For years, Hoboken’s rents and median sale numbers were the barometer by which other cities along the Jersey side of the Hudson had measured themselves. But in the first quarter of 2017, Downtown Jersey City’s median sale prices for both 1-4 family homes and condominiums actually surpassed Hoboken for the first time since 1996.
Some were left wondering if Downtown JC could become the new market leader and if Hoboken had perhaps plateaued after years of appreciation. But a new market report by Pure Properties for southern Hudson County shows that the Mile Square City rebounded during this year’s 2nd quarter and took back the top sales price slot, although the competition with their southern neighbor remains fierce.
While last quarter suggested a potential decoupling between the two heavyweights, the latest report suggests more synchronized trends between them. On the rental side, median prices for both Hoboken and Downtown JC have been neck and neck for the past four quarters and they continue to be, clocking in at $2,600 and $2,700 respectively during Q2 this year.
In terms of sales, Hoboken boasted the most expensive single-family sales in 2017’s 2nd Quarter with an average median price for 1-4 family homes at $1.67 million, while Downtown Jersey City prices softened 2% to $1.25 million year-on-year.
For condominiums, the median sales price in Hoboken was $732,000, up 8% year-on-year, and Downtown Jersey City prices increased 12% over that same time to $730,000 from $649,500. But while median price figures increased in the neighborhoods, they both saw a decline in the overall quantity of sales of 14% and 21%, respectively.
Jersey City’s best performing neighborhood outside of Downtown was The Heights. 1-4 family sale prices were up 15% to average $500,000 last quarter, while condominium sale prices clocked in at an average of $386,000, a 47% quarterly increase. Median sale prices for condos in The Heights have gone up a whopping 64% since last year, while 1-4 family home prices have increased 18%.
Journal Square’s appreciation is unquestionably slower, but nonetheless appears steady. That neighborhood’s 1-4 family home average sales price increased to $457,000, a 24% jump since the last quarter but only a 2% increase since last year. Condo sales prices average to $275,000, a 3% quarterly change and up 7% over a year’s time. Rents in the neighborhood actually went down to $1,700/month, a 5% decrease compared to this time last year.
On the short-term downside, Bergen-Lafayette saw 10% and 13% declines in median sales prices for 1-4 family homes and condominiums respectively, but can still boast about appreciation of 26% and 87% in those departments since this time last year. It should be noted that the neighborhood had just nine total transactions the entire last quarter, and smaller sample sizes tend to create more erratic numbers.
West Bergen and Greenville both had rents that fell slightly, but continued their steady property appreciation. West Bergen’s 1-4 family median sales prices were up 24% in the quarter, although median prices for condos fell 15%. Greenville’s 1-4 family and condo median prices were up 2% and 6% in the quarter.
The report overall contained mostly good news for Hudson County homeowners, and the Hoboken-Downtown Jersey City sales price battle will be the interesting race to watch for the foreseeable future.
For more granular data on all the neighborhoods, download the full report, courtesy of Pure Properties, here: South Hudson County Market Report Q2 2017
