Kirstin Kestner, Sales Associate

Instead of offering you the usual rundown of things a real estate agent typically gives as to why a particular community is a great place to live, I figure it's best to give you my list of why I liked living in Port Monmouth.

I found living on the bay side of Port Monmouth had many advantages:

1. Living just off Wilson Ave, I was on a quiet street. The neighborhood was safe and friendly. When the weather was good, you'd often find my neighbors and me, standing in the middle of the street talking till the sun went down.
2. It's just a short drive to the Spy House with its dock for fishing. We always found friendly faces to chat with there.
3. There's another park, which I've never learned the name for, at the end of Main Street. I have never seen a crowd there, ever. Even on the 4th of July. Which, by the way, you can stand on the beach there and see over 20 fireworks shows, even some of the fireworks from NYC. And 20 is a very low estimate. You can see the fireworks from every town all around the bay, from Sandy Hook, to the Verizono Bridge to NYC. It's absolutely spectacular. Just hose yourself down with mosquito repellent before you go or you'll get eaten alive watching the fireworks.
4. It takes like two minutes to get to the grocery store. Wonderful for those things you forgot to pick up on your big shopping trip.
5. It's right along side Hwy 36. And I've noticed that gas prices tend to be lower on Hwy 36 compared to Hwy 35. Never quite figured out why.
6. They have a cute little thrift store on New St between Main and Wilson. It's only open Wednesdays between 10am and Noon. All the proceeds go to Middletown Helps It's Own.
7. The location is great. Just hop on Hwy 36 and go wherever. And the Belford ferry to NYC is about 5 minutes away.

I'm sure you'd expect a long list. But those were the biggest ones I could think of. Just drive around. Stop by the Spy House and talk with the locals. I'm sure they'll give you many more reasons why Port Monmouth is a great place to live.

The Middletown Twp. Library is hosting a series of poetry readings and open mic nights. Come to listen and enjoy or even bring your own verses to read.

Now, I know few people would associate a real estate agent with poetry, but the two can and do mix. I've been writing since I was a child. So, stop in. You might just see me there. And, if I can muster up the courage, you might even here a poem or two of mine.

The poetry readings and open mic will be on the following nights and will feature these poets:

Thursday, October 30, 2008, 7:00 p.m.
Karen Haefelein, Christine Waldeyer, and Priscilla Orr

Thursday, November 20, 2008, 7:00 p.m.
Lois Harrod, Nancy Scott, Laura McCullough

Thursday, December 18, 2008, 7:00 p.m.
Gloria Healy, B.J. Ward, Paul Victor Winters

They will be held at the Middletown Main Library, 55 New Monmouth Road, Middletown, NJ 07748

Come see the Halloween Parade October 25, 2008. Participants will gather at the Harbor Gazebo at 1:45pm. The parade starts at 2pm from the gazebo up 1st Ave. to the Atlantic Highlands Fire House.

This event is sponsored by the Atlantic Highlands Recreation Committe. For more information call 732-872-8711.

Middletown, NJ Market Report for September

Single-Family Homes

September 2008

	Total	Avg. List Price
New Listings	94	464,950
Under Contract	50	372,929
Closed	40	487,661

The average closed price was $461,240.

On average the closed price was 5.42% lower than the list price.

Compared to September 2007

	Total	Avg. List Price
New Listings	101	731,390
Under Contract	51	440,016
Closed	47	522,321

The average closed price was $501,069.

On average the closed price was 4.07% lower than the list price.

Townhomes

September 2008

	Total	Avg. List Price
New Listings	17	390,653
Under Contract	5	355,380
Closed	3	421,519

The average closed price was $402,186.

On average the closed price was 4.59% lower than the list price.

Compared to September 2007

	Total	Avg. List Price
New Listings	16	390,456
Under Contract	6	442,800
Closed	6	417,633

The average closed price was $393,583.

On average the closed price was 5.76% lower than the list price.

Information is gathered from the Monmouth/Ocean MLS. Information is deemed reliable but is not guaranteed. This market summary is not to be used to determine the value of any property.

Wondering how these statistics effect the sale price of your home?

To find out more, call or email Kirstin today for a FREE Comparative Market Analysis of your home.

For a small home town, Keyport, NJ is still big on things to do.

So if you're looking for something fun to do this Friday night, check out the Doo Wop Nite at Town & Country Inn.

There's a sit-down dinner and dancing featuring the Rotations and songs from the 50's, 60's and 70's.

It all starts at 7pm, Friday October 24^th, 2008. Tickets are $29.50 each.

For more information call Carmine at 908-590-5240 or 908-814-7064.