Hoboken, NJ

When the day comes that you decide to sell your home, the best method to calculate how much to sell it for is by utilizing real estate comps. This data is called “comparable sales” or “comps,” and is a big factor in determining the sale price of a particular home. Information is calculated by gathering the figures of recent sales of nearby homes. By using these figures you can determine how much a home might be worth.

Buyers can use comps to determine a fair price to offer for a home. Comps can also be used to track market trends to effectively determine whether a home has been properly priced.

Also, it is important for a buyer to keep in mind that the timing of comps should be considered. Generally, many sales could close within the range of four to six weeks, but some may take as long as six months to sell. The longer sales could reflect outdated market conditions and be poor comps to consider. This is another reason why a buyer needs to use a competent Realtor® to interpret the information about any home sales.

If the seller’s loan balance exceeds the value of the home, as defined by a short sale or foreclosure, the comps could be irrelevant.

For more valuable information please go to Making Homes Affordable.

If you are looking for assistance in finding the perfect home in Hoboken, contact Eddie Perez at (201) 344-2886 or go to Hoboken Condo Expert.

Now we have to play the waiting game to see whether Congress will extend or possibly expand the first-time home buyer tax credit.

The National Association of Realtors announcd that Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and House Ways and Means Committee Chair Charles Rangel (D-N.Y.) both support an extension.

What really needs to be worked out is to define how the credit should be extended and who should receive it. Some say the potential for an extension could be any where from a month to a year. If the extension does become approved, the length of time is likely to be some where between a month and a year. Another major question is, will the requirements of eligibility be changed to make the credit available to not just first-time buyers but to all primary home buyers, as well as buyers at higher income levels.

Currently, the tax credit is available to buyers with incomes up to $75,000 for individuals and $150,000 a year for couples.

For more great information go to First Time Home Buyers Are Leading The Way.

To find out all the benefits and options for preventing foreclosure, contact Eddie Perez, Broker-REALTOR, CDPE or Anoir Redouane, REALTOR, CDPE. Their market includes Hoboken, Jersey City, Weehawken and Union City. They can be reached at eddie@InvestHoboken.com or 201-344-2886.

By Eddie Perez, Broker Associate

Here are the final sales figures for September 2009 compiled using the Hudson County Multiple Listing Service.

September’s Hoboken condo market statistics showed a slow down from the strong numbers that appeared during the month of August. Total closed units were down slightly with 69 closings in August followed by 67 closings in September. Final closed sales prices were mixed with average prices falling 2.1 % to $485,497 in September from $495,882 in August. Median closed sales prices were slightly up however at $490,000 in September compared with $475,000 in August. The largest drop off was in contracts signed where we saw a 21.2% decline (80 in August vs.63 in September).

Now when I compared last Septembers sales figures with this years, I found the results reflected the challenging year in the pricing environment with average prices off 13.9% ($564,184 in Sept ‘08 versus $485,497 in Sept ‘09). Median numbers were down less at 3.9% ($510,000 vs $490,000).

The good news is that the closed sales and pending sales activity were both up compared with last years. Closed unit sales were up a just 1.5% (We’ll take it!) however the impressive gain was seen with pending contracts as 63 contacts were signed this year compared with 51 during last September. A big 23.5% increase! (We’ll take that too!).

So what can we take away from this? Reasonable activity is still there with value being the driving force for this activity. It looks like there are savvy buyers out there that want to take advantage of the low interest rates, first-time home buyers tax credits, the great selection of homes while negotiating the best possible deal.

Seems like a pretty good combination.

Here are the comparisons:

	September 2009	September 2009	Comparison:
Units Sold:	66	67	+ 1.5%
Avg. Price:	$564,184	$485,497	- 13.9%
Median Price:	$510,000	$490,000	- 3.9%
Pending:	51	63	+ 23.5%

September 2009 Sold Condominiums:

High Low Average Median Total Price Listing Count List Price: $1,259,000 $272,900 $505,296 $499,000 $33,854,836 67 Sold Price: $1,150,000 $267,500 $485,497 $490,000 $32,528,318 DOM: 529 4 96 60

Studio: none sold

1 bedroom: 25 sold.

Average asking price: $373,969

Average selling price: $360,532 (-3.6% of asking price)

Average days on market: 69

2 bedroom: 33 sold

Average asking price: $540,483

Average selling price: $521,030 (-3.6% of asking price)

Average days on market: 102

3 bedroom: 9 sold

Average asking price: $741,072

Average selling price: $702,333 (-5.2% of asking price)

Average days on market: 145

4 bedroom: none sold

September 2009 – Pending Contracts. These are the deals that were consummated during the month and represents the current buying activity.

Pending Condos: 80

High Low Average Median Total Price Listing Count List Price: $1,112,875 $199,999 $479,376 $449,000 $30,200,705 58 Sold Price: pending pending pending pending pending DOM: 566 7 99 67

Here’s the breakdown:

Studio: 3 contracts

Average asking price: $279,333

Median price: $249,000

Average days on market: 94

Median days on market: 66

1 bedroom: 22 contracts

Average asking price: $386,909

Median price: $357,450

Average days on market: 96

Median days on market: 50

2 bedroom: 34 contracts

Average asking price: $514,356

Median price: $526,000

Average days on market: 104

Median days on market: 86

3 bedroom: 4 contracts

Average asking price: $840,643

Median price: $834,999

Average days on market: 71

Median days on market: 66

4 bedroom: No 4 bedroom contracts

Best,

Eddie

Your resource for Hoboken area real estate news, advice, best buys and more!: www.HobokenRealEstateBlog.com

If you would like specific information tailored to your Hoboken condo, email us direct at info@InvestHoboken.com

Search entire Hoboken MLS at www.InvestHoboken.com Then click browse Hoboken Listings

Today you can find just about anything on Craigslist. As a potential Real Estate Investor, did you ever notice that Craigslist is divided into cities? This can be a big drawback when you are searching for properties for sale.

Did you know there is a feature on Craigslist that allows you to search multiple cities at one time? The featured site is called http://www.Craigshelper.com but is now very recently being redirected to http://www.searchtempest.com
(Thank you to James Lyon at Vista Pacific Realty for pointing this out).

With Craigshelper all you need to do is type in the zip code where you would like to search for property. It also gives you the ability to specify the radius of the search.
The Ad Notifier feature for Craigslist will alert you when something is posted on Craigslist that fits your specifications. Ad Notifier for Craigslist will even text your cell phone when a match is found. 





What really is critical to get the tools to work is to be sure to use the best search terms. Avoid using a simple term like “house for sale” try using creative search terms that locate sellers. 



The following search terms may be helpful for finding people that need to sell their property:



• Owner will finance
• Owner Desperate
• Motivated seller
• House must go
• Homeowner must sell
• All offers welcome
• Seller will carry second
• Consider all offers
• Terms available
• OBO, Or Best offer
• Below appraised value
• Will sell for what is owed
• Lease Option
• Rent to own

It is amazing what you can find by thinking creatively when you are looking to purchase property.

For more great information go to First Time Buyers are Leading the Way.

To find out all the benefits and options for preventing foreclosure, contact Eddie Perez, Broker-REALTOR, CDPE or Anoir Redouane, REALTOR, CDPE. Their market includes Hoboken, Jersey City, Weehawken and Union City. They can be reached at eddie@InvestHoboken.com or 201-344-2886.