Real estate records need an overhaul

Posted on September 15, 2026 by grim

From NJ Spotlight News:

NJ needs stronger safeguards against real-estate scam, state watchdog says

People in New Jersey are increasingly falling victim to a real-estate scam called deed theft, and several laws proposed in the Legislature offer incomplete protection, according to a nearly yearlong inquiry by the State Commission of Investigation.

An 85-page report issued Thursday reinforced a nationwide warning from the FBI in 2024 that said fraudsters are “impersonating the true owners of real property, wresting away control, transferring title, and recording the deed to those properties in a new name, all before the victim learns of the loss.”

Deed fraud “is underreported, inconsistently tracked and difficult to prevent under existing law,” according to the new state report. The State Commission of Investigation is an independent agency that looks for evidence of public corruption; organized crime; and waste, fraud and abuse of taxpayer resources.

Only Florida had more deed-theft reports than New Jersey, where the FBI found 135 instances from January 2020-March 2026, mostly in Bergen, Cape May, Ocean and Sussex counties.

“The FBI cautioned, however, that the approximately 135 reported incidents likely understates the true scope of the problem because many go unreported or are categorized under still broader fraud classifications,” the report stated.

Property owners in Hunterdon and Warren counties may be most vulnerable, as their local government offices lack digital programs to detect unusual real-estate activity, the report found.

“County clerks generally viewed these as a helpful, but limited, tool. They allow for earlier detection, but are not designed to prevent a fraud prior to recording,” according to the report.

The losses involve more than the property, as rightful owners are saddled with legal fees to defend their titles. One case, in Jersey City, took six years to resolve, according to the report. Among the wrongdoing reviewed by investigators:

In Gloucester County, heirs found that their late father’s house was sold for $1 and rented to tenants who were unaware of the fraud.

In Warren County, a buyer paid $60,000 for land, only to meet the true owner when he visited the property.

Posted in New Jersey Real Estate, Risky Lending | 59 Comments

Read it and weep

Posted on September 13, 2026 by grim

From the NY Post:

NYC suburb is now the toughest place in America to buy a house

Long Island homeowners looking to cash in have never had it better, even as sellers everywhere else are getting squeezed.

New data from Redfin shows the New York City suburbs are swimming against a national tide that has turned hard against sellers. 

Redfin found 39 of the 50 biggest metros in America are now buyer’s markets, meaning house hunters from Miami to Houston are finally catching a break after years of getting outbid. 

But Long Island just got crowned the single strongest seller’s market anywhere in the country, bucking that trend completely. The reason: big demand for being near Manhattan.

Nassau and Suffolk counties are seeing 36.2% fewer sellers than buyers, an imbalance so severe it dwarfs every other market Redfin tracked.

Northern New Jersey landed at No. 2 nationally with a 20.7% buyer surplus, while Central Jersey rounded out the top five at 12.9%.

Posted in Gold Coast, Housing Bubble, New Jersey Real Estate, NYC | 57 Comments

Existing home sales drop

Posted on September 11, 2026 by grim

From CNBC:

Home sales fall in August despite the highest supply in over a decade

Homebuyers continue to struggle amid higher mortgage rates and lofty home prices. 

Sales of previously owned homes fell 2% in August from July to 3.98 million units on a seasonally adjusted, annualized basis, according to the National Association of Realtors. The sales activity marked the slowest pace since June 2025 and was felt hardest in the Northeast and Midwest. 

Sales were down 1.2% year over year. 

This count is based on closings, so contracts likely signed in June and July, when mortgage rates were higher than they were in the spring. Rates moved sharply higher in the middle of July.

“Mortgage rates and home sales move in opposite directions, so it’s not surprising to see a mild dip in home buying activity due to high mortgage rates,” said Lawrence Yun, chief economist for the Realtors. “Still, home prices are rising, and existing home sales are actually up 1.6% year-to-date through the first eight months of the year.”

Housing supply totaled 1.62 million homes for sale at the end of August, up 3.2% from July and up 5.9% from the year before. At the current sales pace, that represents a 4.9-month supply — the highest level in more than a decade, according to NAR. 

Despite more supply, prices continue to rise. The median price of a home sold in August was $429,100, up 1.6% from August 2025. That is a new high for the month of August. 

Price gains were strongest in the Northeast, where inventory is lowest. The West was the only region to see a median price decline year over year.

Sales continue to be strongest on the highest end of the market. Compared with August 2025, sales of homes priced between $100,000 and $250,000 were down 10%, while sales of homes priced above $1 million were 3.9% higher. The million-dollar-plus range was the only price range that saw increased sales.

Posted in Housing Bubble, Mortgages, National Real Estate | 102 Comments

Data centers good or bad for real estate?

Posted on September 10, 2026 by grim

From the Realtors:

Is There a ‘Data-Center Effect’ on Real Estate?

A surge in data center development capable of powering the AI boom is unfolding across the country, bringing massive facilities—with often their demanding energy and water needs—closer to residential communities. That’s raising a new question for home buyers and homeowners: What’s the impact of living near a data center?

The National Association of REALTORS®, which maintains no official policy position on data centers, is taking a closer look at the growth in its newly released report, “2026 Data Center Impact,” which measures data centers up against county-level performance in home values, employment, electricity costs and more, as well as survey feedback from real estate agents.

Overall, “there is no single data center effect,” says Lawrence Yun, NAR’s chief economist. “Instead, the story varies significantly depending on the local market. … We do not see evidence of weaker housing markets in counties with a large data center presence. But these are county-level numbers, and they can’t tell us what happens to an individual home next to a facility. That’s why local knowledge and credible data matter so much right now.”
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Growth appears to be clustered in limited areas, led by Northern Virginia, notably Loudoun, Prince William and Fairfax counties, which comprise about 21% of data centers nationally. Other hubs emerging for data centers include Silicon Valley (5%); central Ohio, particularly Franklin and Licking counties (5%); the Phoenix area (4%); and central Washington (4%).  
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NAR’s analysis found that data centers tend to be in higher-cost housing markets that have strong long-term housing appreciation and job growth. For example, the median home value in counties with no data centers is $174,500, whereas in counties with 10 or more data centers, the median home value is $431,750.

But “higher home values or faster price appreciation do not necessarily mean that data centers caused home values to increase,” the report says. “In fact, many of the country’s largest data center markets were already very different from the typical county. Some are large metropolitan areas with strong technology and professional sectors, while others offer power, land or infrastructure that has helped attract data center investment.”
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Anecdotally, real estate pros are mixed on the impact data centers have when they come to town: 25% of agents surveyed say they see a positive effect on nearby home values, 22% perceive a negative impact and about one-third of respondents were unsure. Sixteen percent of real estate agents said they thought data centers led to at least a 5% increase in nearby property values, whereas 11% thought their presence prompted a 5% decrease to values.

Real estate pros also were mixed on how the presence of data centers affected demand for residential properties near them: 26% said it decreased demand, 27% said it had no change, and 19% reported an increase in demand.
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Meanwhile, real estate professionals viewed the impact of data centers on nearby commercial properties as much more favorable. Fifty percent of agents surveyed by NAR reported an increase in commercial property values in proximity to data centers, and 42% reported an uptick in demand for nearby commercial space, particularly industrial properties and land. About 22% of agents reported having a nearby data center prompted commercial property values to increase by more than 10%.

“Data centers are increasing industrial land and commercial property values as they attract economic development, infrastructure investment and related businesses,” the report notes, based on agents’ feedback.

Posted in Economics, New Development | 100 Comments

Good thing NJ doesn’t need to work

Posted on September 9, 2026 by grim

From Patch:

NJ Layoffs Spike With Nearly 4,500 Job Cuts In Summer 

Layoffs have continued to surge in New Jersey this summer, with nearly 4,500 job cuts announced across a variety of sectors, according to notices filed with the state Department of Labor. 

More than 30 Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act notices were filed by 25 companies from June 1 through Aug. 31, according to the state.

The total layoffs announced in New Jersey so far in 2026 is 12,980 as of Aug. 31, a 45 percent increase over the 8,979 announced through Aug. 31 in 2025. The 4,473 summer layoff total for 2026 is more than 2.5 times the 1,763 in cuts announced in the summer of 2025.

The surge in summer layoff notices comes as a new report from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics says employment in the state was essentially unchanged in March 2026, with 4,247,800 people employed, as measured by the Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW) program.

That report also said employment declined in 10 of New Jersey’s largest counties from March 2025 through March 2026, with Somerset County seeing the largest decrease in employment, down 2.5 percent, in the state during that time period.
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Overall, New Jersey’s unemployment rate was 4.4 percent in July; the August unemployment rate has not been released yet. The Bureau of Labor Statistics said the state shed 25,000 jobs in July, though state officials questioned the estimates. 

The summer layoff surge was led by Samsung, which announced 918 job cuts in the summer. The electronics giant is cutting those positions at two sites — 739 at Englewood Cliffs by Sept. 30, and 179 in Ridgefield Park effective Oct. 1. 

Verizon, which has made significant job cuts under new CEO Daniel Schulman (13,000 cuts were announced in 2025 and 3,000 were announced in May), is cutting 473 positions in three notices filed in the summer. Overall Verizon has cut 594 jobs in 2026 in New Jersey. 

Other large layoffs this summer include Novartis, which announced in July it was eliminating 322 positions by Oct. 2 at its East Hanover location, part of 572 cuts in 2026; Mars/Wrigley, which is eliminating 307 positions when it closes its site in Newark in October; Hello Fresh, which is eliminating 374 jobs in Swedesboro when it shuts down that operation in November, and JP Morgan Chase, which announced 235 cuts to be completed by mid-November, part of 540 layoffs since the start of 2026.

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

Not everywhere can be New Jersey

Posted on September 8, 2026 by grim

From Fast Company:

Home prices are falling in 36 of the 50 biggest U.S. metros. These 10 are dropping fastest

Real estate list prices are gradually falling around the country, but cities aren’t experiencing the shift evenly as we slide into fall. 

In a new report, Realtor.com found that price trends across the country’s major cities vary, dictated by a mix of local factors, stubbornly high mortgage rates, and the ever-changing dance between supply and demand. Cities that saw home prices soar sky-high during the pandemic homebuying blitz are seeing pricing return to earth – a boon for weary buyers but a less welcome sign for sellers expecting to call the shots.

August saw the 10th straight monthly year-over-year decrease in price per square foot, with the measure falling 1.8% nationally compared to last year. During the same time period, median list prices fell year-over-year in three out of four U.S. regions, with prices dropping in the Northeast, the South, and the West. In the Midwest, the median list price stayed stable during the same time period.

Out of the top 50 metro areas in the country, the median list price per square foot dipped in 36 markets, a shift that Realtor described as a “sign that it’s ‘game over’ for unrealistic seller demands.” Austin, Tampa, and Memphis experienced the most marked declines in pricing per square foot, sliding 8.1%, 5.6%, and 4.1% respectively. Meanwhile, Providence, Indianapolis, and Chicago all saw gains in the same measure, perking up by 9.3%, 4.4%, and 3.6%.

“One common thread for most markets—including Austin, Tampa, San Antonio, Denver—is 2020–22 boomtowns continuing to give back some of their pandemic-era gains,” Realtor.com Senior Economist Jake Krimmel said in the report. “These are also, by and large, places with much more inventory now than pre-pandemic norms.”

Posted in Housing Bubble, National Real Estate | 35 Comments

Those who least benefit from paying down their mortgage, are paying down their mortgage

Posted on September 5, 2026 by grim

From Rocket Money:

Nearly One in Four Homeowners Make an Extra Mortgage Payment Each Year, Cutting as Many as Six Years Off Their Loan

For many Americans, a key financial health goal is reducing their debt as quickly as possible – and homeowners are no exception. Rocket Mortgage data shows that roughly one in four clients make at least one additional principal payment each year. Among those who do, average contributions add up to the equivalent of one extra monthly mortgage payment annually.

While making 13 mortgage payments each year may not seem like much, the strategy can have a meaningful impact over the life of the loan, shortening some homeowners’ payoff timeline by nearly six years.

This analysis is based on a review of additional principal payments made by Rocket Mortgage clients between January 2021 and January 2026.
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Homeowners who locked in ultra-low mortgage rates during 2020 through 2022 are more likely to make extra principal payments than those who bought after rates climbed.

That may seem counterintuitive, since a loan of 3% falls at or around the current inflation rate. Homeowners with higher interest rates have the most to save by paying down their mortgage early because every extra dollar reduces future interest costs. However, homeowners with lower mortgage rates typically have smaller required monthly payments, leaving more room in their budgets to send additional money toward their loan balance.

Those with higher-rate mortgages, on the other hand, often face larger monthly housing costs alongside rising everyday expenses, making it more difficult to consistently pay beyond the minimum, even though doing so could save them money over the life of the loan.

Posted in Demographics, Economics, Mortgages, National Real Estate | 104 Comments

Jobs Day!

Posted on September 4, 2026 by grim

From CNBC:

The big August jobs report is due out Friday. Here’s what to expect for what has been a jobless summer

The August jobs report set to be released Friday is expected to put the final touches on what has been a relatively jobless summer.

If expectations hold, the Bureau of Labor Statistics count will show growth of just 53,000 in nonfarm payrolls, according to the Dow Jones consensus estimate. Even with the anemic growth rate, that is expected to be enough to keep the unemployment rate at 4.1%.

More broadly, though, the report would follow counts for June and July that together showed a net loss of 3,000 jobs. Also, the initial August numbers have been revised lower for the past four years in a row.

Together, the data suggest a labor market in neither boom nor bust mode — one that is increasingly becoming an afterthought for Federal Reserve officialslooking to plot their next monetary policy action.

The current state of the jobs picture is “stable but unexciting,” said Dan North, senior economist for Allianz Trade North America.

“I don’t see a whole lot of really robust growth, which is understandable because if you’re an employer, you’re sitting here and you’ve got a war going on, energy prices going up and down, tariffs, and the administration changing everything overnight from day to day,” he added. “So you’ve got a lot of uncertainties out there.”

Indeed, geopolitical uncertainty and the impact of artificial intelligence are two dominant labor market themes, along with a shrinking labor force that has helped keep the unemployment rate in check.

Despite the various pressures, companies have avoided widespread layoffs. Weekly jobless claims have been in check, and the total layoff pace in 2026 is the slowest in four years, according to outplacement consultants Challenger, Gray & Christmas.

Posted in Demographics, Economics, Employment, National Real Estate | 64 Comments

Get ready for the solar panels

Posted on September 3, 2026 by grim

From Patch:

NJ Landlords Must Allow ‘Balcony Solar Panels’ Under New Law

New Jersey landlords and homeowner associations will have to allow their residents to put up “balcony solar panels” under a new state law.

Gov. Mikie Sherrill signed the Garden State Balcony Solar Act (S2368/A4836) on Tuesday, getting a cheer from several environmental advocacy groups.

Balcony solar devices plug into a standard 120-volt outlet: most units come with a microinverter and adapter. The devices provide electricity directly to a home’s existing electrical system, and are available for purchase online and at local home improvement stores.

The new law exempts qualifying plug-in solar devices of up to 1,200 watts – roughly equivalent to the power used by a microwave oven – from utility interconnection and metering requirements, including certain fees, approvals and equipment mandates.

The law prevents landlords, homeowner associations and similar entities from broadly prohibiting the use of these devices. It also bars municipalities from prohibiting them or requiring permits for their use.

“Balcony solar is a practical, easy-to-use tool that can help families save money while allowing more people to participate in our clean energy future,” Sherrill said.

“This bill cuts unnecessary red tape, expands access to affordable solar power, and proves that affordability and sustainability can go hand in hand,” she added.

Posted in New Development, New Jersey Real Estate | 62 Comments

AI is going to make us all rich

Posted on September 2, 2026 by grim

From NPR:

AI wealth is creating a ‘mansion shortage’ and upending San Francisco’s housing market

Inside the condo that Russell toured, a steady stream of people checked out the modern three-bedroom with big windows facing a shared garden. At 1,600 square feet and an asking price of $2 million, it qualifies as entry level for families here and is a steal in the current market, said Paul Kitchen, a real estate agent with Compass brokerage.

“We’ve done more business this year than we’ve done ever, setting records throughout,” he said.

Compass finds that the median home sales price in San Francisco has skyrocketed 25% from a year ago. Kitchen has seen some properties pushed even higher than that as sales frequently turn into bidding wars.

“We’ve had clients who’ve bid, and it turned out there were 50 offers,” he said, which takes an emotional toll on the many who lose out. “That’s 49 agents who’ve talked through the night with their clients, people that have envisioned themselves there — they’ve talked to their banker, their loan officer.”

At the highest end, even all-cash offers of $25 million and more have gotten outbid. “You have to laugh just because it is so ridiculous and so beyond the pale,” he said.

This new demand with a lack of supply, especially of single-family homes, has been dubbed a “mansion shortage” by Compass and others.

“In June, there were 44 home sales that went at least a million dollars over the asking price,” said Mike Simonsen, who tracks citywide sales as chief economist for Compass.

Posted in Housing Bubble, National Real Estate, Unrest | 64 Comments

What’s it going to sell for?

Posted on September 1, 2026 by grim

From NJ.com:

Tiny Jersey Shore cottage just got 12 offers — all over asking price

Posted in Shore Real Estate | 30 Comments

Jersey Strong … Atlantic City? Wellllllll…..

Posted on August 31, 2026 by grim

From ROI-NJ:

ATTOM data says national vacancy rate unchanged in Q3; N.J. rates among lowest in U.S.

ATTOM, an Irvine, Calif.-based provider of property data, said its third-quarter analysis of vacant and zombie homes found that the national vacancy rate held firm at 1.3% compared with the same period a year ago, even as vacancy rates fell in a majority of states. The national “zombie” home rate declined slightly to 3.3%.

Zombies means the owners had abandoned the properties before the end of their foreclosure proceedings. New Jersey vacancy rates in several categories were among the lowest in the nation.

The report analyzes publicly recorded real estate data collected by ATTOM — including foreclosure status, equity and owner-occupancy status — matched against monthly updated vacancy data.

“It remains very hard to find an empty home for prospective buyers in most regions,” said Rob Barber, CEO of ATTOM. “In 19 states, the home vacancy rate is below 1%, creating a bottleneck that is helping to keep prices high.”

The lowest vacancy rates in the third quarter were in New Hampshire (0.3%); Vermont (0.4%); New Jersey (0.5%); Connecticut (0.5%); and Idaho (0.5 %).

The states with the highest overall home vacancy rates were Oklahoma (2.4%); Kansas (2.4%); Alabama (2.2%); West Virginia (2.1%); and Missouri (2.1%).

Out of the country’s 104.6 million residential properties, 259,666 were in the foreclosure process in the third quarter of 2026. About 3.3% of those, or 8,482 properties, were “zombies.” That zombie rate was slightly lower than the 3.4% of properties posted in both the prior quarter and at the same time last year.

Out of 140 metropolitan statistical areas with sufficient data to analyze, meaning they had at least 100,00 residential properties and at least 50 properties in the foreclosure process, the lowest zombie rates were in Bridgeport, Conn. (0%); Huntsville, Ala. (0%); Trenton (0.1%); Provo, Utah (0.2%); and Atlantic City (0.4%).

The highest zombie rates were in Youngstown, Ohio (12.1% of homes in foreclosure were vacant); Cedar Rapids, Iowa (11.6%); Baltimore (11.5%); Fort Wayne, Ind. (11.1%); and Akron, Ohio (10.5%).

Posted in New Jersey Real Estate, Shore Real Estate | 96 Comments

We are so great, we are so great, everybody loves us ‘cuz we are so great

Posted on August 30, 2026 by grim

From the Philly Inquirer:

New Jersey outpaced most other states in typical housing wealth in a national study

The typical homeowner in New Jersey has one of the highest levels of housing wealth in the country, according to a study by LendingTree, an online loan marketplace.

The state was one of the top five where homeowners reported having the most home equity in the first quarter of the year, according to an analysis of more than 965,000 anonymized inquiries for home equity loans and home equity lines of credit submitted through LendingTree.

Home equity shoppers in New Jersey reported having a median of about $295,000 in equity, meaning half had more and half had less. The Garden State tied with Washington state in the rankings, but New Jersey had a slightly higher share of homeowners with at least $200,000 in equity — almost three in four shoppers.
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Home equity shoppers in Hawaii reported having the most housing wealth — a median of about $425,000, according to the LendingTree analysis. More than 80% of these homeowners had at least $200,000 in home equity.

California came in at second for median housing wealth — about $350,000.

Pennsylvania ranked 34th. Home equity shoppers on LendingTree’s platform reported having a median of $180,000.

Of the 50 states, West Virginia and Iowa were tied for last place. Home equity shoppers in these states reported having a median of about $130,000 in equity.

Differences among states “are a reminder that the home equity story can look very different depending on where you live,” Schulz said.

“For some homeowners, their house can provide a huge financial cushion,” he said. “For others, there may be far less wiggle room.”

But in total, U.S. homeowners “are sitting on an extraordinary amount of housing wealth,” Schulz said.

Posted in General | 50 Comments

You really don’t own in Jersey City

Posted on August 28, 2026 by grim

From Fox5:

Jersey City lawmakers approve 15% property tax hike amid budget crisis

After months of back-and-forth talks about Jersey City’s budget crisis, local lawmakers have voted to stick property owners with the bill.

What we know:

The City Council in Jersey City approved and implemented a 15% municipal property tax rate hike Wednesday night.

The tax raise amounts to about $51 more per month for the average residential property, without including any other budget increases. 

New Jersey state lawmakers approved a $120 million rescue package for Jersey City earlier this year, which came with an agreement that the local property tax rate would increase by at least 15%.

What they’re saying:

Mayor James Solomon said it became necessary to raise property taxes in order to reduce the deficit and prevent mass layoffs of city workers by slashing services. 

He blamed the city’s financial crisis and resulting tax increase on mismanagement by the previous administration.

“There are no easy solutions to a budget crisis of this magnitude … In the end, we cut city spending by over $58 million and limited this year’s tax increase to the lowest possible level,” a spokesperson for the mayor said in a statement to FOX 5 NY. “While both the cuts and tax increase are painful, we believe they are the first steps towards getting Jersey City’s finances back to health and stable.” 

Local perspective:

Jersey City residents said the 15% property tax hike could drive them out of the city. 

“Something has to give. Like, this is crazy,” one resident said. “They’re hitting us every which way. Who can afford a home in Jersey City anymore?” 

Posted in Gold Coast, New Jersey Real Estate, Unrest | 80 Comments

You don’t own your home

Posted on August 27, 2026 by grim

From HousingWire:

Property taxes are the housing affordability crisis no one wants to touch

A mortgage has a final payment. Property taxes do not. That distinction is becoming increasingly important as the housing industry searches for answers to an affordability crisis it usually defines in terms of home prices, mortgage rates and household income.

Those are obviously major factors. But they are not the entire payment.

Property taxes can add hundreds or even thousands of dollars to a homeowner’s monthly housing expense. They reduce buyer qualification, diminish purchasing power and continue long after the mortgage has been satisfied.

In 2025, approximately $396.8 billion in property taxes were levied on more than 89.6 million single-family homes in the United States. The average bill reached $4,427, or nearly $369 per month, according to ATTOM.

At a hypothetical mortgage rate of 6.5%, that $369 monthly tax payment is roughly equivalent to the principal-and-interest payment on $58,000 of 30-year mortgage debt. That makes property-tax policy housing policy.

It also raises a question that deserves far more attention from agents, lenders, builders, economists and policymakers: What would happen to the housing market if homeowners were allowed to keep more of that money?
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This may be the most disturbing part of the property-tax system. A homeowner can make every mortgage payment for 30 years. The loan can be satisfied. The bank’s lien can be removed. The house can be owned without a mortgage.

The homeowner can still lose that house for failing to pay property taxes.

Older homeowners are especially vulnerable. Many are house-rich but cash-poor. They may possess hundreds of thousands of dollars in equity while living on fixed incomes that do not keep pace with rising taxes, insurance and maintenance expenses.

The risk can increase after the mortgage is paid off. While the loan is active, the mortgage servicer often collects property taxes through an escrow account and pays the taxing authority automatically. When the mortgage ends, that system may disappear.
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How many Americans lose homes this way every year?

The honest answer is that no one knows and that may be the most troubling fact of all.

Posted in National Real Estate, Property Taxes | 95 Comments