The story of this market
The typical home in Cape May County, New Jersey sells for about $1,500,000, or $903 per square foot.
Prices are up +100% from a year ago, so sellers still have some momentum. Homes take about 63 days to sell, which is slow. Over the long run, values in this county have grown 220% since 2000. Last year 24 of 32 neighborhoods saw prices rise, so the story isn't the same street to street. The biggest natural hazard here is coastal flooding, which FEMA rates very high. HUD's fair market rent for a two-bedroom is $1,857 a month.
HUD sets the fair market rent for a 2-bedroom at $1,857 a month. FEMA's National Risk Index rates overall hazard risk here as Relatively High.
Price climate
Every year of price change, 2000–2025
0%
2025
Each stripe is one year's median price change across the area's census tracts (FHFA repeat-sales index). Deep blue is a strong gain year, red a falling year. Best: 2005 (+22.9%). Worst: 2009 (-5.4%). Hover to read a year.
Monthly price momentum
Home values since 2015
+5%
NJ · past 12 months
Freddie Mac House Price Index, single-family homes, monthly through 2026-08. Each line starts at 100 in January 2015, so a reading of 180 means prices are up 80% since then.
Rent benchmark
Fair market rent by size
$2,431
3-bed / month
HUD Fair Market Rents, fiscal 2027, for this county. A typical rent for a modest unit, used to set housing-voucher payments.
Neighborhood price trend
Long-run price trend, 2000–2025
0%
2025 change
FHFA repeat-sales index, median of 32 census tracts in this county (2000 = 100). Bars are each year's median change.
Natural hazard exposure
The area's risk shape
81
Relatively High
FEMA National Risk Index. Each spoke is a hazard ranked nationally, where 100 is the most exposed. Expected annual loss: $99,653,769.
Mortgage activity
Home lending in this county
78.4%
2018 approval rate
| Year | Applications | Loans made | Approval | Investor share | Median home value |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 | 9613 | 5453 | 78.4% | 6.6% | $305,000 |
CFPB Home Mortgage Disclosure Act records: every mortgage application reported by lenders for homes in this county. Approval rate is approved ÷ decided (withdrawn and incomplete files excluded). Investor share and home value are the median census tract.
Cape May County, New Jersey
Cape May County's housing market is characterized by high demand for coastal properties, driving significant year-over-year price appreciation. Inventory remains constrained, keeping the market competitive despite seasonal fluctuations in sales volume.
No ARED distress-ledger coverage for this county yet — the foreclosure ingest rotates the national county directory, and filings appear here once the county's posted notices are read. Key-figure check: no independent anchor retained yet — first-researched cycles establish the anchor baseline this pass.
Select a city to expand its ZIP intel reports beneath · 5 cities · 11 ZIP reports
Median prices moved up 0.1% year over year.
Homes spend a median of 2 days on market with 0.1 months of supply — a fast-moving market.
0% of listings have cut prices · homes sell at 3.21% of asking — demand is holding steady.
no recorded foreclosure-ledger notices (0.0 per 10,000 residents) · unemployment 6.8% · poverty 8.9% — a stable, low-distress profile.
ACS 2024 5-year estimates. Aggregate published statistics for this county — never individual records, and never an attribute of any individual property or resident.
Deterministic aggregate of 7 researched ZIP reports of 11 — sales_count-weighted (population fallback); per point, children lacking the value or its weight are excluded. Tax rates, sentiment and context notes are tier-native and never roll.
Each property observation weighs one in its ZIP's deterministic roll-up — property-level records (taxes, scores, permits) never roll individually. Latest property research run Oct 17, 2026.
researched Sep 26
researched Sep 26
researched Sep 26
researched Sep 26
researched Sep 26
researched Sep 26
researched Sep 26
researched Sep 26
researched Sep 26
researched Sep 26
| 08202 | Avalon | $3,499,000 | $1,320 | -5.4% | 87 | 98.5% | — | — | 54 | $1,708 | researched Sep 26 |
| 08204 | Cape May | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | $1,176 | researched Sep 26 |
| 08210 | Cape May Court House | $549,450 | $239 | — | 55 | — | — | — | 549 | $1,525 | researched Sep 26 |
| 08218 | Goshen | $424,950 | $135 | — | 111 | — | — | — | 2 | $1,857 | researched Sep 26 |
| 08225 | Northfield | $235,000 | $205 | -9.7% | 45 | 98.2% | 18% | 3.5 | 42 | $1,835 | researched Sep 26 |
| 08226 | Ocean City | $1,250,000 | $785 | +2.1% | 45 | 97.5% | 18% | 4.2 | 480 | $1,683 | researched Sep 26 |
| 08242 | Rio Grande | $436,000 | $207 | +4.2% | 42 | 98.5% | 12% | 3.8 | 58 | $1,305 | researched Sep 26 |
| 08243 | Sea Isle City | $1,500,000 | $930 | +4.2% | 65 | 97.5% | 12% | 5.1 | 142 | $3,800 | researched Sep 26 |
| 08247 | Stone Harbor | — | $1,850 | +5.2% | 21 | 97.5% | 15% | 5.2 | 62 | $1,711 | researched Sep 26 |
| 08251 | Villas | $348,600 | $231 | — | 30 | — | — | — | 549,450 | $1,722 | researched Sep 26 |
Figures are each ZIP report's own latest research — the county roll-up aggregates them sales_count-weighted (population fallback); ZIPs cycle quarterly.
The region faces significant coastal flood and wind exposure risks, which heavily influence local property insurance premiums and market posture.
The economy is heavily anchored by seasonal tourism and hospitality, with limited large-scale industrial development momentum.
Property taxes are assessed at the municipal level based on local school, county, and municipal budgets, with rates varying significantly across the county's coastal and inland jurisdictions.
The economy is primarily driven by the tourism and hospitality sectors, which experience significant seasonal fluctuations.
Data retrieved from US Census Bureau ACS 2022 5-year estimates for Cape May County, NJ.
applies when — Land actively devoted to agricultural or horticultural use meeting specific acreage and income requirements
Property is assessed based on its productive capability for agricultural use rather than its full market value, resulting in a lower tax burden.
N.J.S.A. 54:4-23.1 et seq.
New Jersey is a judicial foreclosure state, requiring lenders to file a lawsuit in Superior Court. Lenders must provide a Notice of Intention to Foreclose at least 30 days prior to commencing the action.
N.J.S.A. 2A:50-53 et seq.; NJ Courts Foreclosure procedures.
Sellers must provide a specific flood risk addendum to buyers as part of the property disclosure process.
Effective August 1, 2024, per New Jersey Division of Consumer Affairs regulations.
Sellers are required to provide a standardized disclosure statement regarding the physical condition of the property to prospective buyers.
Effective August 26, 2026, per New Jersey Division of Consumer Affairs regulations.
Tax is calculated as (Assessed Value * Tax Rate). Assessed value is determined by the municipal assessor at 100% of true market value. The tax rate is set by local taxing districts to cover municipal, county, and school budgets.
N.J.S.A. 54:4-1 et seq.; Article VIII, Section 1, paragraph 1 of the New Jersey Constitution.
Governance registry — every jurisdiction re-researches on a rolling 90-day cycle. Property reports compose these inherited burdens into a per-parcel ledger with conditional determinations. Informational only — not legal advice.