The Headlines
Decline Persists in Prices of Homes (The Record)
Home Prices Decline in Area, But Not as Bad as Elsewhere (The Record)
A Slump That’s Far From Over (NY Times)
Is America's Suburban Dream Collapsing Into A Nightmare? (CNN)
Sound familiar? These headlines and TV reports are missing the real facts about real estate. Below are the facts. You decide.
The issue with the information: The media frequently bases headlines, like the ones above, with real estate data that is national or regional in nature. The data reported: median sales price, numbers of existing and new home sales, days on the market and average sales price, is valid data. However, conclusions about local real estate markets, based upon national or even regional statistics, can be incorrect. Essentially, the national numbers are just that: averages (national) of averages (state) of averages (county) of averages (town).
What you need to know: The real estate market is highly regionalized. Markets behave differently from city to city, county to county and state to state. For example, the National median sales price of a single-family home for the 1st Quarter 2009 was reported as $169,000¹. The New Jersey median sales price was $299,800². The Bergen County median sales price was $428,000³. And, the median sales price for Ridgewood, NJ (a randomly-selected town within Bergen County) was $685,000³. As you can see, there are dramatic differences in these numbers.
The bottom line: The decision to buy or sell in a specific town should not be based on national statistics. Rather, buyers and sellers should consult a local Realtor® for a review of historical data for the specific local market(s) they are considering.
- The Truth Behind Declining Prices
- Foreclosures/Short Sale Properties: Opportunity or Potential Nightmare?
- Mortgage Money Is Available
- Learn About the Tax Credit (up to $8,000) for First-Time Buyers
- Learn More About the Bergen Market
Sources:
¹ National Association of Realtors@reg;, 2009Q1 Statistics
² New Jersey Association of Realtors@reg;, 2009Q1 Statistics
³ New Jersey Multiple Listing Service (NJMLS), 2009Q1 Statistics
