Bergen, Camden, Essex, Gloucester, Ocean, Passaic, Sussex, and Union joined various counties in California and the Chicagoland area to make up more than half of the 50 as of the end of the second quarter.
More than half of millennials in the Garden State feel that the time is now to be putting down roots for their budding families, and 43% specifically said they wanted to start building equity.
Beside COVID concerns, what the high-risk markets also all have in common is that they are high-density, and would be prone to risk even without a pandemic.
But some of the more outlandish home buying anecdotes may not repeat themselves; there might be closer to an average of six to 12 offers per property, at 3% to 5% over the asking price.
The difficulties in securing single-family properties have seemingly pushed many toward townhouses and condo units, for which sales were up almost 11% in August versus the same month in 2020.
While the definition of an "older home" is hard to pin down, in general, a home built before 1978 will have lead paint, and heating and cooling systems that may be in need of upgrades.