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Too many Portuguese. They Steal. Mostly American jobs, but also occasionally salted cod. I once left a salted cod on my front porch after I got back from Seabra's, and like 15 minutes later, it was gone.

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jennymayla,
I agree.

If brian_em was correct (that JC prices were the same as NY), many JC residents would simply trade thier spaces here for the equivalent in NYC, rather than fighting their way home on the overcrowed PATH or paying 45 bucks for a cab home after a night out in the city. Plus, you could bike or walk to work. This assumes, of course, that those JC residents work in NY.

I work in NY. If I could trade my place in JC for the same square footage in Greenwich Village, Union Square, SoHo, Chelsea, or the Upper West Side, with on street parking and 3% sales tax - I would do it.

"Affordable Housing" is a relative term. Having reached critical mass in NY, prices slowly rise as you move out from the center of NYC. The same is happening in JC. Look at the recent boom in Journal Square. What's next? Harrison?

No, JC prices are nowhere near as high as NY (or Hoboken for that matter), but they will get closer, and some people can afford to buy more space here for what it costs to rent in NYC.

On the upside, with every new downtown condo complex, the developers are required to build and provide a certain number of affordable housing units. While I don't know what this means for conversions like Dixon Mills, I suspect that the new construction on formerly vacant land means there are more affordable housing units downtown than we have had in recent memory.

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I cannot believe that is true. While downtown JC may not offer the same amazing value that it used to in even the recent past, it is by no means as expensive as Manhattan. Unless you are looking at the super high end deluxe condos popping up, which is kind of a rarified deal. But even then, the price per square foot is still less than a comparable NYC deal.

Whether that's still a bargain or not is in the eye of the beholder.

I hate how realestate punks try to use this site, and others for PR/ad purposses. Who came up with those numbers? Oh, the company trying to sell more units...It's a load of BS.

I'm pretty sure that if you took the Jersey City census, and looked at the average household income of Jersey City residents you will see that very, VERY few can afford these LUXURY condos.

500k for a 600sq. ft. studio on Newark ave. PLEASE!
THAT IS NOT FOR THE AVG JERSEY CITY RESIDENT!

I honestly don't even understand what will pull people to move out of NYC?? Its not like they will save money moving to JC, the prices are the same as NY...

Im still waiting for a billboard in JC to read "affordable housing"

These realestate snakes have lost their minds...

I find this so called love affair NY residents have with JC real estate as / is a load of crap - If 1% of NYC's population loved JC's real estate, we would need to build a siht load of more apartments and buildings to address that need.

This is just another cheap ass attempt to keep real estate on the 'front page' of discussion when there is an obvious turn in the market.

Its time for SOME agents on the real estate gravy train to find a new job - reality must hurt for some!

Thanks GrovePath,

I don't typically read the Jersey Journal. I just recycle it.

But I think the article (advertorial?) is interesting and hopefully true. I think people who own have more of a vested interest in their neighborhoods than renters, and who better to own here than those of us who have already lived here in rentals.

I now own in downtown. It took me a long time to take the plunge. I rented all over JC, from Wayne street to the waterfront, before I could save the down payment to buy a place. Now that I have a place of my own, I am much more concerned about the local economy, safety, schools, politics, as well as the real estate market. Looking back, buying in JC was a great investment and I wish I had done it sooner. I have yet to meet anyone who is sorry they bought in JC.

While the subprime mess may make it harder for some to buy, especially those with blemished credit and lacking a 20% down payment, I believe the lending market correction is actually good in the long run for a place like JC, where many of the residents commute to higher paying jobs in NYC, and the growth boom in condos is really just beginning to take off. The correction will mean that the new condo purchasers are not moving into places they can't afford when rates adjust.

Even with brownstones topping the million dollar mark, and condos starting in the high $300s, I think the pricepoint in downtown JC is unbeatable.

These disguised real estate ads are annoying.

Buy NOW...low interest , no down payment...deals won't last.

They don't belong in a discussion group and should be reserved for paid advertising space..


Of course, If GROVEPATH owns the web page then, of course he can post, tout, or SELL whatever he wishes.

Locals snap up Jersey City condos

Jarrett Renshaw -- Jersey Journal -- August 29

Real estate pundits love to highlight New York City's supposed love affair with Jersey City's real estate market, citing the familiar trend of Big Apple residents being seduced across the Hudson River by lower prices and proximity to Manhattan's job market.

But although they may lack the news appeal and marketing value of the mighty New Yorker, Jersey City residents are purchasing homes here in great numbers, an interesting and often overlooked trend in the local housing market.

For example, roughly 53 percent of the first 223 properties sold in the Liberty Harbor North development went to Jersey City residents, according to the project's developer Peter Mocco.

"What it clearly demonstrates is a large number of Jersey City residents who had been renters or temporary residents have made the decision to be permanent homeowners in Jersey City," Mocco said.

"It validates that people are voting with their pocketbook," he added.

No surprise, developers tell me that many of these local buyers are not lifelong residents, but transient people who came to Jersey City for work and decided to stick around.

Many of the buyers have previously purchased property in the area and now want to trade up to some of the city's more luxurious condos, according to developers.

"People are here, and they see home prices rising, and they are buying a home with the confidence that they are going to continue to rise," said Mary Boorman, senior vice president of Pinnacle Properties, which has seen 40 percent of the first 161 units at its Mandalay on the Hudson go to local buyers - compared to 25 percent to New Yorkers.

There are similar trends at The Residences at Dixon Mills, where roughly 50 percent of the first 50 available units went to local buyers, while 22 percent went to New Yorkers.

The media's focus on New Yorkers' affinity for Jersey City is largely due to spin doctors who sell reporters on trends that happen to coincide with a developer's marketing plan.

Local developers have long courted New York buyers for a number of reasons, so stories about people crossing the river for lower prices is not only a good news hook, it's also good for business.