About Sparta's Lake Mohawk

GSMLS market data for Sparta homes for sale shows that 29 homes were sold in May 2009! This represents the most closings within the last 6 months. While the average and median sale prices were down slightly, owners still benefited from a 93% list-to-sale ratio. (So did those buying homes in Sparta!)

Whether you're considering selling your home or purchasing a home in one of Sussex County's fine communities (Lake Mohawk, for example), this is a better time than many folks think. Don't let gloomy newspaper reports dampen your hopes - let's sit down and chat about what these MLS statistics might mean for your real-estate plans!

Look for homes for sale in Sparta, NJ.

Copyright © 2009, Irene Kennedy, all rights reserved. This blog post from RealtorIrene represents Irene's personal musings.

Considering selling a home or looking to buy one around Sussex County, NJ? Benefit from creative marketing, top negotiating skills and vast real estate knowledge by contacting Irene via the data to the right or HomeIrene.com.

Irene Kennedy, a NJ real estate agent with Weichert, Realtors, lives in Sussex County & works from the Hamburg office. Her primary market includes: Augusta, Branchville, Crystal Springs, Frankford, Franklin, Hamburg, Hampton, Hardyston, Highland Lakes, Lake Mohawk, Newton, Ogdensburg, Scenic Lakes, Sparta, Stockholm, Sussex, Vernon, Wantage.

 In my areas of Sparta, Hamburg, Vernon, Wantage, Frankford, etc., more and more homeowners are having difficulty paying the mortgage.  Once a homeowner is several months late, the mortgage company/bank starts to consider its options.  Some options will keep the owner in the home by modifying the loan; some will mean the owner must list the home for sale.

 When a distressed property needs to be evaluated by the bank, one or more Broker Price Opinions are normally requested - very often through a third-party, outsourced vendor.  BPOs are not as detailed as an appraisal. A BPO is a quick assessment by a real-estate agent that gives the bank an idea of what the home could sell for within the next 90 - 120 days. It is based primarily on MLS listings of similar properties in the same neighborhood.

 I have done countless BPOs around Sussex County. I view BPOs as a discussion of list price with a potential seller, albeit one who is far away and has never seen the property. I am that bank's local real estate agent for the sake of a price opinion. (While my experience has been localized, I do BPOs for the same vendors and same banks that get them done across the U.S. Hopefully, my opinions and expertise might help someone elsewhere.)

Here are the main reasons I've been hired to do BPOs in Sussex, Morris and Passaic Counties:

1. A homeowner is late and the bank is weighing its options - perhaps deciding whether to foreclose or consider a work out;
2. The owners have no means of remaining in the home and have listed or are prepared to list it for sale, have had some hardship and are asking the bank to consider a Short Sale;
3. Potential buyers have put in a written offer and the bank needs to evaluate it based on today's market conditions;
4. Foreclosure has occurred. The property is now an REO and the new owner (the bank) needs to set a price for the sale of the home.

 Reason 1 is the type I like least. These owners are usually unaware that the bank is having a BPO done. (The mortgage documents specify the rights of the bank to inspect the property under prescribed conditions.) This will always be an exterior or drive-by BPO for which I need to get my outside photos very, very discretely and be prepared for some unpleasantness if the owners drive down the street and spot me...  Too, these home are not currently listed for sale, so there is no MLS listing with current interior photos. My research will take much longer.

 With the other 3 reasons, the sellers are typically supportive of the BPO. Many times I am hired to do an interior BPO. By appointment, I access the home and take interior & exterior pictures. Frequently, multiple BPOs are done on the same property within the same time frame. The current record for me is when I was in one Lake Mohawk home for sale at the same time 2 other agents were also taking their interior pictures! Triple opinions from real estate agents working for 3 different brokers but it was a very high-priced home. This indicates just how inexpensive a BPO is, but I'll return to that later.

 Future posts will detail which BPOS I will agree to do, what information I provide, the stumbling blocks I've encountered, how listing agents view my BPOs and my compensation for these efforts.

Part 2: Pink Elephant BPOs based on a case in Sparta, NJ.

Hubby Chip & I excitedly planning a short vacation from our comfy home in Sussex County, NJ. We're headed to the White Mountains of New Hampshire to car-camp. You know, where you pull up to a site, unload a 4 bedroom tent with hot & cold running water, ask James the butler to don his flannel shirt, throw a gourmet feast on the barbie, etc.

What prompts me to do this? I want to see a moose in the wild. Better yet, many meese. (While I am aware that the plural of moose is moose, I have spent many sleepless nights worrying how geese feel about that. Besides, it amuses me - if no one else - to use the term meese and watch reactions; I'm big on funny and you're most welcome to laugh at me along with me!)

To the right is a photo of the only moose I will ever see in the Sussex County vicinity!

So, with a real estate transaction in which I represent both the home sellers and the buyers closing this week and a great colleague to back me up while I'm away, I off to hunt real meese.

Our moose-hunting arsenal consists of a couple cameras and a tripod, so no need to alert PETA to my plans. I may never blog again because I've warned Chip that I am staying in the White Mountains until I see a moose. He pointed out that it is a very long walk home, lovingly adding that he'll miss me in the interim. Bet you will too!

So, Chip and I will relax, enjoy the beauty of Mother Nature for a few days and hunt meese.

Oh - and one other dream. I'm hoping to return with ONE picture that is of the quality that Richard Weisser - Coweta Fayette Real Estate - Newnan homes for sale shares with us day in and day out.

The one to the left is from US wildlife authorities - free use. I intend to pose the meese against more greenery to yield better contrast. I'm utterly surprised that the wildlife folks didn't think of that but then again, they probably don't say meese either...

Real estate is expensive - whether you want to buy a home, to sell a home or just to maintain your investment. Here in Sussex County, NJ, many of us are sprucing up the garden, fertilizing our lawns or already thinking about a Father's Day gift. Others may have a hankering to repaint the Great Room, replace that washer & dryer, upgrade the kitchen counter.

How would you like to save 10% on your related purchases?

No need to have a move in the works!

Lowe's offers REALTORS^® a wonderful program from which anyone can benefit with a discount. Sure, there are limits and a few restrictions. I've found that the Home Depot stores serving Sussex County, NJ, Newton, Roxbury, Riverdale and Dover) gladly accept the competition's coupon. I cannot state that all Home Depots everywhere do, so please check your local store before you get in the checkout line!

If you are working with a real estate agent, please ask him or her to obtain this coupon for you.

Otherwise, I'd be happy to assist if you live in my Sussex County market area: Sparta, Crystal Springs, Hamburg, Hardyston, Stockholm, Lafayette, Vernon, Highland Lakes, Wantage, Frankford, Branchville, Augusta, Franklin, etc.

If you're further away, use the STATES button in the top right-hand corner and find someone in your market area to assist!

Please do NOT provide your contact details as a comment below!

Otherwise you may get unwelcome solicitations! Look to the right and you see a phone number and a way to email me. Use one and we'll start the process to get you a discount!

Fellow REALTORS®

Lots of clever ways for us to use Lowe's program - at no cost!. For example, I send all my Open House visitors a "buyer's discount" card - a supplement to other follow up. One can select snail mail or email versions. If you aren't already enrolled, think about exploring - just click the photo below!

While inventory homes for sale in Sparta, NJ, remains highs, people are buying and selling homes every day. Home buying is a reality in Sparta, where we have some fabulous offerings - even within Lake Mohawk.

In April, 38 Sparta homes for sale went Under Contract - more deals solidified than in any of the preceeding 5 months! So far in 2009, April showed fewer homes were listed for sale. Based on Garden State MLS market reports for Sparta NJ, the list price to sale price ratio ticked up slightly to 96%.

Look for homes for sale in Sparta, NJ.

Let's sit down and talk about what impact - IF ANY - such GSMLS statistics should have on your real-estate plans!