Monthly Archives: September 2009

Are home prices up or down?

From the Record: Decline in home prices slows Home prices are still falling, but not as quickly, the Standard & Poor’s Case-Shiller home price index said Tuesday. Prices nationwide were down 13.3 percent in July from July 2008, while prices … Continue reading

Posted in Economics, New Jersey Real Estate | 231 Comments

When Losing is Winning (aka Reverse Pyrrhic Victory?)

From the Wall Street Journal: Would-Be Hovnanian Condo Buyer Lost Bid, But Saved Cash David Bartz doesn’t regret the one that got away. About a year ago, Bartz wanted to buy a $1.4-million unit at 77 Hudson, a 48-story condo … Continue reading

Posted in Housing Bubble, New Jersey Real Estate | 243 Comments

No Quick Recovery For NJ

From Bloomberg: Fed Says New York, New Jersey May Lag National Recovery Trend New York Federal Reserve Bank economists said that while the worst of the recession in New York and New Jersey may be over, a recovery in the … Continue reading

Posted in Economics, New Jersey Real Estate | 42 Comments

“There is no bright spot in New Jersey”

From the Vineland Daily Journal: Property taxes are stealing our way of life New Jersey’s property tax system is broken. But you already know that. What is not well known is that property taxes promote disparities among economic and racial … Continue reading

Posted in New Jersey Real Estate, Property Taxes | 152 Comments

“New Jersey continues as the overall property tax champ”

From the WSJ: New Jersey Moves Up The Property Tax Charts New Jersey, infamous for having some of the highest property taxes in the U.S., is only getting more so. The state has inched its way up on a list … Continue reading

Posted in New Jersey Real Estate, Property Taxes | 167 Comments

Housing “recovery” falters

From MarketWatch: Existing-home sales drop 2.7% in August to 5.1 million pace Resales of U.S. homes dropped 2.7% in August to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.1 million, the first decline in five months, prompting the National Association of … Continue reading

Posted in Economics, National Real Estate | 239 Comments

NJ foreclosure mediation barely makes a dent

Estimated NJ foreclosures: 60,000 Estimated helped by the program: 16,000 Actual helped by the program: 854 (5% of estimate) Cost: Priceless No, really: $12,500,000 (~$15,000 per case) Just for reference, according to RealtyTrac, there were 6,043 Notices of Delinquency, 1,396 … Continue reading

Posted in Foreclosures, New Jersey Real Estate | 314 Comments

NJ tops the list!

From Bloomberg: New Jersey, New York Taxes Are Worst for Business, Study Says New Jersey and New York are the worst of the 50 U.S. states for business because of their tax burdens, a study by the Tax Foundation says. … Continue reading

Posted in Economics, New Jersey Real Estate, Property Taxes | 210 Comments

NJ job numbers not as rosy as first reported

Some Seneca and Hughes (and Mantell) from NJBIZ: Economic Heartbeat: Revised jobs data forecast a gloomy future for N.J. This may be the case for some time to come if the United States repeats the employment change pattern of the … Continue reading

Posted in Economics, New Jersey Real Estate | 152 Comments

No respite for mortgage delinqencies

From Reuters via CNBC: Mortgage Delinquencies Rise Alongside Unemployment High U.S. unemployment keeps pushing up the rate of mortgage delinquencies, which could in turn drive personal bankruptcies and home foreclosures, monthly data from the Equifax credit bureau showed on Monday. … Continue reading

Posted in Foreclosures, Housing Bubble, National Real Estate | 47 Comments

“Things could get ugly”

From Bloomberg: Housing Suffering Relapse Confronts Bernanke Credit Conundrum The recovering housing market may be heading for a relapse as President Barack Obama and Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke consider ending support for the source of the global financial … Continue reading

Posted in Economics, Housing Bubble, National Real Estate | 182 Comments

Moody’s: NJ home prices will take 10 years to return to peak

From MarketWatch: Moody’s bearish on housing recovery Moody’s Investors Service threw cold water on optimistic projections of a V-shaped recovery in the battered U.S. housing market, predicting it could take more than 10 years to get back to boom-level prices. … Continue reading

Posted in Economics, Housing Bubble, New Jersey Real Estate | 174 Comments

NJ unemployment rockets to 9.7%

From New Jersey Newsroom: N.J. jobless rate climbs to 9.7 percent, highest in 33 years New Jersey unemployment climbed to a 33-year-high of 9.7 percent in August but preliminary estimates show that job growth continued for a second month after … Continue reading

Posted in Economics | 356 Comments

Money well spent or a “a questionable redistributive policy”?

From the NY Times: Fight Looms in Congress on Tax Break for Home Buyers When Congress passed an $8,000 tax credit for first-time home buyers last winter, it was intended as a dose of shock therapy during a crisis. Now … Continue reading

Posted in Economics, Housing Bubble, National Real Estate | 213 Comments

Save housing, at any cost.

From the WSJ: No Easy Exit for Government as Housing Market’s Savior After a year of extraordinary interventions in the economy, the federal government is starting to pare its support for the private sector. It doesn’t look that way to … Continue reading

Posted in Economics, Housing Bubble, National Real Estate | 212 Comments