The Manalapan Arts Council is a volunteer run organization that is dedicted to promoting arts of varying genre to the Manalapan community. New members with visionary ideas and the motiviation to move them forward are always welcome!

February Events

February 7^th, 10:00 am – 4:00 pm African American Festival and Step Show at Manalapan High School. Sponsored by the Manalapan High School Cultural Awareness Club, United Families of African Descent and MAC. Food, dancing, heritage displays and the excitement of Step teams from across New Jersey passionately step dancing to win first place bragging rights. These girls rock the house!

February 21^st, 1:00 pm The Meeting by Jeff Stetson, a dramatic depiction of what Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X., the two greatest minds of the Civil Rights movement, may have discussed, if they had the chance to meet. This powerful drama about their lives, philosophies and the times is an enlightening experience for all. Held at the Monmouth County Library Headquarters, 125 Symmes Rd. Manalapan, NJ. This is a Free event sponsored by the United Families of African Descent and MAC.

February 27^th, 7:00 pm Dinner & All That Jazz, Cool cats and satin dolls will be groovin’ to big city jazz in Manalapan with the tunes of the BJ Adams Jazz Ensemble in the Ballroom at Knob Hill Country Club. Sophisticated suburbanites will spice up the local scene with an evening of fine dining, jazz and dancing. Tickets are available for $35.00 per person in advance and $40 per person after February 20^th and at the door. Seating is limited and reservations are required.

For information and reservations Call (732) 446-3200 ext. 4001 or email info@mtnj.org and put MAC in the subject line for more information. Make checks payable to Manalapan Arts Council and mail to: MAC 120 Route 522, Manalapan, NJ 07726

I hope you get out there and enjoy some of these wonderful programs!

Jo

JoAnna Siminerio
Weichert Realtors - Marlboro / Manalapan
JoSiminerio@optonline.net
www.JoTheRealtor.com

If you’ve been on the fence about whether now is the right time to buy a new home, here’s the best reason yet to hop off: your dream home just became more affordable. That’s because the federal government has now taken steps that caused interest rates to drop considerably. For example, a $250,000 30-year fixed rate loan could save you as much as $220 a month now versus just one month ago.*

Whether you’re a first time buyer, a trade-up buyer, or a parent interested in helping your kids buy a home, you can learn why now is a great time to dive in at this seminar on home affordability. Featured speakers will include financial and real estate specialists.

Admittance is free!

Saturday January 24th, 11am

Weichert Marlboro-Manalapan

455 Route 9 South

Manalapan, NJ 07726

RSVP by 01/23/2009 to:

732-598-6823

Hope to see you there!

Jo

JoAnna Siminerio
Weichert Realtors - Marlboro / Manalapan
JoSiminerio@optonline.net
www.JoTheRealtor.com

* For qualified buyers, some restrictions apply.

There was a story on WNBC (New York channel 4) about the new program in New Jersey that gives homeowners FREE access to lawyers, counselors and mediators to help work out payment arrangements.

Call the New Jersey Foreclosure Hotline at (888) 989-5277 for more details.

Here's a link to the original article from WNBC.com

WNBC Foreclosure Hotline Article

Jo

JoAnna Siminerio
Weichert Realtors - Marlboro/Manalapan
JoSiminerio@optonline.net
www.JoTheRealtor.com

I've got Big News! REALLY News!

of single family homes in Manalapan New Jersey in 2008!

I know... you probably don't believe me.

Don't feel bad.

I don't blame you.

It's been tough for me, trying to challenge the doom and gloom that the media has been continuously feeding you guys for the past 2 years!

But I'm going to keep trying!

In 2008, homes closed in Manalapan Township.

Granted, that is down about 30% from the number of homes that closed in 2007, but it still represents a huge number of families that were able to make a move!

• 108 Townhomes and Condominiums SOLD in 2008, down 28% from 2007. Average price of a townhome or condo is down about 5% for the same time frame.

• 116 Adult Community Homes sold in 2008, representing a 10% increase... that means 11 more adult community homes were sold in 2008 than 2007! Average selling price for an adult community home is down about 10%.

• Number of homes sold in Northern Manalapan are down about 36%, yet average home prices are only down about 1% for the year. 191 homes SOLD in Northern Manalapan!
  

• Number of homes sold in Southern Manalapan are down to 41 homes sold from 48 the year before!
  

• 24 homes closed in the Yorktowne Development. That's 3 MORE homes than closed in 2007! 3 more families sold their home in 2008 than in 2007! (Why didn't I hear about that on the local news?) Average home prices are down 8% and the median home price is down 6% when compared to 2007.

• Homes priced under $800,000 are down about 35% in number of homes sold, with average and median prices only down about 2% on the year

• Only 4 less homes sold in 2008 than 2007 when comparing homes priced above $800,000! Average and median prices are down in this segment about 2%

Takeaway -

The bottom has not dropped out of the real estate market at least not in Manalapan Township.

Homes are selling and selling quickly when priced competitively.

Affordability restored to the marketplace and interest rates at record lows, creating a perfect storm of opportunity for today's homebuyers. There has never been a better time to buy a home!

Manalapan Township is made up of many different individual neighborhoods. Upon request, I will happily prepare statistics on any specific development in which you are interested.

Jo

JoAnna Siminerio
Weichert Realtors - Marlboro/Manalapan
JoSiminerio@optonline.net
www.JoTheRealtor.com

To view the redistricting map approved by the Board of Education on Jan. 6, 2009, click here....

The map is a depiction of the sending areas for the Grades 1-5 neighborhood schools. Use the magnifying glass in Acrobat Reader to zoom in for a closer view of streets. The boundary lines may not be totally accurate on the map. Letters will be sent home to identify which school students will attend in the 2009-2010 school year.

Jo

JoAnna Siminerio
Weichert Realtors - Marlboro/Manalapan
JoSiminerio@optonline.net
www.JoTheRealtor.com