Fort Lee NJ Housing Market & Home Prices, Sep 2026

Fort Lee is a condo and co-op town. In the 12 months ending May 2026, Redfin counted 519 home sales in ZIP 07024, and 393 of them (76%) were condos or co-ops. Add 63 townhouses and the share reaches 88%. Any honest read of this market starts with apartments, not houses.

The apartment market has cooled. Condo and co-op sales fell 14% year over year, listings for sale rose 28% (161 to 206), and median days on market stretched from 85 to 114. Prices have not fallen: the condo/co-op median price per square foot was $456 in the March–May 2026 window, almost the same as $460 a year earlier. Sellers are holding price; buyers are taking longer.

Mortgage rates have moved against buyers since Redfin's latest data. The Freddie Mac 30-year average was 7.03% on September 24, 2026, up from 5.98% in late February. At the median condo price, that adds about $196 a month in principal and interest.

How to read the numbers

The figures come mainly from Redfin's ZIP series for 07024. Each monthly value covers a rolling three-month window, so "May 2026" means March through May. Annual sales totals here add four non-overlapping windows.

Redfin groups condos and co-ops together, and in Fort Lee co-ops typically sell for less. A local brokerage analysis of NJMLS closings reported 492 Fort Lee closings in the 12 months to August 7, 2026, with 442 (90%) condos, co-ops or townhouses, and a co-op median of $259,500. Different source and period, same market structure.

Single-family (44 sales in the latest year) and two-to-four-family (19) data are thin, so their medians are treated as rough ranges.

Two years of prices against mortgage rates

Freddie Mac's 30-year rate fell to 6.08% in late September 2024, reached 7.04% in mid-January 2025, averaged roughly 6.6% for 2025, dipped to 5.98% on February 26, 2026, then rose to 6.46% by early April, 6.49% by late June and 7.03% by September 24.

The table shows ZIP 07024 readings for all property types at points that line up with those moves.

Window ending	Rate context	Median sale price	Median days on market	Sold above list	Off market in 2 weeks	Homes for sale
Sep 2024	6.08% low	$420,000	90.5	38.3%	38.8%	208
Feb 2025	after 7.04% peak	$437,500	88	28.8%	26.8%	179
Sep 2025	about 6.26%	$454,000	90.5	41.7%	27.7%	227
Feb 2026	5.98% low	$440,000	111	23.1%	22.9%	216
May 2026	about 6.0–6.5%	$422,500	104	26.0%	37.6%	250

Three things stand out.

First, the late-2024 rate spike showed up quickly in speed, not price. The share of listings under contract within two weeks fell from 45.3% in the window ending November 2024 to 26.8% by February 2025.

Second, summer 2025 was the most competitive stretch in the data. In the July–September 2025 window, homes sold at an average 100.9% of list and 41.7% sold above asking, both series highs.

Third, the brief dip below 6% in February 2026 did not produce a spring rebound. In the windows ending March and April 2026, median days on market hit 120, homes sold at about 98.6% of list, and inventory kept rising to 250 by May, the highest in 34 months of data.

The overall median blends $260,000 co-ops with $1 million-plus townhouses, so shifts in the mix move it. The March 2026 window showed an 11.9% year-over-year drop while price per square foot rose. That is a mix effect, not a crash.

Condos and co-ops

Window ending	Median sale price	Median $/sq ft	Sales (3 months)	For sale	Median days on market	Sale-to-list
May 2024	$300,000	$411	100	164	110.5	98.2%
May 2025	$334,000	$460	112	161	84.5	99.2%
May 2026	$355,000	$456	106	206	113.5	98.7%

Over two years the condo/co-op median rose 18% and price per square foot 11%, but nearly all of the per-foot gain came in the first year. In the second, price per square foot was flat while days on market rose by 29.

Annual condo/co-op sales fell from 457 (June 2024–May 2025) to 393 (June 2025–May 2026). New listings in the March–May windows were similar (167 in 2025, 161 in 2026), so the inventory build came from slower sales, not a wave of sellers.

Townhouses, houses and multi-family

Townhouses are the tightest segment. Sales fell from 76 to 63 for the year, and the May 2026 median of $1.1 million was 9.1% below a year earlier on only 13 sales. But 64.7% went under contract within two weeks, 38.5% sold above asking, and only 17 were for sale.

The single-family median in the May 2026 window was $1.109 million on 7 sales. Over two years, window medians ranged from $915,000 to $1.85 million, which says more about which houses sold than about value; price per square foot ran between about $410 and $550. Two-to-four-family listings fell to 7 in May 2026, too few to read a trend.

Supply and competition

Redfin's single-month city series for Fort Lee adds months of supply and price cuts. Twelve-month averages:

Fort Lee city series	Jun 2024–May 2025	Jun 2025–May 2026
Months of supply, condo/co-op	4.0	5.8
Listings with a price drop, condo/co-op	7.4%	11.1%
Sold above list, condo/co-op	31.6%	27.4%
Median days on market, condo/co-op	94	105

About six months of supply is a common rough line between a balanced market and one favoring buyers. Fort Lee condos moved close to it in a year.

Fort Lee against Bergen County

Bergen County condo/co-op sales fell 6% over the same 12 months (1,570 to 1,471). Fort Lee's fell 14%.
Bergen single-family sales rose 1% (4,486 to 4,538). In May 2026, county houses sold at 105.5% of list, with 65.7% above asking.
Bergen condo months of supply averaged 4.6 over the latest year, up from 3.7, and hit 6.9 in May 2026.

Bergen has a two-speed market: houses remain competitive, condos have loosened. Fort Lee sits almost entirely in the slower lane.

In May 2026 the county condo/co-op median was $422,500 at $421 per square foot. Fort Lee's median was lower ($355,000) but its price per square foot higher ($456). That suggests Fort Lee's lower median reflects smaller units and the co-op share, not cheaper space.

Housing stock and what a budget buys

Most Fort Lee housing is in high-rise and mid-rise buildings, including along Palisade Avenue and Linwood Avenue, plus pockets of houses, two-families and townhouse developments. Using recent medians:

About $260,000: a co-op (NJMLS-based median), with maintenance on top.
About $355,000: the typical condo or co-op in Redfin's combined data.
About $1.1 million: a typical townhouse or house, on thin samples.

Large-scale supply over the past decade has included rentals. Hudson Lights, at 2030 Hudson Street near the bridge, is a 276-unit rental building, according to CityRealty. New rentals compete with condo resales for the same first-time buyers deciding whether to rent or buy.

Co-ops: how they change the math

Ownership: a co-op buyer buys shares in the corporation that owns the building plus a proprietary lease; a condo buyer owns real property.
Approval: boards review a financial package and may interview buyers. Local guides such as this one on Fort Lee co-op financing say approval can add 2 to 6 weeks or more, and many boards expect 20% or more down plus post-closing reserves. Rules vary by building.
Maintenance: the monthly charge generally covers the unit's share of building property taxes, insurance, staff, some utilities and interest on any underlying building mortgage, as The Pembroke, a Fort Lee co-op, describes on its FAQ page.
Taxes: the portion tied to building taxes and mortgage interest may be deductible for owners who itemize, as Brick Underground explains. Confirm with a tax advisor.

A $260,000 co-op and a $355,000 condo can only be compared on total monthly cost. Rates matter twice for co-ops: once on the buyer's loan and again if the building refinances its own mortgage at higher rates, which flows into maintenance. Ask for the underlying mortgage's rate, balance and maturity, and the reserve fund.

Cost of ownership

Property tax

Fort Lee's 2025 general tax rate was 2.700 per $100 of assessed value and its effective rate 1.839%, according to the New Jersey Division of Taxation. The effective rate applies to market value. The ratio of the two (1.839 ÷ 2.700) implies assessments averaged about 68% of market value in 2025.

At 1.839%, a $355,000 condo owes about $6,530 a year ($544 a month) and a $1.1 million townhouse about $20,230 ($1,686 a month). Actual bills depend on each assessment.

For comparison, home-property-tax.com lists 2025 effective rates of 2.088% for Englewood, 2.527% for Hackensack and 1.92% for Cliffside Park; the state table shows Edgewater at 1.545%.

Fees, transfer costs and flood

HOA and maintenance charges vary too much by building to average; no reliable figure was found. Buyers should get each building's budget, recent fee history and any planned assessments.

For contracts fully executed on or after July 10, 2025, New Jersey's former "mansion tax" is a seller-paid Graduated Percent Fee on sales over $1 million, from 1% up to 3.5% above $3.5 million, applied to the full price, according to NJ REALTORS. With townhouse and house medians near $1.1 million, many of those sellers now owe about 1% ($11,000 on $1.1 million). Most condo and co-op sales fall below the threshold.

Most of Fort Lee sits on the Palisades, but its river edge includes FEMA AE and VE high-risk zones, according to FloodZoneMap.org. Check any specific address on FEMA's flood maps.

Monthly payments and affordability

Principal and interest with 20% down on a 30-year fixed loan (add taxes, HOA or maintenance):

Price	Loan (80%)	6.08% (Sep 2024)	7.04% (Jan 2025)	5.98% (Feb 2026)	7.03% (Sep 24, 2026)
$259,500 co-op	$207,600	$1,255	$1,387	$1,242	$1,385
$355,000 condo	$284,000	$1,717	$1,897	$1,699	$1,895
$1,100,000 townhouse	$880,000	$5,321	$5,878	$5,265	$5,872

Going from 5.98% to 7.03% adds about $196 a month on the median condo and $608 on a $1.1 million townhouse.

Lenders often look for housing costs at or below 28% of gross income. For the $355,000 condo at 7.03%, principal and interest ($1,895) plus tax ($544) is $2,439 a month before HOA fees, which needs about $104,500 a year ($2,439 ÷ 0.28 × 12). At 5.98% it would have been about $96,100.

Fort Lee's median household income is $107,274, according to Census ACS estimates reported by Data USA (see also Census QuickFacts). A median-income household can just carry a median condo at today's rates, and HOA fees push many buildings past the 28% line. That squeeze fits the slower sales.

A $1.1 million townhouse at 7.03% costs about $7,558 a month in principal, interest and tax, which needs roughly $324,000 a year.

Cash buyers are less exposed to all of this. Redfin does not publish Fort Lee's cash share and no reliable local figure was found, so none is estimated here. Co-op down-payment and reserve rules tilt that segment toward buyers with substantial savings, and a market with a meaningful cash segment can see sales slow before prices fall. Fort Lee's data is consistent with that, though it cannot prove the cause.

Schools

The Fort Lee School District runs six schools from pre-K through grade 12. NCES lists about 4,044 students, and U.S. News reports a graduation rate around 95% for Fort Lee High School. Proficiency figures differ across third-party sites by year and grade, so families should use the state's NJ School Performance Reports. Because the district is K-12 with one high school, every address in town feeds the same high school.

Commute and transportation

Fort Lee sits at the New Jersey end of the George Washington Bridge with no rail service.

Bus: NJ Transit routes including the 156, 158 and 159 run to the Port Authority Bus Terminal. A local commute guide estimates 35 to 50 minutes depending on route and time.
Bridge tolls: the Port Authority tolls eastbound only. Since January 4, 2026, the E-ZPass car toll is $16.79 peak and $14.79 off-peak, according to GeorgeWashingtonBridgeToll.com, which also reports an off-peak discount phase-out starting in 2027.
Congestion pricing: driving into Manhattan below 60th Street adds the MTA's Congestion Relief Zone toll, $9 at peak with E-ZPass, and the GWB does not get the crossing credit offered at the Lincoln and Holland tunnels.

A peak daily round trip by car to Midtown costs about $25.79 in tolls ($16.79 plus $9), or about $542 over 21 workdays, roughly the monthly tax on a median condo. Walkable bus access is real value for a Fort Lee building.

Rentals, investors and new supply

Fort Lee's rent control ordinance, Chapter 324, lets vacant condo and co-op units be re-rented at a price landlord and tenant agree on, but a new rental must be registered with the Rent Leveling Board within 60 days, and increases for continuing tenants follow the ordinance's formula. Many co-ops also restrict subletting. No verified 2026 Fort Lee rent figure was found, so this article does not present rent-versus-buy math.

New Jersey's Fourth Round affordable housing obligations run 2025 to 2035; the Department of Community Affairs published calculations for each town, and Fort Lee's ordinances are on the borough website. Fort Lee's final number was not verified here. New inclusionary projects would add mostly rental units in a town already holding 206 condos and co-ops for sale.

How Fort Lee compares with nearby condo towns

May 2026 window, condo/co-op	Fort Lee 07024	Edgewater 07020	Cliffside Park 07010
Median sale price	$355,000	$580,000	$475,000
Median $/sq ft	$456	$476	$386
Sales, last 12 months	393	123	140
Change in 12-month sales	−14%	−10%	−1%
Listings for sale	206 (was 161)	71 (was 59)	92 (was 72)
Median days on market	113.5	112	75
2025 effective tax rate	1.839%	1.545%	1.92%

Fort Lee's price per square foot is close to Edgewater's and well above Cliffside Park's, yet its median is far lower, again pointing to smaller units and co-ops. Edgewater has slowed too; Cliffside Park sells faster at lower per-foot prices. All three saw listings rise 20% to 28%.

Strategy for buyers

Compare total monthly cost: price, tax, HOA or maintenance, and the building's own mortgage.
Use the extra time. With condo days on market above 110 and about 11% of listings cutting price, ask for budgets, reserve studies and board minutes before committing.
Check planned capital work and assessments; in older buildings these can outweigh a small price difference.
Get co-op down-payment, reserve and sublet rules before making an offer.
Know your payment at 7% and 7.5%. Rates rose more than a point from February to September 2026.
In townhouses, be ready to move fast; nearly two-thirds went under contract within two weeks.

Strategy for sellers

Price for the current window. Condo sale-to-list was 98.7% in May 2026 with inventory at a series high; last year's peak pricing is likely to sit.
Have the building package ready so comparison-shopping buyers see no friction.
If a cut is needed, make one clear adjustment early rather than several small ones.
Sellers above $1 million should budget for the seller-paid Graduated Percent Fee.

Outlook for the next 6 to 12 months

Redfin's data ends in May 2026, before rates climbed from about 6.5% to 7.03%. Given the trend through May and the rate path since, the most likely near-term pattern for Fort Lee condos is slow sales, high inventory and roughly flat prices per square foot. That is a reasoned expectation, not a forecast.

What would change it:

Rates: a sustained move toward 6% would bring back financed buyers, though February 2026 showed a brief dip is not enough. Rates holding above 7% could start to pressure prices, not just days on market.
Inventory: condo listings climbing past 206 while sales stay near 100 per window would make price cuts more common; falling listings would firm the market.
Building costs: rising insurance, maintenance and refinancing costs in co-ops could weigh on values.
New supply: rental towers or Fourth Round projects would add competition.

FAQ

Are Fort Lee home prices falling in 2026?

Not on current data. Condo/co-op price per square foot was $456 in the March–May 2026 window versus $460 a year earlier. Volume and speed have fallen, not prices.

What does a typical Fort Lee condo cost per month?

At $355,000 with 20% down at 7.03%, about $1,895 in principal and interest plus $544 in tax, or $2,439 before HOA fees.

Is a co-op cheaper than a condo?

The price usually is ($259,500 co-op median versus $355,000 for condos and co-ops combined), but maintenance includes building taxes and possibly mortgage interest. Compare monthly totals.

Is Fort Lee a buyer's market?

Condos are close: months of supply averaged 5.8 over the past year and reached 7.1 in May 2026 in Redfin's city data. Townhouses remain competitive.

Fort Lee NJ Housing Market 2026: Condos, Co-ops and Rates