Property Perspectives Local Insight
Insights, Trends, and Strategies for Today's Home Buyers and Sellers. Page 4 of 27.
Co-op vs. Condo in New Jersey: What You Own and How Buying One Works
With a condo, you own your unit and a share of the common areas, and the unit has its own property tax bill. With a co-op, you own shares in a corporation that owns the property, plus a proprietary lease that gives you…
Combining Two Homes Into One in New Jersey: Sell Both, Keep One, or Rent One Out?
When two homeowners combine households, there are three main paths: sell both and buy one home that fits everyone, keep one and sell the other, or keep one and rent the other out. The right one depends on what each…
Condo, Co-op or Single-Family: What You're Buying Inside a 55+ Community
"55+" describes the age rule, not what you own. In Monmouth and Ocean County, one age-restricted community is a condominium, where you own your unit plus a share of the common elements; the next is a co-op, where you…
Dividing a Second Home or Shore House in a New Jersey Divorce
A shore house or second home in a New Jersey divorce usually ends one of three ways: you sell it, one of you keeps it, or you keep owning it together under a written agreement. Which one fits depends on your settlement…
Does a House Have to Go Through Probate in New Jersey?
Not always: in New Jersey, a house goes through probate when it was in the name of the person who died alone. A house owned by spouses as tenants by the entirety, or by joint owners with a right of survivorship, passes…
Does BAH Count as Income for a VA Loan? Budgeting BAH at the Jersey Shore
Yes, your Basic Allowance for Housing (BAH) can count as income on a VA loan: VA's underwriting regulation lets a lender treat a military housing allowance as continuing income when it's documented, and because BAH is…
Employer Relocation Packages: How Home-Sale Help Works, and Is It Taxable?
Relocation packages differ from employer to employer, but home-sale help usually comes as payments toward your selling and moving costs, a program where a relocation company buys your home or helps you sell it, or…
Enrolling in School After a Move to New Jersey: The Residency Documents Districts Ask For
New Jersey districts enroll a student based on proof that the parent or guardian lives in the district, and they have to accept a range of documents, including a deed, a lease, a contract of sale, property tax bills,…
FEMA Disaster Assistance for Homeowners: What It Covers and How It Works With Insurance
After a presidentially declared disaster, FEMA's Individuals and Households Program can help homeowners with needs insurance doesn't cover, such as temporary housing and repairs to a primary residence. It isn't a…
Flood Zone AE, VE or X: What the Letters on a FEMA Map Mean
The letters are FEMA's labels for mapped flood areas. Zones that start with A or V are Special Flood Hazard Areas, the areas mapped for the 1%-annual-chance flood, and V zones add storm-driven waves along the coast.…
HECM for Purchase: Buying Your Next Home With a Reverse Mortgage in New Jersey
HECM for Purchase is an FHA-insured reverse mortgage that lets an eligible borrower buy a new principal residence and take out the reverse mortgage in the same transaction. You pay the difference between the loan…
How Are Homes in 55+ Communities Priced and Appraised?
Mostly against other sales inside the same community. Fannie Mae's appraisal guidance says sales from the same market area, including the same subdivision or project, should be used when possible, and that comparable…
How to Choose a Realtor for a Divorce Home Sale in New Jersey
Choose a realtor for a divorce sale the way you'd choose any professional on your case: by how they'll handle both owners, the attorneys and the house, not by who called first or who quoted the lowest fee. Look for…
How to Compare Property Taxes Between Jersey Shore Towns Before You Buy
Compare the actual tax bill on each home, not the towns' tax rates. In New Jersey, each town assesses property at its own level, so a town with a high general tax rate can still have lower bills than its neighbor; the…
How to Establish Residency in New Jersey: Taxes, Voting, Your License and Tuition
New Jersey doesn't have one residency test. For income tax, you're a resident when New Jersey becomes your domicile, your permanent home; to vote, you need 30 days in your county; the MVC wants your license moved…
How to Hire a Licensed Mover in New Jersey
Check the license first: a company that moves household goods within New Jersey must be licensed by the NJ Division of Consumer Affairs, and its ads have to show the license number. Then get a written estimate after an…
How to Register and Title an Out-of-State Car in New Jersey
Title and register your car with the New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission within 60 days of moving. Bring your ID, the original title, New Jersey insurance information and two completed forms, and expect a title fee of…
How to Research a Jersey Shore Town Before You Visit
Start online with four things: the town itself, its property taxes, the commute, and how you'd spend a Saturday there. New Jersey publishes most of what you need for free, and a few evenings with the right tools can…
How Do You Sell a Home in a 55+ Community in New Jersey?
You sell it the way you'd sell any New Jersey home, plus three extra pieces: line up the association's resale requirements early, price it against your own community's recent sales, and plan for the age certification…
Inherited a House in New Jersey When You Already Own One: Keep It, Rent It or Sell It?
When you inherit a house and already own your own home, you have three main choices: sell it, keep it as a second home, or rent it out. The right one depends on what it's worth, what it costs to carry, what work it…
Insurance Check Made Out to You and Your Mortgage Company: How Repair Money Gets Released
If you have a mortgage, your lender is almost always listed on your homeowners policy as a loss payee, so the insurance check for damage to the house is made out to both of you. You endorse it, your mortgage company…
Is a Townhouse a Condo in New Jersey? Fee Simple vs Condominium Ownership
Not always. A townhouse is a building style, homes attached side by side, while a condominium is a form of ownership created when a master deed is recorded under New Jersey's Condominium Act. So a townhouse can be a…
Jersey Shore Beach Badges: How Seasonal Badges Work in Monmouth and Ocean County
Most Jersey Shore towns charge a fee to use their beaches in summer, and you show a badge (or a digital pass) to get on the sand. Each town sets its own prices and rules, so you buy a badge for the town you're…
Which Jersey Shore Towns Have a Train Station?
NJ TRANSIT's Jersey Shore page lists sixteen North Jersey Coast Line stations at the Shore, from Aberdeen-Matawan in Monmouth County to Bay Head in Ocean County. Fourteen are in Monmouth County and two, Point Pleasant…