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Database finds southern N.J. housing less costly than north
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A new online database from the state Realtors association shows housing is much more affordable in the southern part of New Jersey.
The Paycheck to Paycheck database, prepared by the independent Center for Housing Policy, says Cape May County had the lowest fair-market rent in the third quarter of 2008, at $895 per month for a two-bedroom apartment.
Salem and Cumberland counties were the least-expensive housing markets, with Atlantic ranked fifth of 21 counties.
For each county, the database - www.njar.com/
paycheck2paycheck - compares the annual income needed to buy a median-priced home with what is earned by typical workers in nearly 30 occupations.
For example, purchase of a $260,000 home in Atlantic County would require an income of $90,403. Income examples (from Salary.com) include a nurse at $67,347, an elementary school teacher at $54,718 and a retail salesperson at $24,071.
Seldom on any of the county charts does the income of a single occupation exceed that needed to buy the median-priced home. In Cumberland County, where a $170,000 home requires just $64,999, a nurse would qualify with $66,190.
Bill Hanley, president of the N.J. Association of Realtors Governmental Research Foundation, said the figures accurately reflect the current market.
"It's very typical in New Jersey that there are two household incomes," Hanley said Monday. "That, combined with the $8,000 tax credit for first-time homebuyers and interest rates where they are, is really giving a home-owning opportunity to people who may not have had one in the past."
In Cape May County, thanks to lower taxes, a home priced at $321,000 requires only slightly more annual income ($90,748) than the house $60,000 cheaper in Atlantic County. Earnings by occupation are similar.
Ocean County is just far enough north to see affordability start to erode, with $95,527 needed to buy a $298,000 home.
The figures are far worse in northern New Jersey, with the worst market for homebuyers in Bergen County. A $481,250 house there requires an annual income of $155,989, yet a typical nurse there earns just $71,426, and the teacher and retail worker make barely more than in southern New Jersey.
Paycheck to Paycheck's fair market two-bedroom rents are $956 in Cumberland County, $1,033 in Atlantic County and $1,251 in Ocean County.
Hanley said the database is part of the state association's effort to help the realty market function better.
"We want to be the place to go to get information on purchasing or selling homes," he said. "We'd like them to have all of the information they need."
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Posted in Business on Tuesday, June 30, 2009 3:05 am
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