No Comps.

It's hard to tell value when there aren't a lot of comps in a tiny niche of the market. Take for instance the the 2 bedroom condo priced over $650k but less than 1100 sqft. There are only three available units and one that sold in 2008. Usually, it's something pretty unique that will push the price per square foot up into this stratosphere. NYC views, loft ceilings, amazing outdoor space and of course parking..something like that.

But parking is really only going to account for $35-$40 a square foot. So when there are lots of choices in the $500-$550/sqft range (with parking factored in) what gives? Look to the two most obvious options, 1) the unit is spectacular and unique that when the right buyer comes along it gets sold 2) it is simply overpriced and should be in the range with the other nice but less than extraordinary condos.

The old real estate axiom: Every seller thinks their property is unique and better than the identical unit next door. The old "but we used better nails" defense.

Hoboken Condos 2008

2 Bedrooms
$650k+, less than 1100sqft

Active 3

under contract 0

Sold 1Information deemed reliable but not guaranteed

Going Greyhound.

I don't know what all those MTA guys are fussing about. The bus is a really attractive option for folks in Hoboken.

Top 5 Reasons to Consider A Hoboken Condo Near The Bus Line

5) There are multiple routes.

4) Avoid nasty PATH delays.

3) You will likely walk a shorter distance to the Bus.

2) The seats are more comfortable.

1) In most areas of Hoboken, you won't have to pay a premium like a condo close to the PATH.

Back to the MTA guys. I am not making this up...The board of directors held a secret meeting to decide to give back lifetime perks of using the MTA for free. Keep in mind that these guys are super wealthy and get paid thousands of dollars per hour actually worked to be on this board. Another political joke on the public. See it's not only Hudson County....Coming soon to a commute near you...Fare Hike.

Hoboken Condos 2008

Advertising Close to Bus
Active 60
under contract 30
Sold 91

Information deemed reliable but not guaranteed

All The New That's Fit To Print

Anyone see the Hoboken Real Estate article in the NYT this weekend? http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/22/realestate/22njzo.html?ref=communities

The numbers didn't seem to reflect what I am seeing on the ground here. So I did a little statistical exploration.

Here's an excerpt from the article "Meanwhile, the average price for a one-bedroom unit has dropped 9.3 percent since January — to $420,797 — and 40 percent of those units now on the market have had their asking prices reduced, by an average of 3.3 percent."

I have no idea what they are talking about. Asking price? Is that any indicator of the market? Why print it at all? I think I'll list a ten million dollar one bedroom just to show how useless it is to look at average ask price.

My research says that in Q4 2007 seventy three Hoboken one bedrooms sold for an average sale price of $391k. Since April 1, 2008 seventy seven Hoboken one bedrooms sold for an average price of $416k. This is about 6% INCREASE not a 9.3% decline.

Maybe the stats should be left to the Wall Street Journal.

Hoboken Condos 2008

One Bedrooms

Q4 2007

Sold 73

Avg Sale price $391k

Since 4/1/08

Sold 77

Avg Sale price $416k

Information deemed reliable but not guaranteed

Armstronging It.

There are a lot of bikers in Hoboken. Not the Harley kind, but the Tour De France kind or the I don't want to walk and I don't want to pay for a cab to the PATH kind. There's even a new bike advocacy group at http://www.bikehoboken.com/. The group has ambitious goals of making Hoboken more bike friendly. Now I wouldn't hold my breath for bike lanes anytime soon, but it can't hurt trying.

Sellers. This bike riding segment can be marketed to. Does your building have bike storage? Hooks in the garage for storing a bike? Room in front of your parking space for a bike? If your on 5th and Monroe, throw in a bike to sweeten the deal.

Buyers: Let your agent know that bike accessibility is important. There are a lot of bike friendly buildings in town.

Who knows Hoboken could be the New Amsterdam. Heck some people already think were part of the old New Amsterdam.

Hoboken Condos 2008

w/ bike storage advertised
Active 18

Information deemed reliable but not guaranteed

Pump You Up.

Summertime and the living is easy. Time to go to the beach and bare it all.... Maybe time to hit the gym first. Luckily Hoboken offers nearly 40 condo buildings with a gym included. Now not all gyms are equal but they all provide at least some minimal offerings to get you in shape. Most buyers really like the gym aspect even if they are fooling themselves into thinking they'll use it.

Buyers should take into consideration that the big name gyms in town are north of $100/month plus initiation fees. The added maintenance of a gym in your building is a small fraction on that. Plus on the cold winter days, there is no excuse.

Sellers: if your building has a nice facility, make sure the showing agents have access by leaving the fob/pass key where a showing agent can get it. I'm not saying the gym will be the reason someone buys, but it could push someone on the fence over the edge, or give you the upper hand in two similar units.

Muscle beach here I come. Gonna Pump You Up!

Hoboken Condos 2008

W/ Exercise room

Active 151
under contract 53
Sold 94
# Buildings 38 (not including the sky club)
Information deemed reliable but not guaranteed

Want A Good Deal. Think Salt.

It used to be there were no good deals in Hoboken or they all were good deals (depending on how you looked at it). When a client asks me to find them a good deal, it really needs to be qualified.

There are fair deals. A properly priced property where a buyer might get 2 or 3 % off of the ask. Then there are good deals. A good deal to me is where the property needs a little salt. Add a little something and that little something then turns into a whole lot more instant equity. For example, a unit with an attic space that turns a one bed one bath into a two bed/two bath or a two bed one bath that turns into a 3 bed, two bath. These are easy equity plays that are Hoboken's good deals. But buyers be prepared, usually it requires extra cash for the renovations and the headaches that contractors bring.
There is no free lunch.

Hoboken Condos 2008
Lowest Priced 2 Br With Parking
Active $485k , 780 sqft
Sold $470k, 918 sqft
Information deemed reliable but not guaranteed

Act Like A Millionaire

There's the old saying that rich people got rich because they don't give it away. Thus the segue into today's story of the tenant living in a condo where I recently held an open house. Here is a list of the following items and locations the tenant left out.

1) Ipod on table 8 inches from the door.

2) Ipod nano on table 9 inches from the door. For my older readers, a nano is approximately the same dimensions as an After Eight mint (not the box but a single mint.)

3) Check book on coffee table 4 feet from the door.

4) Digital camera on coffee table 4 feet from the door.

5) Expensive watch on top of dresser in the bedroom.

6) Mac laptop on top of bed.

And yes, this is a real list, not embellished. The condo was relatively compact, but what would it take for any of these items to be pocketed in a millisecond? If your a tenant or owner having an open house, pretend that strangers are coming through your home and are looking for things to steal. No not your 50 inch plasma, but something small and expensive.

For the person above, it might be easier to leave cash the next time.... Every penny a prisoner.

Hoboken Condos 2008

Million Dollar Club
Active 50

under contract 10

sold 6

Information deemed reliable but not guaranteed

The Micro Mini

Nano Housing Comes to Hoboken. A new two bedroom condo just came to market that's under 500 sqft. I checked the tax records. Listed as a two bedroom. Now a bedroom has to have a window and a closet to be a bedroom. How can a bedroom have a closet and be a closet at the same time? All you philosophy majors out there please respond.

Top Five Reason Buyers Might Be Interested In The Micro Mini.

5) Always wanted a separate space for a home office.

4) Don't want to socialize with roommate.

3) Tired of friends sleeping on the living room couch.

2) Saves money on furniture.

and the number one reason...

1) Won't get tired going over to the refrigerator.

It's a small world after all.

Hoboken Condos 2008

Two Bedrooms under 600 sqft
Active 4
under contract 1
sold 1

Information deemed reliable but not guaranteed

B.I.N.G.O.

Another beware of the agency story.

So I am picking up keys this weekend for a showing at 11am Saturday morning. The mom and pop which has expanded to two offices in town, isn't open at 5 minutes to 11. So I go over to their secondary office. Lo and behold someone is there to help. (Actually I think I just go luck that the business that shares the space was open.)


I ask for the keys and the agent literally opens a draw reaches into what looked like a big bowl and starts pulling out sets of keys until the right one is drawn. I felt like jumping up and yelling BINGO... I'm sure keys never go missing with that tracking and filing system.


In the end, sellers never see the missed appointments, the lost keys etc. Sellers only see Days on the market and wonder why their place isn't selling... Time for a price reduction.

Note: No marvelous pictures today due to blogger problems....

Chicken Big

The media. It should be a four letter word: I'm listening to NPR this morning on the way to work. They've got on an editor for the NY Times who has been preaching renting over buying. Turns out Mr. The Sky Is Falling just got assigned to some post in DC and has to move. Is he renting? NO... When the interviewer called him out on his hypocrisy, (after some dead air) it was the fastest two step ever heard. Seems CL (Chicken Little) wants us to do what he says and not what he does. Maybe CL wants to keep the housing market down so he and his cronies can buy up all the properties at a discount. Members of the media profiteering from their own reporting???Shocking, just shocking.

Bottom line: The media wants to sell papers, ads, etc. They don't want to tell you the truth. The want to over amplify one segment of a large market and convince all of us that a housing meteor is heading for your town. Buy a paper to see how close the meteor is. Think about it. You know Chicken Little. You know The Boy Who Cried Wolf. That's because the negative media starts preaching to us at a young age. We don't focus on the boy who didn't cry wolf but rode his bike or played little league. We never here the story of the one who saw it was just an acorn falling from a tree on to his head. What was his name again??? Ah yes, Chicken Big.

Most of us are Chicken Bigs, buying our home, even if it is small. Hoboken Shoeboxes under 500 sqft are not lasting. Let the media tell us how stupid we are. Cancel my subscription to the NY Times!

Hoboken Condos 2008
Less than 500 Sqft
Active 7
under contract 3
sold in 2008 14
Information deemed reliable but not guaranteed

Don't Sweat The Small Stuff.

After the price negotiations are complete, after the home inspection negotiations are complete, sometimes the buyer will seek to purchase some of the sellers personal property. Maybe a window air conditioner, maybe a couch or kitchen table. Many times the sellers will be happy to unload some of their belongings. The seller doesn't have to move it and they get to buy something new to fit their new space.

My advice to both buyer and seller: this is not a yard sale do not treat it as such. If you are close in price, just pay a little more or take a little less. The person who makes the first offer usually has the upper hand. For instance if the buyer offers $400 for the couch, but the seller really wants $450, I implore the seller to just let it go or don't sell it at all. Whats $50 in a half a million dollar transaction. It's going to cost more than $50 to move it! By haggling, both parties take the sheen off an otherwise amicable relationship. The buyer may need to ask the seller questions upon occupancy. The seller may need a favor from the buyer.

Don't let a drop in the bucket cause a break in the dam.


Hoboken Condos 2008
Currently under contract 201
Days On Market /# condos
two weeks or less/34
30 days or less/ 67
60 days or less/122
90 days or less/150
Information deemed reliable but not guaranteed

One Up. One Down.

How's The Market?

It's the most frequently asked question. Family, friends, clients, buyers, sellers, renters, investors....everyone wants to know. The answer is...hanging in there. Sellers know that buyers are taking longer to decide these days. (When the cost of filling your tank equals a mortgage payment, there is cause to pause.) Buyers know that sellers aren't giving it away either. The go go days are over. Buyers have choices, sellers have choices.

Looking at the five month year over year numbers. Condos sales are down 28% in volume over last year. BUT the average price is up nearly .5%. So it's good news for buyers. Lot of choices. It's good news for sellers too. The home values are holding.

In a healthy market, there should be some seesawing back and forth. It's more fun. Isn't it?


Hoboken Condos 2008
Five Months Year to Year
Jan -May 2007
Sold 451
Avg price: $530.8k
Jan -May 2008
Sold 325
Avg price: $532.8k

Information deemed reliable but not guaranteed

The Total Cost Of Ownership.

As the spring market wraps up (Usually I'll wait until July 4th to call it a wrap, but how is anyone going to argue that we haven't fast forwarded to August. All of those people who took Shore vacations in early June to get a break on price are big winners.), I am projecting sunny days ahead.

Here's my logic: If people are trading in their giant gas gulping SUVs to save some coin, they have to start to look at the toal cost of ownership. I have a friend that recently purchased in Monroe township (exit 8A off the turnpike). I calculated that it would cost me $5000 a year extra in gas to commute to Hoboken from there. That like a month's worth of Hoboken property taxes when the state gets through balancing the budget. Seriously, it's like two months.... no no really seriously, it's enough money that buyers are going to start coming back from the burbs. Cut down to one car. Drive less. Instead of paying money to the oil companies, it's better to pour equity into your home.

It doesn't hurt as much if your taxes go up because there's always someone you can vote out of office. If gas hits $10/gallon what can we do? cry to the Europeans? There's a reason they drive those little toy looking cars... and it's not because they like to carpool with someone who doesn't use deodorant on a regular basis.

Hoboken Condos 2008

Spring Market

Sold march 1- june 10th
1 Br 94
2 br 112
3 br 13

Information deemed reliable but not guaranteed

7 days, schmeven days. no keys.

I was going to pontificate about gas prices and home prices today, but that can wait until tomorrow. Instead I will rant about how dumbfounded I am that there are some big time real estate agencies that are run so poorly that they should be closed down for incompetence.

Story of the day. Last weekend on June 1st I showed some property in downtown JC later in the day. I dutifully picked up keys at two of the biggest agencies there, and then showed the property. Since I finished up after the offices closed, I slipped the keys through the respective mail slots. All systems normal. This Saturday I get a call from one of the agencies asking me if I returned the keys! Yesterday I get a call from the other agency asking the same thing!

Sellers: Does this make you happy? Paying an oversized check type commission to an agency that doesn't track the keys to make sure they've been returned in a timely manner. Paying an oversized check type commission to an agency that is not sure where the keys are for a week. Writing that oversized check type commission to an agency that can't show your property because they don't know where the keys are and by the time they find them the buyer has moved on. There are over 400 condos available in downtown JC. If there are no keys for one condo, buyers will move on.

I preach it here often: sellers check out the back office functions of your realtor before you commit. It doesn't matter how well known the name on the front door is, the back office procedures could be preventing your place from being seen by buyers.

Condos 2008

Downtown JC
Available 404
Under Contract 125
Sold 174
Information deemed reliable but not guaranteed

Moving From Hoboken To...Elizabeth?

Walking down the street this morning I noticed prominently displayed in the front window of "Magoo" Realty, a flyer for condos in Elizabeth. That's right Elizabeth, New Jersey. The town that puts the Garden in Garden State. Now, I guess that some mom and pop's don't have enough listings and thus litter the window space with out of town and out of county listings. But Magoo is big enough to have it's windows filled.

I think it is a mistake for sellers of out of town properties to want to have their flyers in the window, whether the property in North Bergen or Elizabeth. Firstly, it mixes the office message and image of serving the local community. Second, the trickle down effect are fewer walkins, thus fewer sales, thus fewer company ad dollars to spend on targeting out of town buyers in ways that best promote and out of town property. The exception is adjacent towns that are similar (i.e. downtown Jersey City) or where overflow is likely to occur (i.e. Jersey City Heights). Realistically, owners of out of town properties should be considering an overall marketing plan by an agency and analyze the likelihood of success. While it is possible for an Elizabeth Buyer to walk in front of a window in Hoboken, it is also possible that Obama will make an off color remark and the superdelegates will run to Hillary. Possible, in the scope of the universe, but not probable.

There in my mailbox this morning was a nice color mailer from Magoo, telling me about the properties in Elizabeth. In the history of wasted postage and printing costs, this comes close to the mailings I used to get from AARP when I was in my twenties. I can somewhat excuse AARP. They probably thought that since I didn't have a job, I must have been retired.

Tea For One

Hoboken's Queen: The Hudson Tea Complex consisting of 1500 Washington and 1500 Hudson sport some of the most prestigious and sought after condos in town. I guess people heard that Governor Corzine is moving, so the streets may be safe from his out of control SUV.

One bedrooms are very popular. Eighteen have sold in the past year and only four are available through the MLS right now. It's probably the loft like feeling that attracts so many people. Great amenities, great convenient location, shuttle to the PATH. But like everything else, it's the haves and the have nots. As in, have: a spectacular city view... have not: enough sun light because your boxed in by the other building. Have: a parking spot, have not: a parking spot.

Make sure you too choose wisely when searching for your own Holy Grail.

Hoboken Condos 2008

Hudson Tea Building
Studios

Active 3

Under Contract 0

Sold Last 12 Months 12
1 BRs
Active 4
Under Contract 1
Sold Last 12 Months 18
Information deemed reliable but not guaranteed

Lovely Rita

Boot City, USA. Transpiring events this morning have given me keen insight on just how much Hoboken is hurting for revenue and why your taxes are going up.

I'm driving down 7th St crossing Park Ave at 8:07 this morning. (John Montone from 1010wins told me it was 8:07 and I have no reason to think he was lying. He is usually pretty good with the time....pretty good with the temperature too.) So here it is 8:07 and there is Lovely Rita writing in the little white book. Actually someone was parked on the permit side of the street. I'm guessing that someone has a boot in their foreseeable future. BAM. Budget short fall elimnated one boot at a time.

I wonder what time Rita is starting these days. To be all the way to 7th and Park by 8:07? And I'm sure it wasn't her first booting of the day.

Think this is a random act? Later today I'm getting ready to park in a space the street sweeper has just vacated and I have to wait for the Hoboken police car to move or be ticketed as well. Now I'm not sure how the internal accounting works with a ticket on a cop car but it was pretty clear that Hoboken's Finest was about to feel Rita's wrath just like we commoners.

I can't help but think if John and Paul grew up in Hoboken, "Lovely Rita" might have been called "Here Comes The Sun" Or "Taxman".


Hoboken Condos 2008
The May Listings
Active 125
Under Contract 12
Sold 0

Information deemed reliable but not guaranteed

The Open House Hobbyist

When holding an open house, one questions I almost always ask is if the person has seen a lot of places. It helps qualify the person and gives me some context about what information they might find valuable. Well, this weekend I ran into a person who told me they have been to over sixty open houses! That's six zero.

Now Miss Sixty it turns out has a parent that is an out of town realtor. I guess instead of working with a Hoboken agent and having dad get a referral fee, Miss Sixty will spend years of weekends on the hunt. Sixty is a lot of homes not to have found one to buy. Although on a small percentage of homes even have an open house, so maybe she is just missing her target.

If I had time for a hobby, I think it might be model trains. What's Miss Sixty going to do after she finds a place? All that free time?

Hoboken Condos 2008
The May Closings
Studios 4
1 BR 35
2 BR 26
3 Br 2Information deemed reliable but not guaranteed