These N.J. Towns Have Among the 100 Worst Real Estate Markets In U.S., Studies Say

Several New Jersey communities have among the 100 worst real estate markets in the country, according to two new studies.

With more new homes being sold in July than in nearly 10 years, the personal finance website WalletHub conducted an in-depth analysis of 2016’s Best Real-Estate Markets. Four New Jersey markets are just not keeping up with the times, the study says.

Also, HSH.com, a mortgage-tracking website, put together a "Home price recovery index" using the Federal Housing Finance Agency's (FHFA) Home Price Index as a basis to determine which housing markets have fully recovered and which still lag behind the housing recovery.

The time period represented runs from the first quarter of 1991 and through the second quarter of 2016.

Both studies looked at markets that don't just involve the individual towns. They also include the areas surrounding the communities.

To help prospective home buyers find the most attractive housing markets, WalletHub’s analysts compared U.S. cities across 16 key metrics. The data set ranges from “median home-price appreciation” to “housing affordability” to “job growth rate.”

Here are two examples:

• Berkeley, California, has the lowest average number of days until a house is sold, 38, which is 4.9 times lower than in Paterson, New Jersey, the city with the highest, 186.
• San Mateo, California, has the lowest percentage of homes with negative equity, 1.9 percent, which is 27 times lower than in Hartford, Connecticut, the city with the highest, 51.2 percent.

Read the methodology here.

Here is the WalletHub list, with the total compare score based on WalletHub's real estate categories:

1. Newark, NJ 28.52
2. Paterson, NJ 31.83
3. Detroit, MI 34.21
4. Elizabeth, NJ 34.76
5. Cleveland, OH 37.05
6. Flint, MI 37.39
7. Fall River, MA 38.12
8. Hartford, CT 40.99
9. Waterbury, CT 41.01
10. Baltimore, MD 41.54
11. Rockford, IL 41.6
12. New Bedford, MA 42.18
13. Bridgeport, CT 42.22
14. Dayton, OH 42.32
15. New Haven, CT 42.55
16. Fayetteville, NC 43.99
17. Miami Beach, FL 44.83
18. Fort Lauderdale, FL 45.17
19. Philadelphia, PA 45.43
20. Toledo, OH 45.92
21. Miami, FL 46.35
22. Miami Gardens, FL 46.46
23. Waukegan, IL 46.51
24. Montgomery, AL 47.19
25. Indianapolis, IN 47.59
26. Springfield, MA 48.07
27. Yonkers, NY 48.16
28. Joliet, IL 48.19
29. Portsmouth, VA 48.47
30. Jersey City, NJ 48.71
31. Brockton, MA 48.81
32. Cincinnati, OH 49.13
33. Lakeland, FL 49.22
34. West Palm Beach, FL 49.25
35. Providence, RI 49.27
36. Albuquerque, NM 49.39
37. North Las Vegas, NV 49.55
38. St. Louis, MO 49.56
39. Yuma, AZ 49.61
40. Allentown, PA 49.62
41. Compton, CA 49.67
42. Akron, OH 49.75
43. Jacksonville, FL 50.02
44. Tuscaloosa, AL 50.04
45. Chicago, IL 50.22
46. Hialeah, FL 50.44
47. Mobile, AL 50.68
48. Buffalo, NY 50.71
49. Las Vegas, NV 50.85
50. Worcester, MA 50.91
51. Milwaukee, WI 50.98
52. Pompano Beach, FL 51.08
53. Palm Bay, FL 51.2
54. Albany, NY 51.21
55. Victorville, CA 51.37
56. Hollywood, FL 51.38
57. Inglewood, CA 51.64
58. Port St. Lucie, FL 51.86
59. New York, NY 51.86
60. Norfolk, VA 52.26
61. Palmdale, CA 52.43
62. Columbus, GA 52.58
63. Hampton, VA 52.81
64. Lancaster, CA 52.82
65. El Monte, CA 53.21
66. Peoria, IL 53.28
67. Elgin, IL 53.38
68. Miramar, FL 53.43
69. San Bernardino, CA 53.63
70. Tallahassee, FL 53.68
71. Jackson, MS 53.72
72. South Gate, CA 53.74
73. Rialto, CA 53.76
74. Baton Rouge, LA 53.98
75. Newport News, VA 53.99
76. Lynn, MA 54.08
77. Pomona, CA 54.31
78. Moreno Valley, CA 54.33
79. Gainesville, FL 54.39
80. Tucson, AZ 54.41
81. Augusta, GA 54.48
82. Erie, PA 54.54
83. Aurora, IL 55
84. Cape Coral, FL 55.09
85. Fresno, CA 55.16
86. Vallejo, CA 55.38
87. Birmingham, AL 55.63
88. Clearwater, FL 55.74
89. St. Petersburg, FL 55.89
90. Carson, CA 55.91
91. Fontana, CA 56.04
92. Coral Springs, FL 56.09
93. Santa Barbara, CA 56.13
94. Shreveport, LA 56.34
95. Lansing, MI 56.42
96. Winston-Salem, NC 56.51
97. Warren, MI 56.59
98. Sunrise, FL 56.66
99. Kenosha, WI 56.82
100. Stockton, CA 56.87

Also, HSN.com shows that one New Jersey market has recovered the worst since the recession of 2008 and 2009:

• Las Vegas-Henderson-Paradise, NV
• Bakersfield, CA
• Stockton-Lodi, CA
• Cape Coral-Fort Myers, FL
• Fresno, CA
• Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA
• Tucson, AZ
• Camden, NJ
• Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford, FL
• Elgin, IL

Patch file photo