New Jersey Frenzy Is Over

From the Asbury Park Press:

Feeling the pinch
BY DAVID P. WILLIS

For now, Stephen and Jaime Dane are living in a summer rental in Avon. Their new four-bedroom home at K. Hovnanian Homes' Manors at Metedeconk development in Jackson is under construction.

"Right now, it is a big hole with some bricks around it," said Stephen Dane, 32.

The Danes put down a deposit in February and expect to move into their home in January. Some may say it was a great time to purchase a new home. The builder, working with its own mortgage company, gave the Danes a $10,000 credit for improvements inside the house and another $10,000 for upgrades outside.

"We have a nice big home," Dane said. "We were happy with the incentives that they gave us."

Once red hot, the market for new homes in New Jersey has begun to cool.

"The frenzy in the real estate market that we have experienced in the last three or four years is no longer in existence," said Tom Critelli, president of Danitom Development, which has offices in Holmdel and Paramus. "We are seeing good traffic, but not necessarily anyone overreacting to having to buy now (and) worrying about the price going up later."
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"Last year was the most active year for home building in 18 years," O'Keefe said. There were 38,481 building permits issued in the state in 2005, up from 35,936 in 2004 and 32,984 in 2003.
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"I think right now, in a number of markets, buyers are feeling less pressured today," Cooper said.