Let's talk a little about some exact numbers of homes sold in Essex County from 2006 (the last "high" year of the market) to the first 2-and-a-half months of 2009. I noticed something interesting, which is that if you look at the chart below, you will see that in the towns we sell the most homes in Essex County, there has been roughly between a 1/5 to 1/3 drop off in the number of home sales, with an average national loss of about 10-15% in home values in general.
Amid all this dark and ominous sounding news, I did note one interesting positive thing - with the lower home prices, first time home buyers are out in full force - buying and borrowing - with great success. Between January 1st through March 15th of 2009, there have been a high number of real estate transactions already in place in most of our towns (these numbers include closed transactions and houses currently under contact and in attorney review). In Maplewood, for instance, there are currently 77 home transactions - that is 33% of the entire number of homes sold in 2008 - and it is just the first 2-and-a-half months of 2009!
1/1-3/15
HOMES SOLD IN 2008 2007 2006 2009 % of total homes sold in 2008
Maplewood 235 296 344 77 (33% )
South Orange 175 203 252 50 (29%)
Glen Ridge 115 123 106 21 (18%)
Montclair 348 403 448 88 (25%)
Bloomfield 313 323 383 70 (22%)
West Orange 459 540 561 112 (24%)
Nutley 245 292 294 68 (28%)
Cedar Grove 84 99 117 18 (21%)
Verona 131 172 200 44 (34%)
The Caldwells 202 235 230 63 (31%)
Essex Fells 13 27 26 5 (38%)
Livingston 278 314 351 69 (25%)
Roseland 42 50 72 13 (31%)
Millburn 260 307 268 48 (18%)
Fairfield 53 65 47 10 (19%)
Belleville 167 239 280 57 (34%)
(Information above provided by the GSMLS, and does not include information regarding private home sales, bank foreclosures and homes for sale by owner).
What does this tell us? That folks are taking advantage of the lower home prices, as well as of the properties that are in financial distress...that banks are still lending, even if it is a tighter process than before...that private sellers are more negotiable...and that a home is and should be just that...a home.
This isn't the stock market - a home is not JUST an investment. It's a place to live and grow, raise a family, chase pets in the yard, spill red wine on your new carpets, learn to build a fire in a fireplace for the first time, cut jagged gashes into your lawn because you have no idea how the new lawnmower works, and-oh-my-god-there-is-so-much-to-do-when-you-own-a-home-and-it-never-ends-argh! But you love it. Because it is your HOME SWEET HOME.
So the stock market has rallied for 5 days in a row now, right? Fingers crossed...
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