SJ is not immune to the housing crisis. (Somerset, Princeton: 2009, employment)

[gradstudent77]

Originally Posted by Delphi

I have a friend who, even today, doesn't see any problem in the economy. He says we will be fine, we will be fine. "This" kind of things keep happening. But he fails to see how many people have lost their 401k saving, housing, jobs and their pain. And those who are near their retirement? I feel bad for them. For no reason of their own, they have to take the burden of those irresponsible people.

To the bolded, actually it is no one's fault but their own. They should have been smarter and sold before 40% or so of their 401k evaporated.

[Delphi]

Originally Posted by gradstudent77

To the bolded, actually it is no one's fault but their own. They should have been smarter and sold before 40% or so of their 401k evaporated.

Easy said than done. Sold in exchange for what? In 401K you need to put your money in some funds. You can't just sell and put the money in CD. When every fund goes down, where to invest that sold 401k money.

[Roselvr]

Originally Posted by NatasNJ

Wait. Why would prices "come down" in the SJ area if it never had any type of bubble or unusually high appreciation?

Pretty sure I said this in another post..

Back in 2005 when my dad had a house built a few blocks from me, the price of building materials went up; extremely high. We didn't believe the builder but my hubby tried to buy lumber, it was 2 or 3 times higher then what it usually cost. Normally, my dad's model of house would cost a little over $160k - it was about $250k now, base price.

I don't know if you had this type of increase in Texas (I think that's where you're from).. but it was building materials plus the lack of buildable lots.

Take a ride out to Springfield Township by Southampton. What happened in that town was at one time you could buy a small lot, then it became a 3 acre minimum - town people didn't like that and fought & won to increase to 7 and 11 acres. If you want to buy a 3 acre lot in that town now, it will cost you about $300k just for the lot last time I looked.

Medford - no land and what land there is, you can't get a septic/well because the person holding the permit won't release them - or something to that effect. It drove prices up there.

Then you have what's known as the Pinelands commission - there is land that no one can touch.

The only town I have seen affordable ($10k) building lots is in Browns Mills, but there isn't many.

[gradstudent77]

Originally Posted by Delphi

Easy said than done. Sold in exchange for what? In 401K you need to put your money in some funds. You can't just sell and put the money in CD. When every fund goes down, where to invest that sold 401k money.

So, don't invest in the 401k. Any way you want to say it, it comes back to an individual's choice. Yes, only the exceptional will never get burned but that doesn't change the fact that those that do are responsible for their own fate.

[Delphi]

Originally Posted by gradstudent77

So, don't invest in the 401k. Any way you want to say it, it comes back to an individual's choice. Yes, only the exceptional will never get burned but that doesn't change the fact that those that do are responsible for their own fate.

Say when you are 25 yrs old and started investing in 401K. When you are 45, your 401K, say, is 500K. Now you have to know at 45 that there will be a "crash" when you turn 60 so that you can park the 401k money in a better way. Or better you have to know at 25 that there will be a crash when you turn 60 so never invest in 401K. wow...smart.

[GoPhils]

Originally Posted by Delphi

SJ will look worse than North Jersey in a year or so because of unemployment growth.

Why will SJ have bigger unemployment growth?

Right now, the Philly/Camden Metro Area and NY/North Jersey Metro Area have the same exact unemployment rate (8.1).

[Delphi]

Originally Posted by GoPhils

Why will SJ have bigger unemployment growth?

Right now, the Philly/Camden Metro Area and NY/North Jersey Metro Area have the same exact unemployment rate (8.1).

When economy turns around, there will be more growth in NJ than SJ.

[GoPhils]

Yeah, because the Philadelphia metropolitan area isn't the 5th-largest in the nation or anything...

But if you're talking about physical growth as well, in terms of people moving to the area (as if there aren't enough already), there is more room for growth in SJ. There really isn't much room for growth in North Jersey.

[theoakman]

Originally Posted by Delphi

Say when you are 25 yrs old and started investing in 401K. When you are 45, your 401K, say, is 500K. Now you have to know at 45 that there will be a "crash" when you turn 60 so that you can park the 401k money in a better way. Or better you have to know at 25 that there will be a crash when you turn 60 so never invest in 401K. wow...smart.

Heh, you nailed it on the head. As a 28 year old, I have no plans to ever participate in any 401k plan. There's no point in continuing to contribute to your 401k if the results of 20 years of doing so have been less than stellar. Most people's 401k's got slaughtered the past 12 years between the dot com bubble burst and this crappy 10 year market we've had. Meanwhile, I know plenty of people that have been holding CDs for those 10 years who don't seem to be having any trouble despite the fact that the interest rates paid on CDs have been pathetic for most of this decade. That being said, CDs are an awful investment right now. If I were you, I woud make sure that whatever money you have left is invested in hard assets that are not overpriced or at least in stocks that are based on people that produce real things. The US government is on a mission to screw over those responsible savers for 10 years of good behavior.

[NatasNJ]

Originally Posted by Roselvr

Pretty sure I said this in another post..

Back in 2005 when my dad had a house built a few blocks from me, the price of building materials went up; extremely high. We didn't believe the builder but my hubby tried to buy lumber, it was 2 or 3 times higher then what it usually cost. Normally, my dad's model of house would cost a little over $160k - it was about $250k now, base price.

I don't know if you had this type of increase in Texas (I think that's where you're from).. but it was building materials plus the lack of buildable lots.

Take a ride out to Springfield Township by Southampton. What happened in that town was at one time you could buy a small lot, then it became a 3 acre minimum - town people didn't like that and fought & won to increase to 7 and 11 acres. If you want to buy a 3 acre lot in that town now, it will cost you about $300k just for the lot last time I looked.

Medford - no land and what land there is, you can't get a septic/well because the person holding the permit won't release them - or something to that effect. It drove prices up there.

Then you have what's known as the Pinelands commission - there is land that no one can touch.

The only town I have seen affordable ($10k) building lots is in Browns Mills, but there isn't many.

Everything you mentioned refers to new construction. My examples are in established areas that have had very little new construction (without bulldozing) in the last 20+ years.