From the Courier News
September 22, 2009

Census shows home values decrease in Central Jersey

By MICHAEL DEAK
STAFF WRITER

The median value of homes in Central Jersey decreased from 2007 to 2008, according to figures released this week by the U.S. Census.

The decrease came as median incomes rose in Somerset, Middlesex and Union counties, but declined in Hunterdon County.

The largest decrease in the value of homes came in Union County, where the median value dropped 8.4 percent from $438,900 to $401,700.

Homes in Hunterdon County decreased in median value 8.3 percent from $491,000 to $450,100.

In Somerset County, the median value of homes dropped 7.1 percent from $487,600 to $452,500 while in Middlesex County, the median value decreased 5.6 percent from $385,000 to $363,200.

According to the Census figures, the median income in Hunterdon County dropped 4.6 percent from $100,705 to $95,993.

But median incomes rose in Somerset County (3.2 percent from $90,043 to $92,985), Union County (3.3 percent from $62,043 to $64,100) and Middlesex County (5.6 percent from $63,732 to $67,315).

According to the Tax Foundation, a national nonpartisan and nonprofit organization, Union County residents pay the country’s second highest percentage of their incomes (8.1 percent) in property taxes, followed by Hunterdon County in ninth place (7.5 percent), Somerset County in 14th place (7 percent) and Middlesex County in 20th place (6.5 percent).

The Tax Foundation found that mean property taxes in Hunterdon County ($8,224) are second in the nation only to Westchester County in New York ($8,442). The median property tax bill in the United States is $1,838, according to the foundation.

While those numbers come as no surprise because of the struggling national economy, one number released by the Census stood out.

The number of people not covered by health insurance in Union County exceeded the national number.

Almost 20 percent of Union County residents under the age of 65 are uninsured, while the national number is 14.9 percent.

In Middlesex County, 13.7 percent of residents are uninsured while the numbers drop dramatically in Somerset County (7.6 percent) and Hunterdon County (6 percent).

The high number in Union County does not surprise Plainfield resident Dottie Gutenkauf, who spearheaded community efforts to save Muhlenberg Regional Medical Center from closing.

“People simply can not afford medical insurance,” said Gutenkauf, noting the rising unemployment rate and increases in insurance premiums.

In its Amercian Community Survey, the Census provides a demographic picture of the United States, focusing on population trends, incomes, occupations, language usage and housing costs.

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