Home Values Rise In The Chathams, Bucking State Trends

CHATHAM, NJ— Bucking overall state trends, Chatham Township and Borough saw an increase in their home values over the past four years.

Over the past decade both areas saw increases, something that didn't happen in most towns. Borough saw a modest 1.1 percent increase in median home values, but Township had a 10.78 percent increase.

Both areas also have a high percentage of homes worth over $1 million: Borough has 19.1 percent, and Township has 33.9 percent.

A map, provided by NJ Spotlight, details what towns saw changes in their home values, using U.S. Census data to show the pain most homeowners are feeling as they watched their home values drop as much as 20 percent since their pre-2010 levels, when the Great Recession hit.

On the map, green is good, tan is mediocre and brown is bad. The vast majority of towns are bad — or very bad. Run your cursor over Stafford Township - Manahawkin - in Ocean County, for instance, and you'll see that home values have dropped 19 percent in the past seven years.

The median decline in residential values in New Jersey was close to 11 percent, according to the 2015 American Community Survey data released last week and published on NJ Spotlight.

The reports said the typical home in the state was valued at almost $316,000 when averaged over the 2011-2015 period — 11.5 percent less than the 2006-2010 community survey estimate.

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