New Jersey is one state over from New York and is known for the Jersey shores (beaches). New Jersey borders with the Atlantic Ocean on one side and Delaware river on the other side. After searching we found two properties, one on the Delaware river and the other on a smaller lake. This is what we found on out while beach house hunting in New Jersey.
The first house had around 100 feet of private beach, solar panels, three bedrooms and a basement. It turns out the solar panels were leased and cost over $200, and without the panels the average electricity bill was around $600 per month. However, we also found out New Jersey has the highest property tax rate of any state, making these houses more expensive.
The house still fit into our budget, so we decided to have a look. The first house was around a three-hour drive, which wasn’t too bad. The reatlor was waiting to show us the house.
The problem with the house was almost everything. Unfortunately, the kitchen was outdated and small, along with the living room/dining room. The sunroom which did have a great view of the river needed new flooring. The layout of the upstairs was confusing with a lot of waisted space. Moreover, all of the flooring needed to be replaced upstairs and down. Finally, the basement also showed signs of flooding.
The beach could have been good, but when we looked it was full of driftwood and debris. The upside is this would have been a great place to fish right in the back yard, along with dropping in a crab pot or two.
The second house we looked at was another 45 minute drive. By looking at the sale price from one year ago to today we knew there must have been some upgrades. The owner raised the price $200,000 in over a year.
When you entered there was a large new kitchen with open concept to the living room and dinning room. The kitchen was nice. There was an office space on the first floor. The three bedrooms were odd, they were long but narrow, but they would work. This house has a partial basement, but even without rain there was water sitting on the floor.
The front and back yard were both small, with no views of the lake. Inside the house there were only a couple of windows where you had to stand and look just right to see the water. I appeared this house was renovated quickly and cheaply. There were signs all over where things were not fixed correctly. And without the water view this house did not have much to offer us.
Overall, we learned the New Jersey may not be the place for us. With high taxes and the possibility of outargues electric bill put us off looking in New Jersey unless the perfect house comes along. If you want to see more beach house hunting, click on the video below.
