The New Jersey real estate market in January saw both positive and negative trends for potential homebuyers.
Only about half of New Jersey's 21 counties saw an increase in new home listings compared to January 2023. This is a positive sign after a long period of housing inventory shortages across the state. And in all 21 counties, home prices rose in January compared to last year. This is good news for those who want to sell, but bad news for those who want to buy.
Mortgage rates fluctuated between 6.5% and 7% throughout the month, remaining consistently lower than the rates seen for much of 2023.
How much has North Jersey's housing stock changed?
Ten of North Jersey's 21 counties saw an increase in new home listings compared to January 2023, according to Realtor.com housing data.
In North Jersey, Bergen, Essex, Sussex and Hudson counties all saw increases in new listings. Hudson County had the highest growth rate in the region at 9.32% with 352 new listings in January 2024. Essex and Sussex counties had 154 new listings, an increase of 7.43% and 5.48% respectively. Bergen County saw a 1.9% increase with 536 new listings, the most in North Jersey and the third-highest number of new listings in the state.
In contrast, Passaic and Morris counties saw a decline in new listings in January. Passaic County saw a 2.17% decrease in the number of new listings, with 180 new listings, while Morris County saw the largest decrease in the state at 2.16%, with 254 new listings.
How long have North Jersey homes been on the market?
In 19 New Jersey counties, active residential listings spent less time on the market in January compared to last year. However, in many counties, homes were on the market for longer periods in January than in December.
Bergen and Morris counties typically had homes on the market for 54 days, while Passaic and Morris counties typically had homes on the market for about 52 and 59 days, respectively. All four of these counties had homes on the market longer in January than in December.
The median number of days a home was on the market in Essex County was 57 days. This was an increase compared to January 2023, but a shorter period compared to December. Hudson County also had homes on the market for about 57 days, making it the only county to see an increase compared to January 2023.
What will happen to the median listing price?
Compared to last year, median home listing prices increased in January in all 21 New Jersey counties, with 17 of those counties seeing increases of 10% or more.
In North Jersey, Bergen and Morris counties had the highest increases of 15.73% and 13.32%, with median listing prices of $785,250 and $691,225, respectively. In Sussex and Hudson Counties, home prices rose 12.73% and 12.26%, with median list prices of $399,900 and $650,000, respectively. Listing prices in Passaic County increased by 10.69%, bringing the county's median listing price to $475,000.
Here are the January totals for all 21 counties:
Maddie McGay is a real estate reporter for NorthJersey.com and The Record, covering everything that's worth celebrating about living in North Jersey.find her girlfriend Instagram @maddiemcgay, upon X @maddiemcgayyand sign her up north jersey living Newsletter. Do you have any tips, trends, or great homes she should know about? Email MMcGay@gannett.
