i had a look on zillow and it is closer to $500k - why are you skewing the facts?
you want facts? here are your facts: city-data.com/city/Madison-New-Jersey.html
scroll down to "detached houses", which is the cost of a house. not a condo, not a townhouse, a HOUSE. $799,228.
i doubt you have ever set your your foot there
doubt all you want.
there are plenty of average professional couples who choose to move to places like that
people with $800,000 homes in towns with sky high property taxes, I assure you, are far from "average professional couples".
have a look at this: trulia.com/property/3133600296-115-Woodland-Rd-Madison-NJ-07940
That's a 63 year old house for sale in Madison, NJ, a little above the average house value. 1/2 acre of land. Taxes per year? $13,606. For those that struggle with math, that's over $1,000/month, just for your property taxes. Now try and pay the mortgage. Oh, and try and convince anyone that's for the "average couple".
One more thing.....anyone on here ever heard of The Mall at Short Hills? It's in a number of Hollywood movies and is well known throughout the USA for being one of the swankiest and nicest malls in the country.....which just so happens to be RIGHT down the road from the center of Madison, NJ.
Just for gits and shiggles, I Google Mapped it.....8 minutes. hop on Route 124 from Main St., 8 minutes and you're parked right outside Saks Fifth Avenue.