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Health & Fitness

Marlboro Now a "Seller's Market"?

If you’ve been thinking about buying a home in Marlboro, you may not have realized how quickly home prices have been rising. As of the end of August, the median price of a single-family home in Marlboro has increased by 3% compared to a year ago. So have you missed your chance to buy a home in Marlboro, or is this still a good time?

To try to answer that question, let’s look at Marlboro’s 8 month year-to-date statistics, focusing on the 4 key objective indicators (items in bold font are good news for home sellers, but bad news for home buyers; items in underlined italic font are bad news for home sellers, but good news for home buyers):

Sales: 215 in 2012, 249 in 2013 (+16%)

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Listings: 162 in 2012, 140 at the end of August 2013 (-14%)

Median Sales Price: $470,000 in 2012, $482,000 in 2013 (+3%)

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Absorption Rate: 5.8 months in 2012, 4.6 months now (stronger Demand vs. Supply)

As you can see, all 4 of the indicators are good news for home sellers and bad news for home buyers. All 4 indicators are also predicting higher home prices. If you aren’t familiar with the real estate absorption rate, take a look at last month’s blog post. The take-away message is that a “normal market” is between 5 and 7 months. In one year Marlboro changed from a “normal market” into a “seller’s market” for the second month in a row. If you’re looking to buy, you’re going to have to pay more than you would have a year ago, but count yourself lucky to be in a “seller’s market” that has just a 3% median price increase.

Traditionally there's an upswing in the number of home sales between Labor Day and Thanksgiving, and then a relatively quiet real estate market until early spring. If you're thinking of buying a home in Marlboro, look now while there's still a good supply of homes on the market. If you find a home you like, you'd be wise to lock in a mortgage interest rate before the rates go up again.

Currently there are15 homes listed for sale in Marlboro for less than $300,000; there are 15 homes listed in the $300 - $400 thousand dollar range, and 14 more in the $400 - $500 thousand dollar range. The less expensive homes tend to be Capes, Ranches or Split Levels, but some of them are in great condition. Homes prices above the median offer a wide variety of styles and lot sizes.

If you’re looking for new construction, the lowest priced listing is $650,000 for a 3,500 square foot, 5 bedroom, 3 and ½ bath home.

Remember, if you find a listing for a home in Marlboro you like, DON’T CALL THE LISTING AGENT. The Listing Agent works for the Seller, and has a fiduciary responsibility to get the highest price. You want to work with a REALTOR® whose undivided loyalty is to YOU, and who will negotiate the LOWEST price.

I'd be glad to be your Buyer’s Agent and help you find exactly what you're looking for in Marlboro- just call, text or email me and I'll get right back to you.

Len

 

Leonard “Len” Dunikoski, GRI

REALTOR® Associate

Diane Turton Realtors – Rumson Office

8 West River Road

Rumson, NJ 07760

(732) 239-0739  (cell)    (732) 530-6686 (office)

ldunikoski@dianeturton.com

http://www.rumsonfairhavenhome.com

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