The beach here is special, one of the best in the nation. It's also way down south in Cape May County, which means the summers are a little warmer and a little longer than on Cape Cod or Long Island. The summer population far exceeds the 15,000 year-round residents, but don't confuse this town with others on the Jersey shore. It started out as a Methodist retreat and developed into a family-oriented resort. It's even dry (as in no alcohol), so it's not likely to attract Snooki, The Situation and their pals. "It's very quaint," said Mark Grimes, a real estate broker in the area. "There are no high-rises but there are good schools and a family atmosphere. It's the anti-Jersey Shore." It's not cheap, however. Grimes has single-family homes for sale starting at about $380,000 for a three bedroom bungalow fixer-upper blocks from the beach. At the high end, he's got a 7,000 square foot Victorian on the waterfront for $5.9 million. [Read the full article]

each here is special, one of the best in the nation. It's also way down south in Cape May County, which means the summers are a little warmer and a little longer than on Cape Cod or Long Island. The summer population far exceeds the 15,000 year-round residents, but don't confuse this town with others on the Jersey shore. It started out as a Methodist retreat and developed into a family-oriented resort. It's even dry (as in no alcohol), so it's not likely to attract Snooki, The Situation and their pals. "It's very quaint," said Mark Grimes, a real estate broker in the area. "There are no high-rises but there are good schools and a family atmosphere. It's the anti-Jersey Shore." It's not cheap, however. Grimes has single-family homes for sale starting at about $380,000 for a three bedroom bungalow fixer-upper blocks from the beach. At the high end, he's got a 7,000 square foot Victorian on the waterfront for $5.9 million. [Read the full article]

Home prices in February sank 3.3% to just above the post-crisis lows reached in April 2009. It was the seventh straight month of declines.Home values are down 32% from their peak set in May of 2006, according to the S&P/Case-Shiller index of home prices in 20 cities."There is very little, if any, good news about housing," said David Blitzer, spokesman for S&P. "Prices continue to weaken, trends in sales and construction are disappointing."The drop has come in two stages. First, the index recorded 36 months of nearly uninterrupted declines after reaching the spring 2006 peak. Then came a 13-month upswing during which the index recorded a 5% gain. That rebound ended last June.Since then, the index has recorded losses every month and it has now edged closer to a new low -- the dreaded double-dip. [Read the full article]

A record number of renters are spending more than half their income on housing, according to a report released Tuesday by the Harvard Joint Center for Housing Studies. And more middle-class folks are feeling the pinch.One in four renters -- or about 10.1 million households -- spend half their paychecks on rent and utilities, the study found. And the number of middle-income renters in this predicament more than doubled to 7.5% during the last decade.This is due in large part to rising housing costs and weak income gains, as well as a flood of new renters who either lost their homes in the foreclosure crisis or can't afford to buy now."In the last decade, rental housing affordability problems went through the roof," said Eric Belsky, managing director of the Harvard Joint Center for Housing Studies. "And these affordability problems are marching up the income scale."Another 26.2% spent between 30% and 50% of their income on housing. [Read the full article]