And the Good News Is...

November 20, 2008

It's getting to be more and more difficult to find good news on TV. Reporters seem to be reveling in stirring up as much "doom and gloom" news as they can – after all it's been proven that bad news sells better than good. Our addiction to news tickers and 24 hour coverage was solidified during horrific news events of the last decade. But there IS positive news to be found if you dig hard enough.

28 Metropolitan areas showed increases in median existing single-family home prices from the same quarter in 2007. Areas such as Elmira NY, Tulsa OK, Wichita KS and Urbana IL.

But even in areas where average home sales have dropped drastically, there is good news. Buyers who have been shut out of the home ownership market, are now finding that they can afford to buy. And they ARE buying. Three states where the ‘housing bubble' has burst are seeing some of the highest increases in sales. The largest sales gain during the third quarter was in Arizona, up 28.3 percent from the second quarter, followed by California which rose 28.1 percent and Nevada, up 26.2 percent. These areas have seen some of the strongest sales gains with some reports of multiple bidding.

And there's also good news for sellers. The typical seller purchased their home six years ago and is still experiencing net equity gains, even in today's depressed markets. The national increase in value since the third quarter of 2002 is 18.3 percent, which is a median gain of $31,000. Even with the current downward price distortion, 90 percent of metro areas are showing six-year price gains.

So while we are definitely in turbulent economic times, there is GOOD NEWS to be found if you look for it. Hopefully, some home buying incentives will be passed soon to stimulate even more home ownership. Lawrence Yun, the chief economist at the National Association of Realtors, said that, "A pattern of sharply higher sales in areas with large price declines is well established," Yun said. "Affordability conditions have consistently been a major factor in driving sales. Historically during recessions, buyers have responded to incentives and it's important for government to keep that in the forefront of stimulus decisions."

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Local Information for Toms River, NJ

Latitude: 39.97927 -- Longitude: -74.167512

Other Area Cities: Crestwood Village Toms River Bay Head Beachwood Brick Lakewood Point Pleasant Silverton Forked River

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Toms River is a census-designated place (CDP) and unincorporated area located within Dover Township and is the county seat of Ocean County, New Jersey. The area is named for the Toms River, whose estuary flows through the community and empties into Barnegat Bay. "Toms River" can refer to the village of Toms River, a Post Office address, or to the census-designated place; it is not an incorporated municipality. It is common practice, however, for residents to refer to all of mainland Dover Township as "Toms River." Dover Township and Toms River (CDP) are not co-extensive but are centered on the county seat of Ocean CountyGR6. In addition to Toms River, Dover Township includes two small CDPs: Dover Beaches North (2000 Census population of 1,785) and Dover Beaches South (1,594). Thus, as defined by the Census Bureau based on 2000 Census data, over 96% of Dover Township's population is located in the Toms River CDP. -- Source: Wikipedia.com

New Jersey 2000 Census Population Profile Map

	Toms River	New Jersey	United States
Population	86,327	8,414,350	281,421,906
Median age	39.7	36.7	35.3
Median age for Male	38.2	35.5	34
Median age for Female	41.1	38	36.5
Households	31,674	3,064,645	105,480,101
Household population	84,390	8,219,529	273,643,273
Average household size	2.66	2.68	2.59
Families	23,475	2,154,539	71,787,347
Average family size	3.11	3.21	3.14
Housing units	34,375	3,310,275	115,904,641
Occupied units	31,674	3,064,645	105,480,101
Vacant units	2,701	245,630	10,424,540

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