Tuesday, June 10, 2014

Review of houses for sale in nj::Ducks for Sale?







Review of houses for sale in nj::Ducks for Sale?








In               August,               2005,               Money               Magazine               named               the               hamlet               of               Moorestown,               New               Jersey               as               its               selection               for               "Top               Town"               in               the               United               States.

Using               criteria               such               as               culture,               arts,               accessibility,               school               system,               ambiance,               proximity               to               major               cities               and               other               bases,               at               first               blush               Moorestown               appears               to               be               everything               that               one               would               hope               for               in               a               small-town               atmosphere               in               which               to               raise               your               family.

One               of               the               components               which               Money               gushingly               described               was               the               fact               that               many               current               Moorestonians               are               third               and               fourth               generation               citizens,               having               decided               to               relocate               back               to               their               birthplace               after               college               and               after               becoming               a               family               unit.

This               is               quite               true;               having               been               a               Moorestown               resident               for               over               a               dozen               years               now,               I               know               of               at               least               thirty               families               who               have               always               called               Moorestown               home.

Why               did               they               come               back?

And               in               the               long               run,               was               that               decision               the               right               one?

They               came               back               to               be               with               their               families,               to               become               a               traditional               family               unit               with               grandparents,               siblings,               cousins               and               more               living,               playing               and               working               in               the               same               area.

While               this               is               a               wonderful               fact               and               a               wonderful               stable,               serene               way               in               which               to               raise               a               family,               it's               also               worth               taking               a               look               at               current               real               estate               prices               to               see               if               indeed               it               is               the               most               economical               way               to               go.

(Quite               often,               native               Moorestonians               move               back               because               they               are               purchasing               the               family               home,               with               their               parents               moving               into               one               of               the               ten               or               so               assisted               living               or               long-term-care               facilities               located               within               the               township               or               a               few               miles               or               so               away.

These               relocating               families               are               buying               their               relatives'               homes               at               very               good,               below               market               prices               so               as               to               keep               these               beautiful               old               homes               literally               'in               the               family'.)               For               others               not               so               fortunate               to               have               a               'family               home'               to               come               back               to,               real               estate               prices               in               Moorestown               can               be               quite               a               shock.
               Based               on               allegedly               dated               real               estate               statistics,               Money               Magazine               gave               the               median               home               price               for               Moorestown               in               the               $250,000               price               range.

As               of               this               writing,               nothing               could               be               further               from               the               truth.

For               a               period               of               time               following               the               accolades               of               being               named               "Best               Town",               houses               in               the               township               sprung               up               with               "For               Sale"               signs               like               dandelions               on               your               lawn.

At               that               time,               late               summer               to               early               fall,               the               resale               housing               market               was               still               booming               nationwide,               and               Moorestonians               made               the               most               of               it.

Houses               that               would               have               (or               should               have)               sold               in               the               $700K               to               $800K               were               now               $1,000,000               and               up.

And               some               houses               sold               at               those               inflated               prices               as               well.

Suddenly,               as               fall               turned               into               winter,               the               residential               resale               market               swung               in               the               opposite               direction;               the               bloom               was               off               the               rose,               even               for               America's               top               town.

The               statistics               that               Money               Magazine               should               have               included               in               their               article               (and               in               their               overall               decision               in               selecting               the               'top               town')               should               have               stated               that               the               median               price               of               Moorestown               housing               was               in               the               $350,000               to               $450,000               price               range.

In               speaking               with               several               realtors,               they               found               that               they               suddenly               had               buyers               from               'across               the               river'               (Philadelphia               and               its               suburbs)               as               well               as               folks               from               New               York,               Delaware               and               nothern               New               Jersey               flocking               to               our               town               in               hopes               of               finding               that               delightful               updated               Victorian               home               for               $250,000               or               so.

That               home               just               didn't               exist;               perhaps               it               hasn't               existed               in               over               five               years,               at               least.
               What               those               buyers               did               find               were               stately               homes               listed               at               $1,400,000               for               a               vinyl-sided               colonial               on               two               acres               with               a               pool.

They               found               waterfront               houses               for               $2,500,000,               for               $2,800,000,               and               even               a               wildly               contemporary               white               stucco               waterfront               home               listed               at               $4,400,000               (the               sellers,               aware               that               Terrell               Owens               had               paid               $4,000,000               for               his               home               on               the               same               street               18               months               earlier               felt               that               their               home               was               'superior'               to               his.

The               house               is               still               sitting               on               the               market,               now               listed               at               $2,200,000               -               and               it               continues               to               sit.)               'In               town'               houses               averaged               $750,000;               their               proximity               to               town,               their               historic               designation,               the               homes'               quaint               charm               driving               prices               upwards.

Houses               in               Moorestown               in               the               $250,000               to               $450,000               were               always               the               fastest               to               sell.

Now,               dozens               of               them               in               that               price               range               languish               in               a               buyer's               market.
               What               happened?

Were               prices               ever               that               reasonable               in               Moorestown?

(No,               they               weren't.

Moorestown               is               considered,               along               with               its               Camden               County               neighbor               Haddonfield)               to               be               the               'premier'               town               in               southern               New               Jersey.

Over               the               years,               I               have               met               dozens               of               families               who               grew               up               in               neighboring               townships               -               Cinnaminson,               Delran,               Delanco,               Riverside,               Palmyra               -               whose               dream               had               always               been               to               'make               it               to               the               big               time'               and               move               to               Moorestown.

It               was               that               group               of               buyers               who               pushed               prices               up               over               and               over               again               throughout               the               years.
               About               eight               years               ago,               the               face               of               Moorestown               changed               dramatically               and               forever               with               big               home               builder               Toll               Brothers               making               its               mark               on               hundreds               and               hundreds               of               acres               of               township               farm               land.

Farmers               were               only               too               eager               to               sell               their               pristine               land               to               Toll               at               high               prices;               in               turn,               Toll               Brothers               added               thousands               of               homes               which               equated               to               a               minimum               25%               increase               in               the               township's               overall               population.

Schools               were               overcrowded,               traffic               dramatically               increased,               the               need               for               basic               services               surged               as               transplants               to               the               town               moved               into               Laurel               Creek               and               Moorestown               Hunt.

These               developments               offered               'estate',               'carriage'               and               townhomes               to               a               small               town               which               had               previously               prided               itself               on               its               charming               'intown'               neighborhoods.

Prior               to               Toll               Brothers               march               on               Moorestown,               the               two               largest               neighborhoods               were               Northwest               Estates               (where               houses               a               year               or               two               ago               commanded               prices               of               $850,000               to               over               $2,000,000)               and               Stanwick               Glen,               where               a               true               'family               home'               with               four               bedrooms               and               two               and               a               half               baths               fetched               its               seller               $500,00               or               under               -               yes,               under!

When               we               had               first               moved               to               Moorestown,               we               looked               at               lovely               Tudors               and               colonials               -               and               there               were               several               of               them               -               in               Stanwick               Glen               which               were               priced               at               $285,000               to               $400,000               (those               $400K               homes               in               Stanwick               were               the               best               of               the               best!)               Northwest               Estates,               many               of               whose               homes               were               built               by               the               township's               native               son               and               premier               builder,               Dubrow,               was               considered               'the'               executive               neighborhood               in               which               to               live.

Currently,               some               of               its               older               homes               are               sitting               on               the               market,               listed               in               the               low               $800K               range,               although               there               are               several               smart-looking               homes               priced               at               $1,000,000               to               $2,400,000               for               what               is               best               described               as               the               'ultimate'               house               in               terms               of               amenities               (heated               floors,               heated               driveway,               English               gardens,               all               imported               brick               exterior,               etc.)               In               Stanwick               Glen,               homes               continue               to               sell               in               the               $500,000               to               $650,000               price               range,               and               most               of               them               are               well-built               homes               on               .50               acre               lots.

Northwest               Estates               is               the               place               realtors               take               thier               executive               relocation               buyers               first;               they               then               turn               their               eyes               on               the               properties               in               Stanwick               Glen.

Both               have               their               own               charm               but               both               appeal               to               different               types               of               buyers.
               As               for               the               Toll               Brothers               developments,               watching               the               resale               market               there               is               quite               interesting.

Basically,               the               interiors               of               the               larger               homes               in               Laurel               Creek               are               all               exactly               the               same!

Exteriors               may               differ,               some               buyers               may               have               opted               for               extras               like               sunrooms               and               screen               porches,               but               once               inside,               they               are               the               same               layout               over               and               over               and               over               again.

As               for               Moorestown               Hunt,               this               is               commonly               known               as               the               'starter'               family               home;               although               some               houses               have               been               listed               at               $850,000               or               slightly               higher,               these               are               the               houses               on               the               largest               lots               in               the               development               with               the               most               upgraded               interiors               as               well.

Lots               in               the               Hunt               are               small,               one-third               acre               for               the               most               part.

From               conversations               with               friends               and               acquaintances               there,               the               feeling               in               the               Hunt               is               that               it's               a               great               place               to               buy               your               first               home               in               Moorestown,               that               families               should               be               rather               open-minded               in               dealing               with               their               neighbors               because               you               can               'literally               spit               from               your               driveway               and               hit               the               house               next               door',               that               there               are               tons               and               tons               of               young               families               with               young               children               residing               there,               and               that               the               ultimate               goal               for               Hunters               now               is               to               move               out               of               the               community               as               their               children               grow               and               into               a               house               in               another               part               of               Moorestown!

Laurel               Creek               has,               according               to               some               residents,               become               a               very               transient               neighborhood,               with               families               coming               and               going               at               quite               a               high               rate.

Built               around               an               impressive               golf               course,               the               highest               priced               homes               in               Laurel               Creek               are               those               that               are               adjacent               to               the               golf               course               itself.

My               family               looked               at               several               re-sale               homes               there;               while               they               featured               granite               countertops,               stainless               steel               appliances,               soaring               (oh,               and               certainly               not               energy               efficient!)               ceilings               and               two-story               foyers,               the               inside               of               the               homes               -               again,               that               same               floor               plan               -               was               pretty               basic.

No               six               panel               doors,               inexpensive               wired               shelving               in               pantries,               no               walk               in               closets,               hardwood               floors               (and               not               the               expensive               kind)               on               the               first               floor,               and               a               lot               of               cosmetic               coverups               overall               made               them               disappointing.

One               home,               which               was               then               priced               at               $1,200,000,               sat               so               close               to               the               golf               course               that               on               an               early               Sunday               morning,               we               sat               at               least               five               'parties               of               four'               playing               golf               whizzing               past               the               breakfast               area               glass               doors               only               a               dozen               or               so               feet               away.

I               had               a               hard               time               imaging               relaxing               on               the               patio               off               of               the               breakfast               area               while               golf               balls               -               and               the               strangers               hitting               them               -               were               in               such               very,               very               close               proximity.

There               have               also               been               grumblings               from               Laurel               Creek               residents               that               the               vinyl               siding               on               the               sides               of               the               homes               was               inferior               and               that               the               builder's               response               to               numerous               repair               requests               was               slow               in               coming               and               often               inadequate.
               One               more               thing               to               keep               in               mind               if               you're               considering               purchasing               your               next               home               in               Moorestown:               our               tax               rate.

We               currently               pay               annual               property               taxes               of               $16,400               on               our               home.

(Our               home               has               5               bedrooms,               an               au               paire               suite,               3.5               baths,               3               fireplaces,               sits               over               slightly               over               two               acres               with               a               fenced               inground               pool,               has               an               unfinished               basement,               cedar               siding               and               stucco,               ahd               is               4,000               square               feet;               it's               also               listed               for               sale               right               now!)               Over               the               course               of               the               dozen               years               we               have               lived               here,               we               would               have               taken               the               sum               and               parcel               of               property               taxes               paid               and               purchased               a               very,               very               nice               second               home.

The               current               town               council               has               (again)               raised               property               taxes               for               a               13.4%               increase!

It               is               not               uncommon               now               to               hear               of               older               residents               who               are               selling               (at               whatever               price               they               can               for               their               older               homes)               and               moving               to               other               parts               of               southern               New               Jersey               because               they               literally               can't               afford               the               property               taxes.

While               houses               in               New               Jersey               overall               are               certainly               less               expensive               than               their               Main               Line               neighbors,               keep               those               property               tax               numbers               in               mind!

They               can               make               -               or               break               -               what               might               seem               to               be               a               very               good               deal.






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