martin
“Unless the expense is unsubstantiated at which point it is classed as a benefit and treated as taxable income.”
Not always, and it depends on what you mean by “unsubstantiated”
This isn’t a tough area although it requires judgment calls. I haven’t read about the specifics because I’m not interested enough to search it. But it wouldn’t be the first time advocates tried to substitute their judgment for that of the IRS or the Tax Court.