Monthly Archives: December 2018

Predictions 2019!

Posted on December 31, 2018 by grim

This is becoming a tradition around here, so here we go again! You know how this works, break out the crystal balls and prognosticate. Ground Rules Predictions provided should either be for June 30th, 2019 or December 31st, 2019, please … Continue reading →

Posted in Demographics, Economics, Employment, Foreclosures | 95 Comments

Pending sales fall again, 11th consecutive month

Posted on December 29, 2018 by grim

From CNBC: Pending home sales fall unexpectedly in November Contracts to buy previously owned homes fell unexpectedly in November, the National Association of Realtors said on Friday, the latest sign of weakness in the U.S. housing market. The NAR’s pending … Continue reading →

Posted in Demographics, Economics, Employment, Housing Recovery, National Real Estate | 27 Comments

Gains continue to moderate

Posted on December 27, 2018 by grim

From MarketWatch: U.S. home-price gains keep slowing as higher rates scare off buyers, Case-Shiller shows The S&P/Case-Shiller 20-city index rose a seasonally adjusted 0.4% in October but in a clear sign of the housing market’s recent struggles the increase in … Continue reading →

Posted in Economics, Housing Bubble, Housing Recovery, National Real Estate | 51 Comments

Flippers pulling out

Posted on December 26, 2018 by grim

From the Washington Post: Home flipping takes a hit In yet another sign of a slowdown in the national housing market, the number of homes that were flipped — sold within one year of purchase — declined by 12 percent … Continue reading →

Posted in Economics, Housing Recovery, National Real Estate | 38 Comments

What middle class?

Posted on December 24, 2018 by grim

From the New York Post: New York City’s endangered middle class in exodus, analysts say New York City’s shrinking middle class is now in full retreat, as masses of our most endangered population depart the city in numbers not seen … Continue reading →

Posted in Demographics, Economics, Employment, NYC | 24 Comments

The New Manhattan

Posted on December 21, 2018 by grim

From Crains: Mounting Manhattan inventory pulls down home prices Prospective Manhattan home buyers had plenty of options in November, and their wallets were thankful for it. The average price of condos, co-ops, townhouses and single-family homes on the market dropped … Continue reading →

Posted in Gold Coast, NYC | 92 Comments

NY & CT lose population, NJ gains

Posted on December 20, 2018 by grim

From the Census Department: Nevada and Idaho Are the Nation’s Fastest-Growing States he U.S. population grew by 0.6 percent and Nevada and Idaho were the nation’s fastest-growing states between July 1, 2017, and July 1, 2018. Both states’ populations increased … Continue reading →

Posted in Demographics, Economics, National Real Estate | 76 Comments

Shiller’s Take

Posted on December 19, 2018 by grim

From the NYT: The Housing Boom Is Already Gigantic. How Long Can It Last? We are, once again, experiencing one of the greatest housing booms in United States history. How long this will last and where it is heading next … Continue reading →

Posted in Demographics, Economics, Employment, Housing Bubble, National Real Estate | 97 Comments

End of Trump’s boom?

Posted on December 17, 2018 by grim

From Bloomberg: Americans Turn More Pessimistic on Economy The number of Americans expecting the U.S. economy to get worse in the next year is at its highest point since 2013, a national NBC/Wall Street Journal poll shows. … Overall, 28 … Continue reading →

Posted in Economics, Employment, General, National Real Estate | 87 Comments

Not just here?

Posted on December 15, 2018 by grim

From CNBC: Goodbye to bidding wars: Some of the hottest housing markets are falling the hardest It was just last spring that home buyers in most of the nation were digging ever deeper into their pockets, bracing for a bidding … Continue reading →

Posted in Housing Bubble, National Real Estate | 21 Comments

It’s different now, or is it a different kind of bubble now?

Posted on December 14, 2018 by grim

From Bloomberg: Trouble in Housing? It’s More 1994 Than 2007 Housing market softness in the back half of 2018 has investors and the public wondering how bad things might get. It’s understandable that people would be worried, considering that the … Continue reading →

Posted in Economics, Housing Bubble, Housing Recovery, National Real Estate | 12 Comments

Another day another tax

Posted on December 13, 2018 by grim

From NJ101.5: WHY FEWER CHEAP FLIGHTS MIGHT BE FOUND AT NEWARK AIRPORT Your chances of finding a cheap flight out of Newark Liberty International Airport could soon go down dramatically. You may want to expand your search to John F. … Continue reading →

Posted in Demographics, Economics, Employment, New Jersey Real Estate, Politics | 103 Comments

Optimistic … but

Posted on December 11, 2018 by grim

From NJ101.5: HOW NJ BUSINESSES FEEL ABOUT ECONOMY, MINIMUM WAGE IN 2019 New Jersey businesses don’t really like much about the state in which they operate, but most expect an uptick in sales and profits in 2019, according to a … Continue reading →

Posted in Demographics, Economics, Employment, New Jersey Real Estate | 143 Comments

What’s more important, whether people have jobs, or what they get paid?

Posted on December 10, 2018 by grim

From NJ Patch: Approximately 1,000 NJ Jobs Will Be Gone By The New Year Some of the announcements came before the stock market plummeted on Tuesday, and talk of a possible recession arose. But the sting of about 1,000 layoffs … Continue reading →

Posted in Demographics, Economics, Employment, New Jersey Real Estate | 60 Comments

Jobs boom over, or room to run?

Posted on December 8, 2018 by grim

From Bloomberg: Will the U.S. Jobs Boom Last? The U.S. unemployment rate is at an almost 50-year low. Companies increasingly say that workers are hard to find. So how much longer can hiring keep up the pace of the past … Continue reading →

Posted in Demographics, Economics, Employment, National Real Estate | 30 Comments