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Economists outline chilly forecast for N.J. housing market
July 26, 2010
NJBIZ
"New Jersey’s housing market is headed for a frigid fall and winter, according to Jeffrey Otteau, president of East Brunswick-based Otteau Valuation Group Inc., who said June home sales in New Jersey were down 27 percent, year on year."
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Slower Sales After Home Buyer Tax Credit Ends
July 25, 2010
The New York Times / nytimes.com
"Over all, there was a “stunning reversal” in the pace of sales in May, according to analysis done by the Otteau Valuation Group, which reports on trends in state real estate. After the expiration of the federal tax-credit program for buyers on April 30, the number of contract signings in New Jersey abruptly fell to the lowest point in six years — after more than a year of continuous gains."
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Gov. Christie vetoes $100M homebuyers tax credit bill
July 24, 2010
The Star Ledger / NJ.com
"Jeffrey Otteau, an East Brunswick-based appraiser who studies the state’s housing market, said the market took a big hit when the federal tax credit expired. ‘Absent a stimulus to the housing market, home prices will decline further, which will put additional downward pressure home prices,’ he said. ‘Without the stimulus, homes values will dip even further, in the second half of the year, which could push more people into foreclosure’, Otteau said."
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NJ Real Estate Expert: Homebuyer Tax Credit Program is Really Needed
July 21, 2010
New Jersey 101.5
"Jeff Otteau, the President of the Otteau Valuation Group, says the tax credit measure 'is of vital importance to the housing market, and the New Jersey economy, given that since the expiration of the federal homebuyer tax credit - which had a deadline of April 30th - home sales in the state have plunged.' Otteau points out home sales fell 23 percent in May, and 27 percent last month - which a normally a very active time of year for the housing market…and home construction numbers have also plummeted."
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House of The Future: Is Smaller Better?
July 16, 2010
Baristanet Real Estate / Baristanet.com
"What will the home of the future look like? According to Jeff Otteau, one of New Jersey's premiere real estate gurus, it will look very much like a town house. Very compact, more vertical than horizontal, easy to maintain, and definitely not a McMansion. Smaller homes on smaller lots will be what appeals to the buyer of today, and not the enticing frills and huge spaces of yesterday. Along with quite a few of my colleagues, I attended a recent seminar given by Otteau."
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Red Bank townhouse project may be the future for building
July 8, 2010
The Asbury Park Press / APP.com
"Two board members who voted for the application said they were swayed by a report by real estate expert Jeffrey Otteau. He said the conditions of the current real estate and employment market call for smaller, more affordable units, such as the ones the bank proposed. The Courtyards at Monmouth type of development fits the "smart growth" model touted by the state as a tool for redeveloping older towns which have business districts and mass transit."
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Another Courtyards Plan Wins Variances
July 2, 2010
Red Bank Green
"In giving their approval, several board members alluded to testimony by real estate expert Jeffrey Otteau, who said a new “economic reality” made adding retail square footage in town unwise, despite the view of town officials who last year touted a mix of retail and housing as the key to sparking vitality in the train station district. After hearing Otteau, "I came to believe that retail would not be sustainable,” said board member Tom Williams."
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Property Taxes Inhibit Sales in West Orange
June 29, 2010
The New York Times / nytimes.com
"The backlog of homes would take eight and a half months to sell if no new listings were added, according to the Otteau Valuation Group, a market research company. That compares with a little over six months for the county, less than three months for nearby Glen Ridge and Livingston, and less than four months for Maplewood and Millburn."
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Treading water
June 20, 2010
Asbury Park Press / app.com
"This was a time when homeowners began to create an enclave that would shut out as much of the world as possible," said real estate consultant Jeffrey Otteau, president of Otteau Valuation Group in East Brunswick."
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Absecon senior housing projects not selling, developers say
June 20, 2010
pressofAtlanticCity.com
"Across the state, Otteau said there is a nine-month supply of unrestricted housing, but the current amount of age-restricted housing will take 180 months - 15 years - to sell out."It will not succeed," Otteau said of Visions. "It is sure to fail."
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Reviving a Housing Market in a Swoon
June 16, 2010
The New York Times / nytimes.com
"Sales statistics are not yet final. But in a sample study of multiple-listing data from nine counties done by the Otteau Valuation Group of New Brunswick, which reports on the state’s real estate industry, the pace of contract signings was found to be down in all of them, and in some cases sharply."
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NJ State Senate Passes the Homebuyer Tax Credit Bill 38-0
June 14, 2010
NJBA.org
"On Thursday, June 10th, by a vote of 38-0, the State Senate passed S692 (Sarlo/Van Drew/Oroho) which would establish a $100 million New Jersey Homebuyer Tax Credit Program. Having already passed the State Assembly, the bill will now be sent to Governor Christie for final action and hopeful enactment."
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With an asking price of $68 million, Alpine home is one of the nation’s costliest
June 4, 2010
The Record / NorthJersey.com
"It's a tough time to be selling a luxury home, since those sales have slowed in North Jersey since the financial crisis of fall 2008. Last year, only three homes costing more than $5 million sold in Bergen County, down from 10 in 2007. And Jeffrey Otteau, an East Brunswick appraiser, recently estimated there is a seven-year supply of homes for sale for more than $2.5 million in Bergen."
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Vacation home buyers slowly returning to Jersey Shore
May 16, 2010
The Record / NorthJersey.com
"An analysis of nine shore towns by the Otteau Valuation Group in East Brunswick found that the number of sales was down, often dramatically, in most areas. But the price picture was spotty, with some towns — especially in the northern shore counties — actually clocking price increases."
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Shore housing market suffers
May 13, 2010
Courierpostonline.com
"Wildwood is an overbuilt market with too much product and is likely to struggle for a very long time," said Jeffrey Otteau of Otteau Valuation Group, an East Brunswick-based real estate analyst. While New Jersey currently has a nine-month inventory of unsold homes, the backlog in Cape May County is 22 months. In Wildwood, it is expected to take 29 months to find buyers for the glut of properties."
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55 and older a tough sell for Visions at the Shore
May 13, 2010
Shore News Today
"The idea was that baby boomers would be retiring with unprecedented wealth and retiring earlier,” said Otteau, a trend analyst who did most of the presentation. “None of that has come to be. Instead there is a narrow, shallow pool of buyers."
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N.J. home prices increase in first quarter
May 12, 2010
The Star Ledger / nj.com
"The increase reflects sales that were buoyed by record-low mortgage rates and the first-time homebuyers’ tax credit, said Jeffrey Otteau of the Otteau Valuation Group. Statewide, the median price was $273.060, or 1.4 percent higher than the same period last year. "It’s just confirmation of the rebound that’s been going on since last summer," he said.
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Home prices in area rise; another sign of recovery
May 11, 2010
Asbury Park Press / app.com
"Figures compiled by the Otteau Valuation Group help show what is happening in Monmouth and Ocean counties. The median first-quarter home price in Monmouth County rose 6.8 percent over the same period a year earlier to $346,563, said Jeffrey Otteau, the firm's president. In Ocean County, the median price fell 3.7 percent to $215,370 in the first quarter."
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Shore housing market suffers
May 9, 2010
The Courier Post / courierpostonline.com
"Cape May County is the weakest and worst market in the state," Otteau said. "And prices are not done declining." He attributes that to cooling demand among baby boomers, who represent 75 percent of second-home buyers. This year, 110,000 baby boomers will turn 65 in New Jersey, and Otteau said their priorities are changing."
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Builders Rethink ‘Active Adult’ Housing Label
May 5, 2010
The New York Times / nytimes.com
"It is not a trend, or a sign of a significant uptick in the market for active-adult residential,” said Jeffrey G. Otteau, a real estate analyst. In the State Legislature last year, his company, the Otteau Valuation Group of New Brunswick, worked to buttress builders’ case for converting projects from age-restricted to regular-market housing.
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Red Bank residents oppose apartments plan
May 3, 2010
Asbury Park Press / APP.com
"This generation needs something affordable," he said. "Projects that target luxury and big spaces will not be viable in the new economy going forward." With pricing to be "well below" $300,000, the mixture of one- and two-bedroom units, including some brownstone-like units, "aligns with the single and childless couples in Generation Y," Otteau said.
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Homebuilders have a new mantra: Small will sell
April 28, 2010
The Star-Ledger / NJ.com
"New homes will continue to shrink, according to the Otteau Valuation Group in East Brunswick. Homes that are being planned now are about 200-square-feet smaller on average than at the height of the housing boom at 2,650 square-feet in 2007, the appraiser said."
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Builders seek to lift age limits
April 25, 2010
The Record
"A large number of age-restricted communities were proposed during the housing boom because it was easier to get municipal approvals, since these projects don't increase the school population. As a result, some analysts say, the market became saturated with 55-and-up communities. East Brunswick appraiser Jeff Otteau, who has worked as a consultant to builders, estimates that the state has a 15-year supply of age–restricted housing."
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Short Sale Basics
April 25, 2010
The Home News Tribune / MyCentralJersey.com
"While the state's economy has lifted itself out of a recession, short sales are not over. With mortgage delinquency rates at about 10 percent, homes in short-sale situations represent about 15 percent of the unsold inventory in the market, Otteau said. "There is a large number of these that have not yet been digested by the housing market."
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Expert says housing trends could help Somerville
April 23, 2010
The Home News Tribune / MyCentralJersey.com
"Many will seek to own or rent smaller homes in higher density communities with access to mass transit and where shopping and eating opportunities are just a walk away, according to Otteau, whose firm provides clients with project feasibility and marketing studies, redevelopment guidance and valuation analysis."
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Luxury Condos for Princeton
April 14, 2010
The New York Times / NYTimes.com
"Currently, there is very little on the market in Princeton Borough, which is an independent community within Princeton Township. The inventory of homes for sale is two and a half months, which Jeffrey G. Otteau, a real estate industry consultant, described as scant."
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Builders conference in A.C.: McMansions are dead
April 14, 2010
The Courier Post / CourierPostOnline.com
"The next crop of first-time buyers will be earning 17 percent less than their parents earned 30 years ago, so luxury housing is severely troubled," said Otteau, one of three panelists to offer sober predictions about the future of New Jersey's housing market."
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Housing experts predict a bumpy road back
April 13, 2010
The Star-Ledger / NJ.com
"And some estimates push that number to more than 6 percent by 2011, chipping away at affordability. "That will assure that our housing market will be constrained for a very long time," said Jeffrey Otteau of the Otteau Valuation Group, an East Brunswick real estate appraisal firm."
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Multiple Bids, but Not Exactly a War
April 7, 2010
The New York Times / NYTimes.com
"It is very gradual, in the low single digits,” Mr. Otteau said. “While historically, coming out of a recession, prices go up 5 to 10 percent in the first year, this year so far we are seeing a couple of percentage points, in only limited markets."
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Pinning housing market’s future on hope for job growth
April 1, 2010
NJBIZ
"The 61,063 unsold homes on the market at the end of February represent 12 months of supply, said Jeffrey Otteau, president of Otteau Valuation Group, in East Brunswick, which released its latest market outlook report Wednesday. “We’ve seen worse,” Otteau said. In February 2009, the state had unsold homes equivalent to a 14.2-month supply, a record for this time of the year, he said."
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Views from the NJ State League of Municipalities Conference
April 2010
Transit-Friendly Development Newsletter
"In contrast, he cited the growth of two segments of the population, emerging seniors and young professionals, as a factor indicating greater future demand for TOD housing. Both of these groups, Baby Boomers and Gen-Y, tend to live in childless households and to prefer the amenities offered in TOD locations. He cited the 2008 study on national home buyers preferences that found that a majority of homebuyers prefer urban locations, where they can walk to work and use public transportation."
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Multigenerational households increase as more families seek savings
March 28, 2010
Star Ledger / NJ.com
"In New Jersey, the economic forecast is particularly onerous, said Jeffrey Otteau, a real estate analyst. Most private-sector jobs are being replaced by lower-paying public-sector jobs, and the state’s high-tax climate is squeezing residents. ‘The natural solution to all of this is that it’s cheaper to live by the dozen,’ said Otteau, president of Otteau Valuation in East Brunswick."
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Changes on the way for real estate, panel says
March 24, 2010
NJBIZ
"When housing inventory is less than eight months, home prices will stop declining,” he said, putting the average inventory across the state at about 8.5 months. He said the expiration of a federal tax credit for first-time homebuyers next month will lead to a slump, though high demand for rentals should create brisk activity for multifamily units."
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In New Jersey, No Consensus on Foreclosure Problem
February 24, 2010
The NY Times
"Jeffrey G. Otteau, sounded a similar note on the quality of available statistics. “The numbers from the various sources do not square,” was how he put it. Mr. Otteau quoted data from RealtyTrac, a company based in Irvine, Calif., that monitors court filings around the country, in characterizing New Jersey’s current foreclosure rate as very low — just .04 percent of households. He also predicted that foreclosure actions would decline as the overall economy improved."
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Single-family home prices decline 4.7% at the shore in the fourth quarter
February 11, 2010
Gannett / APP.com
"Figures compiled by real estate consulting firm Otteau Valuation Group in East Brunswick offer a closer look at what is happening in Monmouth and Ocean counties. Home prices, including new houses and condominiums, in Monmouth County dropped in the fourth quarter to $336,611, down 6.2 percent from a year earlier, said Jeffrey Otteau. It matched the percentage decline seen statewide."
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Builders Reassess the Market
January 28, 2010
The NY Times
"’Traditionally, after past recessions, housing starts have doubled within two years,’ said Jeffrey G. Otteau. ‘Because of the severity of this recession, though, there may be lingering wounds.’ Yet even in the face of these sobering numbers, several builders of multifamily projects have forged ahead — some actually building, others planning on it as soon as weather permits."
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N.J. real estate prices headed up
January 11, 2010
The Record
"New Jersey home prices have bottomed out and will rise about 2 percent this year, real estate appraiser Jeffrey Otteau predicted Monday. ‘While things will get better from here, they’re going to get better at a slow, steady and sustained pace,’ Otteau said. Otteau is based in East Brunswick, but he analyzes real estate markets around the state."
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Job growth, interest rates will drive home sales in 2010
January 11, 2010
NJBIZ
"It’s a perfect storm, and it gets better from here,’ said Jeffrey Otteau, president of Otteau Appraisal Group, an East Brunswick research and consulting firm that tracks the state’s housing markets. Otteau’s charts show contracts for home sales surged 55 percent, to 7,020 contracts, in October compared to the prior-year period. In November, the year-over-year increase was 33 percent, with 4,782 contracts."
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Housing slump slams brakes on construction
January 9, 2010
Gannett / APP.com
"To a home builder, the slowing down on the pace of construction is just good business," said real estate consultant Jeffrey Otteau, president of the Otteau Valuation Group in East Brunswick."
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Optimism About the New Year
January 7, 2010
The NY Times
"Statistically speaking, there are grounds for modest optimism that prices will trend upward in the near future, said the market analyst Jeffrey Otteau, whose Otteau Valuation Group continuously tracks sales data in 21 counties for real estate companies."
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Experts say real estate market's rise seems certain, but timing isn't
January 3, 2010
Press of Atlantic City
"East Brunswick-based Otteau Valuation Group predicts a robust spring home sales surge in New Jersey and modest price increases in 2010, fueled by low interest rates, the tax credits, an improving economy and slowing job losses."
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Experts offer advice on homebuying
January 2, 2010
North Jersey Homes
"Speakers include Jeffrey Otteau, president of Otteau Valuation Group, and Brian Spencer, a certified public account with Withum Smith & Brown. Otteau is an often-quoted expert on the current state of the housing market in New Jersey. Spencer’s firm has been counseling clients for more than 30 years and has offices in six states."
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2009: The year in review
December 27, 2009
Gannett / APP.com
"It was really a year of stabilization and setting a stage for what should be recovery in 2010," Jeffrey Otteau, an East Brunswick-based real estate analyst."
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Trying for a comeback: New Jersey's housing market in 2010
December 23, 2009
NJ.com / Star Ledger
"On the positive side, prime houses along the Jersey Shore and on lakes or other bodies of water could be a bright spot this spring, says Jeffrey Otteau, an appraiser who tracks New Jersey home prices. Those gems on the water will start getting snatched up as people who can afford million dollar homes feel more comfortable in the new economy. Perhaps their companies won’t fold, after all. They’ll need some place to celebrate this summer."
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New Jersey real estate trends don't mirror national patterns
December 21, 2009
Gannett / The Home News Tribune
"When the economy weakened, the jobs that disappear first are the lower-paying service and retail jobs that these homeowners were likely to have, according to Jeffrey Otteau, chief executive officer of Otteau Valuation Group, an appraisal company in East Brunswick that also studies industry trends and market forces."
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Investors emerge from housing market rubble
December 21, 2009
NJ.com / Star Ledger
"Investors feel prices can't drop much further, said Jeffrey Otteau of the Otteau Valuation Group in East Brunswick. "That enables them to do the math," he said. With credit tightened by the recession, real estate investors now have to come up with more cash than they did before -- in some cases as much as half of the total value of the property, Otteau said."
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A Home for the Holidays
December 17, 2009
NY Times
"Jeffrey Otteau of the Otteau Valuation Group, a company that analyzes the residential market and advises brokerages, said his analysis of contract sales data through the first week of December showed that the sharp increase in the pace of sales that started in June was continuing unusually late in the year."
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Wanaque home owner finds pricing home for sale is an art
December 13, 2009
The Record
"Jeffrey Otteau, an East Brunswick real estate appraiser who analyzes the market statewide, says his research shows that, for sellers, overpricing is riskier than underpricing. When buyers think a home is overpriced, they lose interest because they believe the seller “lacks motivation and is less likely to accept a fair price,” Otteau writes in a recent report."
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Experts on Homebuying Offer Their Advice at Seminar
December 11, 2009
BigNews.biz
"Otteau is an expert on housing values who is sought by investors, news reporters and government officials for his expertise and insight. He will talk about the state housing market as a whole and as submarkets, where housing values have been and where they’re going. He’ll also talk about factors that help homes sell more quickly."
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The Hottest Topic in Home Sales
December 11, 2009
NY Times
"Taking a look at sales statistics to see how they might correspond to tax rates in given towns and counties, Jeffrey Otteau, the president of the Otteau Valuation Group in East Brunswick, said crunching the numbers produced “counterintuitive” results."
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In Monmouth, Ocean, home prices continue to fall, but buyers remain
December 6, 2009
Gannett / APP.com
"Jeffrey G. Otteau, president of the Otteau Valuation Group Inc., a real estate valuation and consulting firm in East Brunswick, said that since June, the "housing market has really sort of come to life" in New Jersey, thanks to lower home prices, lower interest rates and a federal home buyer tax credit."
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Homes move fast in Morris if priced to sell
December 6, 2009
The Daily Record
"Jeffrey G. Otteau, president of the Otteau Valuation Group Inc., said that since June, the "housing market has really sort of come to life" in New Jersey, thanks to lower home prices, lower interest rates and a federal home buyer tax credit. Otteau said his data show an uptick in sales in New Jersey after May."
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Less expensive homes are selling better than estate homes in today's market
December 5, 2009
Gannett / The Home News Tribune
"Jeffrey Otteau of Otteau Evaluation Group in East Brunswick, said, "We've never seen this magnitude of increase (in home sales) when unemployment was rising - ever."
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Cities take brunt of home sales slump
December 5, 2009
NJ.com / Star Ledger
"In a deteriorating market, declines appear first and are greatest in urban areas," said Jeffrey Otteau of the Otteau Valuation Group in East Brunswick. "Those homeowners or potential home buyers are disproportionately affected by the downturn, and so that creates higher rates of mortgage delinquency and lower purchase prices."
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Roosevelt to cut land valuations to avoid appeals
December 3, 2009
Examiner
"At the Nov. 23 Borough Council meeting, Ticktin told the governing body that due to the general decline in property values, they are now in a situation where they are vulnerable to tax appeals, which the town must defend and pay the difference if found in the appellant's favor. He said the best way to deal with it is the 20 percent reduction."
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N.J. housing picture looks brighter, but clouds remain
November 23, 2009
NJBIZ
"Uncertainty still clouds the employment picture in the Garden State, which gained more than 6,000 jobs between July and August, but then lost 12,000 jobs in September, said Jeff Otteau, president of Otteau Valuation Group, an East Brunswick-based appraisal and consulting services firm. ‘We’re likely to see more months with job losses than there will be months with job gains,’ until the second or third quarter of 2010, he said."
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N.J.'s distressed mortgages continue to grow, report says
November 20, 2009
NJBIZ
"Jeff Otteau, president of Otteau Valuation Group, an East Brunswick-based appraisal and consulting firm, said that the state’s foreclosure problem was worsening: “The numbers are at an all-time high."
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Pulda Farm should be saved, even by eminent domain
November 19, 2009
The Home News Tribune
"Otteau Valuation of East Brunswick studied the real estate market, and estimated there is a 19-year supply of age-restricted housing either in place, or on the drawing board. Morris was looking at building homes in a market where supply was overwhelming demand. It has been a hard few years for Morris, whose plans to develop a large swath in downtown Somerville have also been thwarted by the weak economy, prompting attempts to squeeze more investment out of the borough."
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Residential real estate improving, but still troubled
November 19, 2009
NJBIZ
"But 'the housing market has already made its move toward recovery’ — likely leading the job market by more than a year, Otteau said, speaking at the New Jersey Building Materials Dealers Association’s annual meeting at the Hilton East Brunswick. All three indicators of a housing recovery — more buyers purchasing homes, fewer homes on the market and housing prices starting to appreciate — 'are in play here in New Jersey,' particularly in the northeastern and central parts of the state."
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Ten Questions on the Volatile Housing Market
November 17, 2009
The Wall Street Journal
"The U.S. housing market has been in a slump for the past four years. When will it ever end?...In recent years, real estate has proven as jittery and unreliable as any other market…Here is a guide to navigating a fractured and volatile market"
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Report: Central Jersey home prices dropped 8.9 percent in third quarter
November 11, 2009
The Home News Tribune
"The region's decline during the third quarter was more moderate than the second quarter, when prices fell 11.2 percent. What it tells is us that the housing market has stabilized in most of New Jersey, and that the decline in prices is ending," said Jeffrey Otteau, president of the Otteau Valuation Group, a research and consulting firm in East Brunswick."
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Puzzling Over Home Prices
October 25, 2009
The NY Times
"Mr. Otteau said his data suggested that “a ground is beginning to form in terms of prices,” and noted that the trend had occurred as government stimulus programs that were intended to stabilize the residential real estate market were taking effect."
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W is for wow: Hoboken still hopes for sky-high prices
October 22, 2009
New York Post
"According to data from New Jersey appraisal firm Otteau Valuation Group, Hoboken had a 10.9-month supply of inventory on the market at the beginning of this year. By August, that number had fallen to 8.8 months, and sales activity was up 63 percent compared to January and 34 percent compared to April."
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Report: Future bright for Center City housing
October 14, 2009
The Philadelphia Inquirer
"In the post-recession economic cycle, Otteau said, incomes will actually drop, and affordable housing will be concentrated in urban areas. "Two-thirds of households will have no children at home, energy costs will rise, and vertical construction in the downtowns [will be] more sustainable."
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Home run
October 11, 2009
The Asbury Park Press
"The $8,000 tax credit has increased home sales not only in the first home-buyer price range of under $400,000, but across the entire market," Otteau said. It's because, statistically, a first-time home buyer's purchase can trigger four other simultaneous home sales, Otteau said. The seller of a home is able to buy a house from someone else, such as a couple over age 55 who are looking to move to a smaller home."
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Untapped niche
October 4, 2009
Philadelphia Business Today
"Jeffrey Otteau, of the Otteau Valuation Group in New Brunswick, said the dynamics of the next housing cycle - including skyrocketing energy costs, sustainability, and declining income - will favor downtown housing."
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Soaring Above the Crisis
September 20, 2009
The Philadelphia Inquirer
"The residential market's upper end is also the toughest sell - continuing fallout from last year's collapse of the financial system. For homes in the region priced at $2.5-million-plus, there was 122 months' worth of unsold inventory in the second quarter, according to economist Jeffrey Otteau, of Otteau Valuation Group in New Brunswick, N.J."
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First Signs of Recovery
September 18, 2009
The NY Times
"WHERE do signs of a housing market recovery show up first? In New Jersey, the answer is: in the northern part of the state, in relatively affluent towns, especially those with train stations. "Recoveries first take root in what we call the primary markets," said Jeffrey G. Otteau, a residential market analyst. "These are more desirable markets, but not necessarily those in luxury or high-priced areas. They are close to jobs, and close to trains."
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N.J. housing construction up, but permits at a low
September 18, 2009
NJ.com/The Star Ledger
"Builders feel like, going forward, they'll need more houses to sell, not fewer," said Jeffrey G. Otteau, the head of the Otteau Valuation Group, which analyzes real estate industry trends. "They're actually starting to spend money to prepare for an improving housing market ahead. Otteau said, for the most part, the state's housing market has bottomed out. He added that he expects a slow, prolonged recovery of the state's housing market into 2011."
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The new estates on the block
September 6, 2009
The NY Times
"Statewide, enough homes are on the market to last for nine months, compared with the six-month equilibrium of a healthy market, according to the Otteau Valuation Group, an East Brunswick appraisal and real estate data firm. But the supply of homes listed for $1 million to $2.5 million is more than twice the state average. And above $2.5 million, the inventory jumps to more than three times the state average."
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Savvy Buyers Seek the Shore
August 28, 2009
The NY Times
"THE pace of residential sales in the shoreline counties of Ocean and Monmouth has wavered a bit this summer — cresting in June over the year before, then staying flat in July. But if you look only at the subset of homes within view of the water, the cresting persisted through July and at least into early August, according to the latest data from the Otteau Valuation Group, which analyzes sales contract data for real estate companies."
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N.J., Northeast real estate sales rise, signaling a bottom
August 21, 2009
NJ.com/The Star Ledger
"The state has seen signs of a bottom of the market, and perhaps a turnaround, for a few months, according to data from the Otteau Valuation Group, an appraisal and analysis company that studies New Jersey real estate."
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N.J. foreclosures rise 31 percent during first half of year
August 13, 2009
NJ.com/The Star Ledger
"Foreclosed homes tend to drag down the value of nearby houses, especially when there are many in a single neighborhood. But Jeffrey Otteau, whose firm Otteau Valuation Group compiles and analyzes New Jersey housing market data, said the continued foreclosure problem will, at most, forestall price increases in other areas."
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Area home prices continue to decline
August 12, 2009
APP.com/Gannett
"Figures compiled by the Otteau Valuation Group help give a picture of what is happening in Monmouth and Ocean counties. According to the East Brunswick real estate consulting firm, the median price for all homes in Monmouth County, including new houses and condos, fell to $348,463 in the second quarter, an 11 percent decline over the period a year earlier. In Ocean County, the median fell to $225,906, a 10 percent decline over the second quarter of 2008."
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Rising housing sales encouraging, but market still has more ebbs to overcome
August 9, 2009
NJ.com/Star Ledger
"In some municipalities, such as Perth Amboy and Elizabeth, there were twice as many sales this spring as last year, according to figures from the Otteau Valuation Group, which studies New Jersey real estate data."
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Shore bargains on pricey homes
August 9, 2009
APP.com/Gannett
"In the second quarter, the market had a 10-month supply of homes in Monmouth County and an 11-month supply in Ocean County, according to the Otteau Valuation Group, an East Brunswick-based real estate consulting firm. That's down from an 11- and 12-month supply, respectively, in the same quarter last year."
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Report: N.J. housing market on faster road to recovery
August 6, 2009
NJBiz
"New Jersey’s housing markets are recovering faster than elsewhere in the nation, and June 2009 saw the sixth straight month of increasing home sales, according to a market report released Thursday by Jeff Otteau, president of East Brunswick-based Otteau Valuation Group. About 8,300 homes were sold in the state in June 2009, compared to 7,300 homes a year earlier, he said."
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A Tarnished 'Gold Coast'
July 31, 2009
The NY Times
"Condominiums make up roughly 80 percent of Hudson’s housing stock — and across the price spectrum, they have sold poorly, according to the Otteau Valuation Group, which reports to the housing industry. Even for those priced under $400,000, Otteau reported an 11-month inventory build-up."
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New home sales rise nearly 30 percent in Northeast
July 27, 2009
The Star Ledger
"Sales of already-lived-in homes rose 2.5 percent in the Northeast in June, according to the National Association of Realtors. Also, many areas of New Jersey have seen sharp inventory declines, meaning more competition for fewer homes, according to figures from Otteau Valuation Group."
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Recession threatens to derail transit hub tax credit
July 27, 2009
NJBiz
"The expansion "has the potential for the cost savings to developers to pass through to lower housing pricing," said Jeffrey Otteau, president of East Brunswick-based Otteau Valuation Group Inc. This would be good news for employers, for which "New Jersey’s high housing costs [have] become a secondary tax … due to the need to pay higher wages to employees in order for them to be able to afford housing."
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Hopeful Signs in Housing
July 24, 2009
The NY Times
"In June, according to Jeffrey G. Otteau, whose company issues monthly reports to the real estate industry, there was a "breakthrough": the number of home sales exceeded that of June 2008 by 12 percent. Such a year-over-year increase has not occurred since midsummer 2007, said Mr. Otteau, the president of the Otteau Valuation Group in New Brunswick."
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Homes Sales Up in Mercer & Burlington Counties
July 23, 2009
NJBiz
"The tide is turning," said Jeffrey Otteau, a housing expert based in East Brunswick who tracks New Jersey real estate "We're not in a housing market where we have returned to the glory days of rapidly rising prices and homes selling in a matter of days or hours, but it does appear that we have seen the bottom to the housing market, which is very good news for the economy."
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Jeffrey Otteau Testifies in Dallas, Texas
July 21, 2009
Jeffrey Otteau testified in July at a complex trial in Dallas County, Texas that resulted in a $178 million jury award involving the NL Industries redevelopment site in Sayreville, New Jersey.
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A retail renaissance amid a recession
July 20, 2009
NJBiz
"The prospects for the residential portion of the Monticello "are very good," said Jeffrey Otteau, president of East Brunswick-based Otteau Valuation Group, which tracks New Jersey real estate data. With a median apartment vacancy rate of 2.4 percent, "there is a healthy balance between supply and demand" in the area."
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New Jersey foreclosure rate falling
July 16, 2009
The Star Ledger
""The reason that borrowers walk away and mail in the keys is because not only are they having a hard time making their payments, but their houses are worth less than their mortgage balance," Otteau said."
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Local couple navigate housing market in crisis
July 6, 2009
Press of Atlantic City
"The housing market in New Jersey - not as ravaged by foreclosures and falling home prices as other states - is poised for a turnaround within the next 12 months, housing expert Jeffrey Otteau says."
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Getting on track
July 6, 2009
NJBiz
"The real benefit for New Jersey is that new and improved opportunities for mass transit are real catalysts for economic growth," Corbalis said. Citing research by East Brunswick-based Otteau Valuation Group, he said, "The best housing markets are near train stations."
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Governor Signs Age 55+ Legislation
July 6, 2009
NJBA Membergram
On July 2, 2009 Governor Jon Corzine enacted S2577 (Sarlo/Vitale/Greenwald/ Malone). The law takes effect immediately and would allow for the conversion of certain age-restricted housing developments pending approval by a municipal planning or zoning board.
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Easing Age Restrictions on Housing
June 29, 2009
The Record
"Jeffrey Otteau, an East Brunswick appraiser hired by the state builders association to study the issue, said the age-restricted market is one of the worst-hit by the housing downturn. He said many potential buyers have been unable to sell their current homes to move into active-adult communities. In addition, Otteau said, many baby boomers plan to stay in their homes as they age -- or, if they move, plan to relocate to less expensive parts of the country."
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Enticed by the Water Views
June 26, 2009
The New York Yimes
And Jeffrey Otteau, whose company, the Otteau Valuation Group, analyzes residential sales statistics for brokers, said that in downtown Jersey City, the site of Crystal Point, the pace of condo sales had more than doubled since January.
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Age Restricted Communities Popular, but Still a Bust in NJ
June 26, 2009
The Press of Atlantic City
But housing market expert Jeffrey Otteau says boomers may not be so quick to flood those communities now – at least not in New Jersey.
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Transit Cities’ Face Roadblocks
June 19, 2009
The New York Times
As Jeffrey Otteau, a residential analyst, put it in a recent interview, “Nothing has been able to escape the economic and financial collapse we’ve seen over the last year — transit-oriented development included.
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N.J. Senate vote could allow courts to overrule towns and open up senior housing
June 17, 2009
Nj.com/Star Ledger
During the construction boom of the last decade, builders rushed to provide housing for people 55 and over, and local officials gobbled it up, said Jeffrey Otteau, of the East Brunswick firm Otteau Valuation Group, which studies New Jersey housing data.
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Housings analysts say rising mortgage rates mean potential N.J. buyers missed best deals
June 15, 2009
Nj.com/Star Ledger
"For those that are still waiting, they've already missed that perfect moment when prices were low and interest rates were also low," said Jeffrey Otteau, whose East Brunswick company, Otteau Valuation Group, tracks New Jersey real estate data.
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How to buy a home
June 14, 2009
App.com/Gannett
People are reacting. The inventory of homes for sale at the Jersey Shore has shrunk since January as sales have increased, said Jeffrey Otteau, president of Otteau Valuation.
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N.J. real estate sees steep drop in foreclosures
June 11, 2009
Nj.com/Star Ledger
"That feeds into this trend now of the bottom occurring in housing, prices firming up and things getting better going forward," said Jeffrey Otteau, of Otteau Valuation Group, which tracks New Jersey housing data.
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Ray of light for Mercer homebuyers
June 6, 2009
Nj.com/Star Ledger
In New Jersey, sales of new and existing homes rose 23 percent in March and 18 percent in April, according to Jeffrey Otteau, a housing market expert based in East Brunswick. In April 2008, sales had risen just 9 percent.
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Downtown N.J. conference focuses on downtown living
June 4, 2009
NJBIZ.com
Prunty said the keynote speaker, real estate expert Jeffrey Otteau, of Otteau Valuation Group in East Brunswick, told the conference that the growth markets in New Jersey are those downtowns with transit connections, which attract empty nesters and young adults who would rather live downtown than in far-flung suburbs lacking downtown commercial and cultural conveniences.
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Renters Find Deals Galore
May 29, 2009
New York Times
The rental market in New Jersey, which up to now has only grown stronger as the sales market declined, is finally showing its own signs of weakness.
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N.J. home prices haven't hit bottom yet
May 27, 2009
Nj.com/Star Ledger
Prices are expected to fall further as more people lose their jobs and homes, hitting a bottom sometime in the second half of the year, said Jeffrey Otteau, head of Otteau Valuation Group, which studies New Jersey real estate data.
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Developer’s Bankruptcy Filing a Tale of Caution
May 18, 2009
NJ Biz
One-two punch of red tape and the weak economy knocked out a condominium project, according to court papers filed in a bankruptcy case that’s being argued in a Camden federal court. The tale of Marina Bay at Rio Grande LLC also highlights demographic changes and market shifts that developers need to consider, experts say.
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Real Estate Experts: Its an Excellent Time to Buy a Home
May 17, 2009
The Home News Tribune/Courier News
Simultaneous falling home prices and mortgage rates have made 2009 an historic year, according to real estate experts. For buyers who have a sufficient down payment and a secure job, it's an excellent time to buy a home. But buyers' fears about job security and higher interest rates on jumbo mortgages are holding many buyers back throughout Central Jersey, according to Jeffrey Otteau, president of Otteau Evaluation Group in East Brunswick.
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New Jersey counties report record numbers of tax appeals
May 16, 2009
Nj.com/Star Ledger
"Ocean County has a double whammy," said Jeffrey Otteau, president of the Otteau Valuation Group, an independent firm that tracks real estate trends and prices.
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A Mixed Forecast Down the Shore
May 15, 2009
The New York Times
ALONG the shore, the weather report for the real estate market is cloudy with some brightening, according to the barometer of recent sales statistics, although more severe conditions prevail at the sand line. An analysis based on fresh data from the state’s four shoreline counties shows the following, according to the housing trend analyst Jeffrey Otteau:
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Home Prices Plunge 12.8 Percent
May 13, 2009
Istockanalyst.com
And many potential buyers believe that if they wait, prices may fall further. That view is supported by some real estate experts, including Jeffrey Otteau, an East Brunswick appraiser who tracks the housing market statewide.
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Area home prices skid 11.3%
May 12, 2009
Asbury Park Press
Numbers from the Otteau Valuation Group in East Brunswick help to give a closer look at what is happening at the Jersey Shore.
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N.J. real estate decline tightens state and county budgets
May 12, 2009
NJ.com/Star Ledger
Jeffrey Otteau, president of the Otteau Valuation Group, which tracks the New Jersey real estate market, said the current losses are real-time indicators of a market gone sour.
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Northeast Home Sales Drop 8 Percent, Prices Fall In March, Realtors Say
April 23, 2009
The Star-Ledger
Existing home sales in the northeast fell 8 percent from February to March, dousing a little water on the hope that a recovery had arrived. Sales in the northeast also fell 22.5 percent over the previous March, and prices sank 18.4 percent to a median price of $231,700, the National Association of Realtors said yesterday. The median is the point at which half of homes sold for more and half sold for less.
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Home Prices Down but Leveling Off in New Jersey, Expert Says
April 23, 2009
The Home News Tribune
After spiraling down in 2008, home prices are expected to decline about 10 percent further before starting to stabilize later this year, according to a New Jersey real estate expert. Home prices dropped by about 7.4 percent in New Jersey in 2008, a trend matched in Monmouth and Ocean counties, said real estate consultant Jeffrey Otteau, president of the Otteau Valuation Group in East Brunswick…
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NJ Builders Feel the Pain
April 22, 2009
NorthJersey.com
New Jersey builders used the words "brutal" and "unprecedented" repeatedly at a statewide trade show Tuesday to describe a housing market undermined by surging unemployment and tighter mortgage lending. Attendance at the annual New Jersey Builders Association convention is off by a third amid a U.S. recession one economist described as the deepest since World War II. The event — which normally draws 15,000 builders, developers and subcontractors — has about 10,000 registered attendees…
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NJ Economy Heading Toward a "New Normal"
April 21, 2009
The Star-Ledger
New Jersey is about to enter a "new normal" as it heads out of the worst of the recession. In that new normal, consumers will spend less and save more, and fewer people will own homes. Fewer people will work in the finance industry, and they'll make less and have their practices more closely regulated…
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Families need homes more than over-55s
April 7, 2009
myCentralJersey.com
Over-55 housing has become so popular in New Jersey that a glut has developed. Otteau Valuation of East Brunswick, which studies the real estate market, estimated there is a 19-year supply of age-restricted housing either in place today, or already approved.
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North Brunswick officials concerned about possible housing construction law
April 3, 2009
myCentralJersey.com
Proponents of the bill say it is a cost-free economic stimulus. The New Jersey Builders Association, a trade group, points to a 2008 study by East Brunswick-based Otteau Valuation that suggests that the state has a 19-year supply of new, single-family detached homes with age-restrictions.
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Housing Affordability Improves
April 3, 2009
The New York Times
These tidings may seem underwhelming in their gladness, but they are the most salutary available as prices continue to slide and the inventory of houses for sale blips upward this season, according to the market trend analyst Jeffrey G. Otteau. House prices right now are descending at the rate of about a percentage point a month, according to Mr. Otteau, whose company is based in New Brunswick. At seminars that he conducted for brokers in March, Mr. Otteau predicted an additional nine point drop in prices by the end of the year, and no likely upturn until 2010.
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Age-Restricted Housing Becomes Ageless
April 2, 2009
AARP Bulletin Today
In New Jersey, "it is much more difficult to find construction financing, and many banks are saying they will not lend at all" for such projects, says Jeffrey Otteau, president of the Otteau Valuation Group.
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Taxation appeals soar in Mercer
March 31, 2009
Times of Trenton
Indeed, a perceived decline in the housing market has been backed up by a measurable decline in prices statewide, according to Jeffrey Otteau of East Brunswick-based Otteau Valuation, which tracks New Jersey real estate prices...
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Signs of Life in the Housing Market
March 27, 2009
The New York Times
The housing analyst Jeffrey G. Otteau raised an alarm last year about potential overbuilding of multifamily housing units in Hudson County, where tens of thousands of units were approved during the boom years — and where the market for condominiums has declined from the strongest to one of the weaker markets in the state in the past year.
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Rising homebuilder shares buoy housing recovery hopes
March 26, 2009
NJ Biz
Shares of Red Bank-based Hovnanian Enterprises and other homebuilders have been rising in the past month. Jeffrey Otteau, president of Otteau Valuation Group in East Brunswick, said the strengthening “is in anticipation of the housing market seeing an improvement sometime within the next 12 months."
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Learning to sell real estate in a struggling economy
March 22, 2009
Asbury Park Press
Once they pass the course and the state exam, they'll enter a rough real estate market. Last year there were 75,200 home sales, down from a peak of 145,692 sales in 2005, said real estate consultant Jeffrey Otteau, president of the Otteau Valuation Group in East Brunswick.
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Hudson City reassures Street
March 20, 2009
TradingMarkets.com
New Jersey lost 8,900 jobs in January to push up the unemployment rate to 7.3 percent. New Jersey home prices are dropping an average of 1 percent a month, and will likely not stabilize before year's end, according to appraiser Jeffrey Otteau.
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N.J. home prices continue to decline
March 19, 2009
The Bergen Record
New Jersey home prices are dropping by an average of about 1 percent a month and will probably not stabilize before the fourth quarter, appraiser Jeffrey Otteau said Wednesday. He predicted a 9 percent decline in prices for 2009 overall...
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Analyst: Expect NJ housing price to drop again
March 18, 2009
NewsDay.com
Speaking to real estate agents attending a conference in East Hanover on Wednesday, appraiser Jeffrey Otteau predicted the housing market will continue to contract because of recession-driven job losses. Housing prices dropped by about 8 percent statewide in 2008.
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Bill to scrap housing age-limits advances
March 17, 2009
The Trenton Times
State lawmakers will send Gov. Jon S. Corzine a bill allowing developers to seek the removal of age restrictions on housing projects without re-starting the lengthy local approval process. Across the state, age-restricted units that are approved but not yet built or currently under construction account for between 15 and 18 years of supply, according to Jeffrey Otteau of Otteau Valuation in East Brunswick...
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State may lift age-restrictions on some housing
March 16, 2009
The Trenton Times
According to Jeffrey Otteau of Otteau Valuation in East Brunswick, age-restricted "homes that are being built now or that have approvals but have not yet been built account for somewhere between 15 and 18 years of supply in the market."
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Retirees See the Value in Rentals
March 13, 2009
The New York Times
For years now, New Jersey residents who are 55 years old and over have been migrating out of the state at one of the highest rates in the country, according to Jeffrey G. Otteau, a housing analyst. His firm, the Otteau Valuation Group, conducted the builders’ study. Mr. Otteau said that the most recent census data showed that New Jersey...
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A Market Going Downhill Fast
February 19, 2009
The New York Times
Over the course of three and a half years, the New Jersey residential market has headed downhill fast. In September 2006, Jeffrey G. Otteau, whose Otteau Valuation Group gathers data on the residential market for many builders and brokers, said there were 68,000 houses sitting on the market unsold for a month or longer, more than he had ever seen in his experience in this market. By spring 2007, there were 71,000 unsold houses, his firm reported, and by May 2008, that number had climbed again, to 74,000.
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Age-restricted housing market goes ice-cold
February 15, 2009
The Star Ledger
The short answer from the housing trend analyst Jeffrey G. Otteau: “very different.” Economic, financial and sociological changes now in progress will effectively morph the profile of the typical home buyer over the next 15 years, said Mr. Otteau, whose company, the Otteau Valuation Group, issues monthly reports on trends to subscribing brokers and developers.
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Real estate market and jobs tied together
February 13, 2009
Asbury Park Press
As real estate consultant Jeffrey Otteau, president of the East Brunswick-based Otteau Valuation Group, said in today’s story, “Fears of job security are putting a freeze on the market.”
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Defining the Buyer of the Future
February 6, 2009
The New York Times
The short answer from the housing trend analyst Jeffrey G. Otteau: “very different.” Economic, financial and sociological changes now in progress will effectively morph the profile of the typical home buyer over the next 15 years, said Mr. Otteau, whose company, the Otteau Valuation Group, issues monthly reports on trends to subscribing brokers and developers.
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Housing
January 29, 2009
The Times of Trenton
Real estate appraiser Jeffrey Otteau said that beginning in September, the rate of decline for New Jersey home prices doubled, from a half-percent loss in each month to a full percent per month. Otteau said that job losses are the primary reason for the continuing declines.
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Price Cuts Spur Home Sales
January 27, 2009
The Wall Street Journal
"We're looking for a very tepid spring market," said Jeffrey Otteau, president ofOtteau Valuation Group, an East Brunswick, N.J., appraisal firm. Mr. Otteau doesn't expect prices in New Jersey to bottom out before the second or third quarter of this year.
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The Shore's economy is expected to slump in 2009
January 4, 2009
Asbury Park Press
The Shore's economy is expected to slump in 2009 as weary consumers deal with job insecurity, shaky home prices and depleted investments. The housing sector has yet to stabilize. Home prices statewide on average have fallen about 20 percent from their peak in 2005, and they are expected to fall another 8 percentage points to bring them in line with workers' incomes, said Jeffrey G. Otteau, president of the Otteau Valuation Group, an East Brunswick real-estate consulting firm...
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First-time buyers make hay in housing drought
January 3, 2009
The Star Ledger
No one should be surprised the real estate market has turned to sawdust. Home sales in New Jersey are expected to finish 2008 at just 68,000, down 20 percent from the 85,000 sold a year ago, said Jeffrey Otteau, president of otteau.com, an East Brunswick market research and appraisal firm...
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As Wall Street suffers, so does nearby New Jersey
December 31, 2008
Reuters
The Wall Street upheaval that has depressed New York City's high-flying real estate market is also slowing property sales and lowering prices right across the river in the state of New Jersey. At the current pace of sales, which in November was down 47 percent from last year, it would take 24.1 months for all the properties on the market in Hudson County to sell, said Jeffrey Otteau, president of Otteau Valuation Group, a real estate consultancy and appraisal service...
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Housing Inventories on the Rise
December 26, 2008
New York Times
A new assessment of the region prepared by the Otteau Valuation Group presents a generally unlovely picture of residential sales markets: Manhattan now has an 11.8-month supply of unsold inventory, said Jeffrey G. Otteau, whose Old Bridge, N.J., company analyzes contract sales figures and advises real estate brokers.
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Transit-Oriented Housing—Shelter in a Storm?
December 2008
The New York Times
Transit-Friendly Development - Despite the ongoing housing slump (and the economic collapse), inner-ring towns with rail service to New York City have outpaced the overall market due to a demographic shift which will reshape New Jersey…
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Transitions Made Easier
December 5, 2008
The New York Times
Statewide, the pace of residential sales has continued to decline each month since July, according to the latest report from the Otteau Valuation Group. In Essex County, for example, the average time a house spent on the market was 73 days in July, and 92 days in October…
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Experts foresee more pain for state's homebuilders
December 04, 2008
The Star Ledger
As bad as things are for the crippled home-building market right now, it has yet to hit bottom, said Jeffrey Otteau, president of Otteau Valuation Group With a clinical PowerPoint presentation, Otteau offered little consolation for an industry frozen by recession. Among his more sobering points…
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Retiree Havens Turn Younger to Combat the Housing Bust
December 01, 2008
The Wall Street Journal
In New Jersey, the age restrictions have been lowered or dropped for at least nine new projects, while an additional 10 planned developments were scrapped altogether, says Jeffrey Otteau, president of Otteau Valuation Group Inc., a real estate market-analysis firm in East Brunswick, N.J.
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A route to higher home values
November 30, 2008
The Record
Homes in towns with rail stations at their heart or nearby fare much better than those in any other market, said real estate guru Jeffrey Otteau, who has been analyzing New Jersey real estate for 30 years. "It's not enough to have a rail station," Otteau said. "But it's a really good start."…
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Board OKs Alfieri's housing, retail plans
November 26, 2008
Suburban
Alfieri's professionals proposed that the board allow him to finish the residential component of the development first, since his marketing consultant, Jeffrey Otteau, testified that the market for housing is more likely to rebound first in the current economic decline. "Every home can be sold at a price," Otteau said…
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Reducing property taxes is possible, but not likely
November 22, 2008
The Star Ledger
The unraveling of the housing market has caused a decline in home prices over the past three years," said Jeffrey Otteau, president of Otteau Valuation Group, a real estate research firm based in East Brunswick, which tracks the New Jersey real estate market...
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Area home prices dip 3.9% over 3rd quarter
November 19, 2008
Asbury Park Press
In the third quarter, the median home price in Monmouth County fell 6 percent to $385,175, firm President Jeffrey G. Otteau said. In Ocean County, the median price dropped 9 percent to $242,665, he said. Otteau's figures include new homes, existing single-family homes and condominiums...
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Keeping Afloat
November 19, 2008
The Star Ledger
Statewide, home prices fell 5 percent, to $312,437, down from $330, 396 during the third quarter, said Jeffrey Otteau, president of Otteau Valuation Group, a real estate research firm based in East Brunswick, which tracks the New Jersey real estate market...
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Walkable Living Makes Strides
November 2008
Realtor Magazine
What's the impact of high gas prices on residential real estate? Real estate practitioners and industry analysts debate the fate of suburbia and the prospect of a future where people leave their cars in the garage. Jeffrey Otteau: We’ve been seeing a shift from the outer- to the inner-ring suburbs and urban areas at least since 2005, so higher gas prices are just a layering on top of a shift that was already developing because of demographics...
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Now what?
October 5, 2008
Asbury Park Press
In New Jersey, home prices have declined about 19 percent since they peaked in the fall of 2005, and a declining housing market that looked as if it might bottom out next spring faces even more uncertainty, said Jeffrey Otteau, president of the Otteau Valuation Group, a real estate consulting firm in East Brunswick...
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Rentals Remain Robust
October 4, 2008
The New York Times
The high rental occupancy rate is expected to stay where it is for the immediate future, or perhaps even tighten further. “The number of units in the pipeline in the state is, well, dramatic,” said Mr. Otteau, adding that, in fact, it was already time to start thinking about the issue of overbuilding…
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Scaling Back in Suburbia
September 28, 2008
The Star Ledger
Market experts say the supersize single-family house in the suburbs is taking a harder hit than other housing types in New Jersey.
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Buying New is a Winning Move
September 19, 2008
Asbury Park Press
A new market report, released by the Otteau Valuation Group, an East Brunswick-based company, stated that " there are developing signs that we are seeing the early stages of a recovery now."…
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Where to Buy Now
September 16, 2008
The Star Ledger
Jeffrey Otteau, the guru of all things real estate-related in New Jersey. Otteau's methodology for coming up with his list of top spots to buy involved coming up with a calculation he calls the "projected absorption" rate of homes…
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Experts Say Restricting Development in Jersey Towns May Backfire
September 15, 2008
New Jersey 101.5 FM Radio
Jeff Otteau runs the Otteau Valuation Group in East Brunswick. He says the prevailing mindset in many towns is if you allow new housing, it will overburden local schools and…
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‘Active Adult’ Housing Loses Luster
September 12, 2008
New York Times
A FEW years ago in New Jersey, housing complexes for those 55 and older were proliferating, with new projects seeming to pop up and sprawl out nearly anyplace with acreage — be it urban, suburban or rural. Jeffrey Otteau of the Otteau Appraisal Group is offering brokers and developers new data showing reduced demand for such housing around the state, and a large inventory of unsold units.
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First-Timers’ Charm
September 7, 2008
New York Times
The moment, however, is likely to last only about another six months, said Jeffrey Otteau, a market analyst whose Otteau Appraisal Group monitors statewide sales data and provides monthly reports to the real estate industry. He predicted that by next spring the subprime lending crisis, which primarily affects…
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Tracking the Real Deal
September 1, 2008
NJ Biz
One might assume that with the current slump in housing demand, this would be a lousy time to launch a new product for the real estate market. Yet, Otteau.com, a real estate appraisal and data firm in East Brunswick, recently began marketing a new research tool called MarketTRAC, which tracks residential real estate trends...
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Trading Up Slows Down
September, 2008
The Real Deal
Wall Street job losses and jobs migrating out of New Jersey are contributing to the "sluggish sales pace" for trade-up homes in that state, said Jeff Otteau, president of the Otteau Valuation Group…
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Report: N.J. Housing Market Continues to Hold Steady
August 29, 2008
NJ Biz
The pace of July home sales in New Jersey remained level with a pattern of activity that has been little changed since March, according to a report released today from Jeffrey Otteau, president of the Otteau Valuation Group, an East Brunswick-based real estate consulting and appraisal firm.
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Time to Nibble on Property?
August 24, 2008
The Bergan Record
"Since prices have declined, today's market offers significant value to the potential real estate investor," said Jeffrey Otteau, president of Otteau Valuation Group in East Brunswick, who has been tracking and reporting on real estate trends in the Garden State for decades.
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Has the Central Jersey Housing Market Reached Bottom?
No one is sure
August 23, 2008
Courier News
Jeff Otteau, CEO of the Otteau Valuation Group in East Brunswick, agrees. His figures show that the inventory of homes for sale has been shrinking, while the number of homes sold has remained steady in the second quarter, a trend that continued in July. It's too soon to tell if we've reached bottom. Otteau said part of the reason for the decline…
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Home Prices Decline 3.1%
August 15, 2008
Asbury Park Press
Jeffrey Otteau, president of the Otteau Valuation Group, an East Brunswick real-estate consulting firm, said his figures also indicate a decline in prices locally. In the second quarter, the median home price in Monmouth County fell 7 percent from last year to $390,271 and in Ocean County dropped to $249,635, down 9 percent from last year, Otteau said. He cited a decline in vacation homes sales as a reason.
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Amid Housing Slump, Glut Eases Slightly
July 29, 2008
The Wall Street Journal
“We have the added weight of a recessionary economy” on what was already the weakest housing market since 1930’s, says Jeffrey Otteau, president of Otteau Valuation Group, an East Brunswick, N.J., appraisal firm. He says the market won’t recover fully until employment starts growing again and credit becomes more readily available.
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Movers & Shakers: Jeffrey Otteau
July 14, 2008
NJBiz
Jeffrey Otteau, president of the 33-year-old Otteau Valuation Group in East Brunswick, consults with lenders, attorneys and government agencies on real estate matters.
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N.J. home sales fell 30 percent in first quarter
June 14, 2008
The Star Ledger
Jeffrey Otteau, president of the East Brunswick research firm Otteau Valuation Group, said he suspected the NAR's original numbers were out of whack when they were issued May 13.
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New Jersey home sales down 30%
June 14, 2008
The Home News Tribune
Jeffrey Otteau, president of the Otteau Valuation Group, an East Brunswick real estate consulting firm, said it is not unusual for statistics to be revised
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With New Jersey housing markets down, it's the right time to buy
June 10, 2008
The Courier News
"We'll look back in five years and conclude that this year, 2008, was the time to buy," said Jeff Otteau, CEO of Otteau Evaluation Group in East Brunswick.
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N.J. housing report's hint of hope
June 6, 2008
The Star Ledger
A report by East Brunswick-based research firm Otteau Valuation Group shows April home sales increased from the March level -- the first time that has happened since 2005 -- in what may be a sign market has bottomed out.
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TELEVISION MEDIA

New Jersey Home Sales/Shore Homes
June 6, 2008
NJ News 12
Home Sales in New Jersey’s Beach Communities are down by as much as 23%. Analysts say it’s a trend that speaks to a broader economic down turn. And despite these statistics, shore area Realtors are reporting an up-tick.
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Struggling Home Owners in the U.S.
May 27, 2008
BBC World News
There is no reprieve for struggling home owners in the United States for the fall of house prices and sales. Not only causing problems for the economy it is becoming more difficult to put a valuation on the properties and that leaves many families in financial difficulties.
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Foreclosures at an All Time High
March 24, 2008
NJN Public Television & Radio
The Foreclosure rate in New Jersey is at an all time high and the housing market is in decline. In some cases, one person's misfortune can be another's opportunity.
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Home Prices Fall in Rich New York Suburbs Once Immune to Slump
May 9, 2007
Bloomberg TV
The U.S. housing slump has hit New York City's richest suburbs. Wealth and excellent credit have until now spared bedroom communities in New Jersey, Connecticut and New York's Westchester County from declines in home prices. Now the tightening of credit in response to rising subprime defaults has disrupted the real estate food chain, bringing the national housing slump to Manhattan's doorstep. First-time home buyers are more likely to be subprime borrowers. Every purchase of an existing house by a first-time buyer triggers four other sales in the housing market, said Jeffrey Otteau, president of Otteau Valuation Group in East Brunswick, New Jersey..
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RADIO MEDIA
Home Prices Fall in Rich New York Suburbs Once Immune to Slump
May 9, 2007
Bloomberg Radio
The U.S. housing slump has hit New York City's richest suburbs. Wealth and excellent credit have until now spared bedroom communities in New Jersey, Connecticut and New York's Westchester County from declines in home prices. Now the tightening of credit in response to rising subprime defaults has disrupted the real estate food chain, bringing the national housing slump to Manhattan's doorstep. First-time home buyers are more likely to be subprime borrowers. Every purchase of an existing house by a first-time buyer triggers four other sales in the housing market, said Jeffrey Otteau, president of Otteau Valuation Group in East Brunswick, New Jersey.
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PUBLISHED ACADEMIC ARTICLES
The Role of New Construction in the Relocation Appraisal
September 1993
The appraisal process relies heavily on the principle of substitution in developing an estimate of value. This principle holds that typical potential buyers in a marketplace usually are unwilling to pay more for a property than the cost of acquiring an equally desirable substitute property. In considering competing listings, the availability and pricing of new construction should be examined carefully. Since most potential buyers consider new construction more desirable than a previously owned home, the availability of new homes is a limiting influence on the anticipated sales price of a transferee's existing home.
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Understanding the Buyer's Perspective
April 1993
Real estate markets naturally tend to seek a balance between the opposing interests of buyers and sellers in the marketplace.
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The Value Added by Appraisers
November 1996
The valuation process for a relocated employee's home has long been a source of concern and controversy for employers and employees alike. This is not unexpected, given the intensely personal nature of homeownership. The unique characteristics that comprise our individual personalities lead us to create home environments in our own image. It is, therefore, natural that we, as individual, sense intrinsic value in our homes that will not always be fully recognized by others. It also seems reasonable to expect that outsiders' failure to validate or agree with that perceived value during the relocation process will be a perpetual source of conflict.
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Valuation Practices: How Policy Choices Affect Appraisal Results
November 2009
MOBILITY Magazine
The troubles in the housing market during the past several years have resulted in renewed interest in understanding real estate valuation practices with regard to both process and methodology. One of the key lessons to emerge from recent trends is that the link between historical data and future trends becomes increasingly unpredictable as the pace of market change accelerates.