New Jersey Home Prices Head for 12% Drop on Bottom-Feeder Feast

(Bloomberg) -- The housing market in New Jersey is about to get crushed.

Home sales in the state, second only to New York in coronavirus cases, may fall as much as 45% this year from 2019, while prices will drop as much as 12%, according to Jeffrey Otteau, president of Otteau Valuation, a real estate consultant in Matawan, New Jersey.

“People will be taking homes off the market and in spite of that, this will be a buyer’s market, with low inventory,” Otteau said. “It’s unusual.”

Getting a sale will require a deep discount, maybe 20% below what the seller was planning to list for, he said.

Frozen Housing Market in U.S. Relies on Bargains and Desperation

“If you don’t need to sell now, take your house off the market and re-evaluate in the fall or next spring,” he said. “If you do go to the market now, there will be a price for that. The price will be that you’ll be at the mercy of bottom-feeders.”

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