The New Jersey MLS (NJMLS) has released its market report for June, 2015. The number of homes under contract in June was up 20% over the same month last year.
Download: June Housing Market Update for Northern New Jersey (pdf)
That’s a startling number considering last year’s spring market was very healthy.
Year to date, Essex County experienced the biggest increase in sales activity across northern New Jersey, with an 18.3% increase in residential properties under contract. In Bergen County, residential sales increased by 11.3%.
Despite the increased activity, median sales prices have been fairly flat. YTD, the median sold price for residential sales in 2015 is up only 0.3% in Bergen County. Across all areas in northern New Jersey, the increase was 1.6%. Those numbers may increase in July as the large number of June contracts begin to close.
The number of new listings increased in June by 10.9%. While that may initially be cause for concern, the absorption rate has actually decreased during the same period. The absorption rate is a measure of the inventory of homes on the market – the number of months supply of homes currently listed for sale. The absorption rate for residential properties decreased by 4.3% in June over the same period last year. For condos and townhouses, a subset of this group, the absorption rate increased by 1.4%. Still, the rate for condos/townhouses is nearly the same as that of residential properties overall.
Download: June Housing Market Update for Northern New Jersey (pdf)
Absorption rates for residential categories are in the range of 6.8 to 7.0 months, which is a healthy number. In the more desirable parts of northern New Jersey, the rates are much lower.
For housing data within a specific village, borough or city, please call Michael Shetler at 201-421-0506 cell or 201-445-4300 x231 office.