Is Lawrence Township a New York City Bedroom Community?

Taxes and property values always seems to be on the tip of every New Jersey homeowner’s tongue. It seems when one’s going up the other is falling. According to Zillow the average price of a home in Lawrence Township has dropped from 308K in August of 2006 to 219K today. That’s a huge loss in equity for the home owner, and just as bad for the local tax collector. Could train transit be the solution for us locally?

I moved to Lawrence two and a half years ago. I had outgrown my Carroll Gardens apartment in Brooklyn and was looking for an affordable solution in the ‘burbs. Lawrence filled every desire we had, decent property taxes, affordable homes, good schools, a transit hub at the Hamilton Station Park and Ride.

One thing I hadn’t counted on was Governor Christie defunding transit so soon after we moved. I had budgeted the $330 a month for the NJ Transit ticket, and $100 to park. That worked out to $5,160 a year. Expensive, but worth it. That price went up to $6,300 when the fare went to $425. I felt conned. 

I couldn’t very well just pack up and move back even if I wanted to... I, like many of you, had not seen a raise at work in this down turn in the economy. I just had to make due, and hope that the tax benefits of homeownership equaled out this new found expense. 

Today is really a perfect time to move to Lawrence Township. Home prices are at historic low levels. You have express trains that get you into the city in about an hour. It's a no brainer really for middle class folks that work in the New York City and are looking for the suburban experience. But, that train ticket and parking is a killer. Perhaps without such a jump, Lawrence wouldn’t be seeing its property values drop.

An article in the New York Times’ on March 22, 2012 quoted a survey that areas that were within 50 minutes of NYC saw their home values rise 3.6 percent between 2010 to 2011. While other areas saw values drop close to 9 percent in the same period. Pretty shocking and telling that if you are considered a NYC bedroom community, home values won't fluctuate so radically.

So is Lawrence geographically challenged by 10 transit minutes? Is there a perception problem that we are too far out? Is it the bad press of NJ Transit delays, and high ticket prices that lure would be new home owners to Long Island and outer Westchester over us? Is Lawrenceville perceived as a Trenton/Philadelphia suburb only?

I can say that the Hamilton Station has become one of the fastest growing transit hubs in America, since it opened it 1999. Over 4,000 commuters use the station a day. Some drive from as far away as Delaware daily to use the station. 

Sure would be nice if next to the Yardley banker parking in Mercer every day, we get the middle class mid-level manager to live local in Lawrence and drive up the demand for our housing, eat in our restaurants, shop in our shops. 

What do you think?