In an editorial, Jersey City Apartment Owners Association Executive Director Wendy Paul presents data showing that rents in the city are decreasing.
A recent report from Zumper states that rents for one-bedroom units and two-bedroom units have declined 2.9% and 12.1% year-over-year, respectively. Similarly, another recent analysis shows Jersey City becoming a more affordable.
This is great news for all residents of Jersey City and we agree that it has to do with increasing rental housing inventory.
That said, this report prompts two questions. What are the costs of owning versus renting any size home in Jersey City and what about our increasing housing inventory?
First, Jersey City is in the middle of a housing boom with historic investment that has been embraced by this city’s leadership which is welcome given the prohibitive, anti-development politics and rhetoric across the Hudson River and in many American cities.
In Jersey City despite the protests, our city’s leaders understand the economics behind supply and demand. Increasing the supply means decreasing the price as the Zumper study proves.
Second, the costs facing every single-family homeowner and multi-family homeowner are skyrocketing and the individuals living in any housing in this city are feeling it in their pocketbooks.
Consider that inflation has not yet stabilized nor have interest rates.
Many of the Jersey City Apartment Owners Association’s (JCAOA) members state that their insurance premiums have increased by as much as 100% year-over-year, energy rates this winter have increased nearly 70% and that’s before the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities approved a rate hike of almost 20% which will begin on June 1, 2025.
In addition, school taxes will continue to rise given the state’s school funding cuts to Jersey City as will the city’s water utility rates.
Finally, this reality does not take into account the costs of necessary capital improvements and day-to-day operating costs of owning any size home.
Finally, home builders are just beginning to grapple with the threat of tariffs that will increase the costs of every kind of building material.
The majority of JCAOA members work hard to keep rents competitive while facing an uncertain economic reality that we all share. We believe additional housing units will help make home and apartment prices competitive for all of us.
But we need to understand that Jersey City will never be able to solely build out the amount of housing that is needed for Hudson County, North Jersey, or the region.
We welcome the State of New Jersey’s goal of building 84,000 affordable housing units by 2035 and the need for many more market rate units that are required to help fund the operational and capital costs of those affordable units.
There can be no doubt that building several hundred thousand units of additional housing will make our entire region more competitive, inclusive, and desirable for current residents and young people who are part of our city’s and state’s educational talent pipeline who will soon look for housing in Jersey City.
Our next mayor and council need to recognize the success of our current leadership and build (literally) on that success.
Developers fund politicans
Finally! I couldn’t figure out how the most basic economic concept (Supply and Demand) was NOT affecting prices.
Hopefully, this correction will continue and maybe some buildings will even go condo.
The Apartment Association group is a lobby for builders. They have another organization that represents landlords. They are an anti tenant group that gets funding from builders, developers and landlords. They employ Realtors and others to spread their messages. They are anti rent control and for privatization of city services. Many developers support them to up zone.
Of course they are going to say this. There’s no accountability for the absolute trash state new jersey is in. They believe affordable housing system didn’t work because there weren’t enough units but it’s because it’s a lottery system. I’ve seen single mothers wait years to get approved. It’s a scam! And will always be cause they get a few units to be affordable housing and the rest are full price. Nobody talks about it. And the builders association just see dollar signs. Taxpayers are going to pay for all of these affordable housing buildings thinking it’s a win for nj. Had all the units been what they were supposed to be used for we can actually get somewhere.
It has been part of the folk law of Hoboken for decades that if you support. work for contribute to the right politico you are given one of those affordable apartments.