How to Buy a Home in New Jersey
Why Buy a Home in New Jersey?
Should you move to New Jersey? The taxes are so high! Why would anyone want to live there? Maybe you have heard a few of these things from fellow New Yorkers, or from others that are not from the area.
Why did I move to New Jersey? My personal answer is two-fold: competition and opportunity. I moved from Michigan (where I was born and raised) to New Jersey in 2012 for these two reasons.
What do I mean by competition? Competition in everything - schools/education, employment, housing, social stature, and financial wealth. When I moved to New Jersey, I believed that by surrounding myself with others that are better than me, I would become the best possible version of myself.
What do I mean by opportunity? Opportunity by my definition means ‘a chance’. New Jersey provides entrepreneurs a chance to start a small business and homebuyers a chance to double their net worth in less than five years. I personally did both. I started a mortgage company in 2013 and have doubled my life savings a few times since I moved to New Jersey.
I had 12 different addresses in my teens and twenties. If you’re reading this article and have some big dreams and goals for your life and your family, I would love to be the first to welcome you to the Garden State!
Is it hard to buy a house in New Jersey?
In a word - Yes.
Why is it hard to buy a house in New Jersey? The answer is that it is incredibly competitive and also very expensive. How competitive? According to the National Association of Realtors (NAR) economist Lawrence Yun, the average property in the US receives between 2 and 3 offers as of April 2026 (https://www.nar.realtor/magazine/real-estate-news/slow-sales-high-home-prices-whats-going-on). This stat is for the entire US. As a New Jersey Loan Officer working for an independent mortgage broker, I only see a small piece of the overall New Jersey market, but I can confidently estimate that the average number of offers for my clients is at least 8. This is approximately four times the national average.
How Expensive? According to the New Jersey Association of Realtors’ April 2026 report, Bergen County’s median sales price was $840,000, Hudson County’s median sales price was $652,500, Essex County’s median sales price was $799,999, Passaic County’s median sales price was $637,500, and Morris County’s median sales price was $775,000 (https://njar-public.stats.10kresearch.com/reports).
One more interesting statistic related to the competitive nature of home buying and selling real estate in northern New Jersey is that the average number of ‘Days on Market’ (how long it takes the seller to accept a buyer’s offer) ranges from 28 - 46 days for single family homes and 24 - 43 days for condos and townhomes. This is much less than the national average of 57 days (https://www.realtor.com/research/april-2026-data/).
In summary, New Jersey real estate is more expensive and sells faster than real estate in other states.
What Makes New Jersey Real Estate an Excellent Investment?
Owning real estate in northern New Jersey has many benefits:
-
Close proximity to New York City. Being able to commute to employment with opportunities to make $100,000 or more as a recent college graduate is very attractive to many younger home buyers.
-
Excellent school ratings. New Jersey public schools are ranked 4th in the nation in 2026 and consistently rank in the top 5 states each year (https://worldpopulationreview.com/state-rankings/public-school-rankings-by-state)
-
Diverse Communities. New Jersey is the 7th most diverse state as of 2025. Between 2010 and 2024, New Jersey’s Hispanic population increased by 42%, and New Jersey’s Asian population increased by 40% (https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/fact/table/NJ/PST045225)
What Makes New Jersey Home Buying Unique?
New Jersey’s home inspection, attorney review process, purchase contract expiration, time of the essence and settlement procedure are different from other neighboring states.
In New Jersey, buyers perform a home inspection AFTER the purchase contract is fully negotiated and they have exclusive rights to purchase the property. Additionally, New Jersey customarily affords buyers 10 - 14 days to complete the home inspection. In other states like New York, the home inspection may take place before or while the home offer is being negotiated. In Michigan, the typical home inspection negotiation is completed within 5 - 7 days maximum.
The attorney review step is another unique part of the home buying process in New Jersey (especially in Northern New Jersey). Attorney review is typically a 3 business day process in which the buyer’s and seller’s attorneys review and revise the purchase agreement that was signed by the buyers and sellers.
Another interesting fact about purchase contracts in New Jersey is that they don’t expire. In other states, the purchase contract can be considered void if the buyer or seller fails to close by the contractual date. In New Jersey, a new contract is not required and the buyer and seller are still obligated to perform under the original contract (even if the dates have been missed).
One legal term you might find in a New Jersey purchase contract is something called ‘Time of the Essence’. This phrase and mechanism for contract enforcement is part of case law and is not a legal statute (https://law.justia.com/cases/new-jersey/appellate-division-published/1956/42-n-j-super-514-0.html). The common practice in New Jersey is that when the original closing date is missed, a new closing date is set automatically for either 10 calendar days or 10 business days from the original date. If either party fails to appear (and close the contract) on that date, they are in breach of the contract, and the other party can use legal remedies specified in the contract. This topic is one of the many topics negotiated in attorney review.
One other difference in New Jersey is the settlement procedure. In New Jersey, the title company typically acts as the escrow agent. The title company collects all of the funds due from the buyer and lender and disburses the funds to all parties - sellers, realtors, attorneys, insurance agents, etc. In other states such as New York, the buyer may be required to bring multiple individual checks to the closing to pay each party individually.