New Jersey
HOUSING MARKETS FACING GREATER RISK OF DECLINE CONCENTRATED IN CALIFORNIA, NEW JERSEY, ILLINOIS AND FLORIDA
New York City and Chicago Areas More Vulnerable to Drop-offs Along with Inland California; South Still Faces Relatively Small Exposure;
IRVINE, Calif., Dec. 5, 2024 /PRNewswire/ — ATTOM, a leading curator of land, property data, and real estate analytics, today released its latest Special Housing Market Impact Risk Report spotlighting county-level housing markets around the United States that are more or less vulnerable to declines, based on home affordability, equity and other measures in the third quarter of 2024. The report shows that California, New Jersey and Illinois once again had high concentrations of the most-at-risk markets in the country, with parts of Florida also joining that mix. Less-vulnerable markets continued to be clustered in the South region of the nation.
The third-quarter patterns – derived from gaps in affordability, underwater mortgages, foreclosures and unemployment – revealed that two-thirds of the 50 counties around the U.S. considered most exposed to potential fallbacks were in California, Florida, Illinois and New Jersey. Florida was a new addition to that group in the third quarter after earlier periods when it had fewer markets making the list of areas at elevated risk of downturns.
County-level housing markets on the latest list included six in and around Chicago, IL, five in or near New York City and four in southern New Jersey. Another 13 were in California, mostly inland from the Pacific coast. The rest were scattered largely around the Northeast, South and Midwest.
At the other end of the risk spectrum, more than half the markets considered least likely to decline fell in Virginia, Wisconsin, Tennessee, Montana and New Hampshire. They included four in the Washington, DC, area.
The latest gaps come as the nation’s 13-year housing-market boom, along with the broader economy, continue to affect different parts of the country in different ways.
An almost unrelenting increase in home prices has surpassed most wage gains around the country to varying degrees. That has led to home ownership costs consuming more than triple the portion of average wages in some parts of the country compared to others. Similar disparities can be found in several other measures: unemployment rates, the level of homeowners facing foreclosure and the portion owing more on their mortgages than their homes are worth.
“The recent market risk patterns changed a bit in the third quarter, with some new areas making the list of places more or less exposed to downfalls. But the big picture remained pretty much the same around the country as differences in important metrics helped produce varying pockets of vulnerability,” said Rob Barber, CEO at ATTOM. “As with past reports, this one is not meant to suggest any given area is about to fall or is immune from problems. Rather, it spotlights locations that look to be more or less able to withstand significant changes in market conditions. We will continue to keep a close watch on markets throughout the country to see how things track.”
The operator of a South Jersey commercial port is moving to evict a wind-energy manufacturer after promised projects failed to materialize.
The lawsuit, filed in Gloucester County Superior Court on Oct. 7, marks another setback for New Jersey’s offshore wind ambitions.
Holt Logistics Corp., which manages the Paulsboro Marine Terminal, is asking a judge to force EEW Group off the site after years of stalled projects and mounting safety concerns.
The dispute underscores how a $250 million state-backed push to make Paulsboro a hub for wind energy has unraveled amid canceled projects, political opposition, and industry setbacks.
The EEW Group, a German pipe maker, began leasing space at Holt’s port in Paulsboro in 2021. Their objective was to build huge “monopiles,” the poles on which turbines spin to generate electricity.
Four years later, the port manager is asking a judge to order that the European builder vacate its property, located on the bank of the Delaware River in Paulsboro.
Through its subsidiary EEW-AOS, the company is leasing about 70 acres at the Paulsboro port to build monopiles, which are steel foundations for wind turbines that can reach up to 400 feet long, according to court filings reviewed by NJ Advance Media.
The lawsuit names Paulsboro Waterfront Development, an affiliate of Holt, as the plaintiff.
In its three-count lawsuit, Holt accuses EEW of breaching its lease agreement after offshore wind production stalled and alleges violations of safety rules and federal labor laws.
A spokesperson for Paulsboro Waterfront Development said the lawsuit seeks to have the leased area returned into its possession.
“The sole purpose of the sublease was to permit EEW to manufacture monopiles to support the New Jersey offshore wind project,“ Kevin Feeney, a spokesperson for Paulsboro Waterfront Development, said in an email to NJ Advance Media.
”The wind farm project fell apart and late last summer, EEW removed all improvements that would allow for any monopile fabrication. They have abandoned the lease and its sole purpose,” he added.
“The Paulsboro Marine Terminal sits idle since the collapse of the wind energy industry in New Jersey,” Feeney said. “We are confident that as soon as the Terminal can be developed as originally planned – as a thriving facility for both breakbulk and container cargo – it can serve as an economic engine for South Jersey that will bring additional investment and jobs to the region.”
Johnathan Rardin, an attorney for EEW, declined to comment when reached by NJ Advance Media.
The port operator also claims the company tried to remove improvements from the site.
Court exhibits include letters referencing an April 2025 fire caused by workers leaving hot monopile material unattended, as well as a letter noting that state inspectors found fire code violations during a January visit, according to the New Jersey Department of Community Affairs.
EEW last month denied the accusations, filing a countersuit against Holt in its response to the port manager’s claim. The company said the spring fire was contained and that the fire code violations were fixed quickly.
“This is not a run-of-the-mill commercial real estate dispute,” Holt’s lawsuit states. “Put simply, Paulsboro Marine Terminal is a public asset. As such, the opportunity cost of EEW-AOS’s inactivity is enormous: the diminished inflow of cargo and commodities translates into diminished industrial capacity and diminished demand for labor.”
Michael O’Mara, an attorney for Holt, declined to discuss the case when reached by NJ Advance Media. He directed questions directly to Holt, which did not respond to an emailed request for comment.
Ørsted and Atlantic Shores, two of the larger companies preparing to build offshore wind farms, have since canceled their projects.
Last November, workers in Paulsboro began dismantling more than a dozen steel monopiles and recycling their metals.
Holt claims it was “cajoled” into leasing its property by political and civic leaders bullish on an industry that saw little to no success.
Holt’s lawsuit cited the struggling wind industry, which Gov. Phil Murphy sought to bolster with a $250 million investment in the port, promoting it as a project to transform the site into one of the nation’s largest wind-energy hubs.
“Although New Jersey’s offshore wind plan was attractive in theory and initially successful in practice (with massive initial investments translating into early infrastructural progress), that success was short-lived,” the lawsuit states.
In its response, EEW objected to the characterization.
“EEW is of the opinion that its ultimate success in using the site will benefit the State of New Jersey, Gloucester County, and the Borough of Paulsboro,” the response states. “EEW’s use of the Premises will add additional industrial and manufacturing capacity and provide jobs on the site and to related businesses.”
Murphy’s administration planned a two-site process, in which the Paulsboro facility would construct the monopiles and bases for the wind farms.
Miles south in Salem County, a separate facility was expected to construct turbines but never began production at its anticipated start date in 2024.
NEW JERSEY – Legislation that would ban single-use utensils from takeout orders advanced this week in the New Jersey Senate.
The bill aims to reduce unnecessary waste and environmental impact. If customers need utensils, they would have to request them specifically, as they would no longer be included in their orders automatically under this bill.
The bill would prohibit food service businesses from automatically providing condiment packets to customers, as well. Instead, they would be required to offer them reusable utensils.
According to the bill, businesses that fail to comply with the law would ultimately be fined. A third of the fines collected from businesses who violate the law would be deposited into the Clean Communities Program Fund, “a statewide, comprehensive, litter-abatement program created by the passage of the Clean Communities Act in 1986.”
460 million tons of plastic
What they’re saying:
Supporters of the initiative argue that reducing plastic waste is crucial for both environmental and human health. Plastic utensils often end up in landfills and oceans, contributing to pollution, according to the World Wildlife Fund (WWF).
The WWF says that every year, humans produce over 460 million tons of plastic, 90% of which pollutes “almost all areas of our planet.”
Some critics believe there are more pressing plastic issues to address, like packaging for sodas and chips. They also question the practicality of expecting people to carry utensils.
Dig deeper:
The proposed law would not apply to schools, prisons and health care facilities, meaning they would remain exempt if the legislation passes.
A companion bill has been introduced in the state Assembly. Both chambers must pass the bill before the governor can sign it into law, however.
What we don’t know:
The potential cost impact on businesses and how consumers would adapt to the change are still unclear.
The Source: Information from a FOX 5 NY report, the World Wildlife Fund, the bill’s text and NJ Clean Communities.
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