Trenton, N.J. (May 28, 2020)—As expected, housing market numbers in April were down in almost every category, except price.

According to data aggregated by New Jersey Realtors from the eight multiple listing services in the state, while new listings, pending sales, closed sales, and homes for sale are down double digits, prices are stable and on the rise.

“It’s a case of supply and demand,” said 2020 New Jersey Realtors President Angela Sicoli about the rise in costs. “Far before this pandemic, we had an inventory shortage throughout the state and now, compounded with a large percentage of people who were ready to sell in March but have put their plans on pause, you are seeing buyers who have far less to choose from. With only a small pool of homes to choose from buyers are sometimes paying slightly above asking or finding themselves in a situation with multiple offers on the property.”

Throughout the state, when compared to April 2019, new listings were down a staggering 63.1 percent, with only 7,272 recorded throughout the state for the month. Pending sales for that same period dropped 46.7 percent. However, closed sales were only down 20.7 percent, indicating the pipeline of deals in progress from before the lockdown has extended through at least some part of April. There were just 35,714 homes for sale in New Jersey in April, down 35.6 percent from last April.

In April the median sales price for all properties was $333,000, up 14.4 percent over April 2019. Homes are moving quickly, with the average property spending just 61 days on the market, a 9 percent decline for April.

Bergen County saw a 70.6 percent drop in new listings from April 2019 to April 2020, but a 15.7 percent increase in median sales price, rising to $549,500. Monmouth County saw similar trends, with new listings down 65.4 percent, and median sales price up 13.1 percent. Cape May saw a more drastic jump in median sales price with an increase of 25.8 percent and a drop in new listings at 53.5 percent.

As the economy slowly begins to reopen, many are looking ahead and while the industry faces a struggle in the coming months, housing is a strong driver of the economy and will likely lead the recovery.

To view the full housing market reports, visit njrealtor.com/data.

New Jersey Realtors is the voice of real estate for New Jersey. It is a nonprofit organization serving the professional needs of nearly 54,000 Realtor and Realtor-Associate members engaged in all facets of the real estate business. In addition to serving the professional needs of its members, NJ Realtors is dedicated to enhancing the ability of its members to conduct their business successfully while maintaining the preservation of private property rights. Realtor is a registered collective membership mark, which may be used only by real estate professionals who subscribe to the Realtor organization’s strict Code of Ethics and are members of the national, state and local Realtor organizations. For more information, visit njrealtor.com.

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