In our last look at Cranford NJ Real Estate at the end of March, I predicted that the 2nd Quarter Sales to "exceed" the 1st quarter sales. Seasonally, this is almost always the case, but with the first time home buyer tax credit in place through April 30, combined with historically low interest rates, and favorable pricing I expected an even greater surge in market activity.

As we complete the 2nd month of the quarter, it is quite apparent that the 2nd Quarter of 2010 will show a sizable spike in sales activity. In the entire 1st quarter, there were 29 closed sales in Cranford. So far in the 2nd quarter, there were 10 closed sales in April, 9 closed sales in May, and currently 43 listings under contract. This is a staggering number, as most of these properties will likely close before June 30, to comply with the tax credit requirements, thus more than doubling the number of transactions over the first quarter, and increasing 24 percent when compared to the same time period 1 year ago.

To see the full article and the actual numbers click Cranford NJ Real Estate Market Report

Thanks for reading!

Sean Carroll

Team Carroll of RE/MAX Supreme

The first quarter of 2010 in Westfield, NJ showed a boost in sales from Q1 2009, which is not surprising, given the fact that the 2009 1st quarter was what most economists said was the height of the recession.

Closed sales were up over 40% year over year, and as the first time buyers energized the market, it helped homes in the upper price ranges to sell, as folks started to "move up"

For a full report: Westfield NJ Real Estate Market

To find out what homes are selling for in your part of Westfield: Westfield NJ Market Snapshot

Thanks for reading!

Sean Carroll

RE/MAX Supreme

908-418-7152

www.TeamCarrollNJ.com

Hard to believe its already the 2nd quarter, but I am sure uncle sam didn't forget! Hope you've filed your taxes...or at least started them.

...but I digress.

With the start of a new quarter comes the looking back at the last one. Cranford NJ saw 29 closed sales, and 50 homes go under contract in the first quarter. Thats about a 4.7 month's supply. Is that a seller's market??? It just might be right now.

Check out the Cranford NJ Market Summary for more detailed stats, and as always, thanks for reading!

Foreclosures were on the rise in Cranford at the end of 2009, but the good news is that compared to the national, state, and county average, Cranford is still experiencing less foreclosures per number of housing units.

We will continue to track these numbers, and I suspect if unemployment stays near 10%, the foreclosures will increase a bit more before decreasing.

For the full article : Cranford NJ Foreclosure Report

Sean Carroll

RE/MAX Supreme

908-276-MAXX - office

908-418-7152 - cell

www.TeamCarrollNJ.com

We've just released our latest market summary report for Westfield, NJ real estate. If you want to find out what happened with sales in 2009, or what your house might be worth now compared to a year ago check out our full blog article Westfield NJ Real Estate Market Report and see how we're looking in Westfield.

All in all, we ended the year just about flat on sales activity, but due to a surge in listing inventory, the average sales price in Westfield dropped about 10% in 2009, most of which occured in the first quarter.

Sellers always ask me this question....it is a tough pill to swallow sometimes when I recommend pricing their home $25,000 less than what they were hoping to ask, even though the comparable sales can justify my price. Their thinking?? "If I price it $25,000 lower, someone will low ball me even further. I'd like to price it higher so that I can leave some room to negotiate"

I fully understand this logic. In fact, it makes complete logical sense. However, it makes no Real Estate sense. Let me share a quick testamonial from this past weekend to illustrate what happens when you price a home to sell.

Property X was listed on Wednesday. I showed it on Thursday, we made an offer on Friday. By Sunday, there were 4 other offers. My clients because they loved the home made a "highest and best" offer of about $4000 above the asking price.

My clients were outbid "significantly". They were disappointed of course, but on the seller side, those folks ended up getting between $10,000 and $15,000 ABOVE their ask.

Had they "left room" to negotiate and priced it $20,000 higher, I firmly believe they'd have had less offers, if any, and would have given up the ability to dictate the terms they wanted, because there was less interest.

So when I come into your home and give you a suggested list range...if you'd like to be in the shoes of those sellers, I humbly request you take my pricing advice. Its for your benefit!!

Thanks for reading.

Sean Carroll

www.TeamCarrollNJ.com

RE/MAX Classic Group