Howell Home Values Have Fallen Since 2010, Census Data Shows

HOWELL, NJ — If you own a home in Howell Township, the value of that property is not what it was five years ago, according to a report that examined U.S. Census data.

NJ Spotlight looked at Census data for New Jersey and found that home values remain significantly lower than they were five years ago for nearly every town in the state.

The median decline was about 11 percent; in Howell, the decline was 13.22 percent, according to the 2015 American Community Survey data released on Thursday, the report said. The American Community Survey is conducted by the Census Bureau on a rolling basis throughout the decade. The data released Dec. 8 released pools the data collected in calendar years 2011-2015, Census officials said.

The typical home in the state was valued at almost $316,000 when averaged over the 2011-2015 period. That was 11.5 percent less than the 2006-2010 community survey estimate. In Howell, the median home value was $314,300. Neighboring Farmingdale had a similar decrease of 13.91 percent to a median value of $297,600.

NJ Spotlight noted the median values are skewed by valuations before and after the Great Recession and that towns that were hard-hit by Superstorm Sandy — such as Keansburg, Keyport and Union Beach along the Raritan Bayshore — are affected because some homes are still being rebuilt and are not back on the property tax rolls, while others were abandoned.

The Monmouth County town with the largest decrease in median home value was Sea Bright, which had a 33.23 percent decrease. The median home value in the borough is now $447,800 in a town where 14.1 percent of the homes are valued at $1 million or more, according to the figures reported by NJ Spotlight. Sea Bright, too, was significantly affected by Sandy.

Little Silver had the smallest decline, 0.40 percent, in Monmouth County; the borough's median value was $597,400 in 2015, according to the report.

Other towns near Howell had similar decreases in median values. Freehold Township had a 10.82 percent decrease and Freehold Borough's median value declined 9.03 percent. Millstone Township, just beyond Freehold Township, fared better with a 5.15 percent decline. Wall Township, Howell's easterly neighbor, saw a 6.28 percent decline in its median home values, according to the report.

Two towns in Monmouth County actually saw their median home values rise. In Belmar, the median rose 8.38 percent to $511,900, and in Monmouth Beach the median rose 19.99 percent to $646,500; 19.5 percent of the borough's homes are valued at $1 million or more, the report said.

The single-year estimates for New Jersey show a smaller drop — about 5 percent from 2010 to 2015, when the median home value was $322,000, the report said. The single-year estimates also show a slow but steady rise as New Jersey continues its economic recovery.

The American Community Survey data released Dec. 8 released pools the data collected in calendar years 2011-2015, Census officials said. Next December the bureau will release the pooled data from 2012-2016, officials said. The Census Bureau also produces single-year data using the survey for all towns with populations of 65,000 or more. That information is released each September.

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