Archive for the ‘For Buyers’ Category

Westfield NJ Luxury Homes … Cruising a Couple of Neighborhoods

Tuesday, December 1st, 2009

Westfield, New Jersey Luxury Homes …. almost seems redundant, right?  I mean, when you think of Westfield, NJ, you think “luxury homes!”  Or do you?  Some would say Westfield, New Jersey conjures images of yesteryear Colonials and wide boulevards, lots of trees and great schools.  Well, that’s true, too, since all that is also characteristic of Westfield, New Jersey!

 Why don’t we take a drive ………….…. Entering Westfield, NJ from the East, we generally travel along East Broad Street.   In many communities, that would mean “business district” –but not on the east end in Westfield.  Here, we pass beautiful and unique Colonials and Victorians on our right, and a spectacularly serene and stately cemetery along a tree-lined stretch on our left.

As we come up on Westfield’s Woodland Ave on our right, we might be tempted to turn right … heading into the heart of the Echo Lake Country Club residential area, featuring spectacular homes and neighborhoods, like this one on Golf Edge shown to the right  …. 

 GOLF EDGE

 WYCHWOOD RD

 

But, let’s continue along East Broad Street —- next, we come to the entrance for Wychwood on our right. This is one of Westfield’s famous and prestigious “gated”  residential sections, boasting meandering tree-lined lanes, the Wilson Elementary school, and some of the most beautiful traditional Westfield Colonials … like this one shown above at the left.

Continuing on East Broad Street, we pass more unique and beautiful Westfield Colonials, both older and newer, as well as Temple Emanu-El on our left, which has grown substantially since it was founded in 1950, and offers an impressive early childhood education for Jewish children through age 6. 

Then, as we approach the business district, we pass the Westfield Municipal building on our right followed   immediately by the beautiful and famed 12+ acre Mindowaskin Park with its gazebo and waterspout, specimen flora, and in the winter, its lovely holiday lights.  And we may even see a bridal party taking pictures, capturing all that beauty as a backdrop to their special day!

 Next, we come to a cross-roads of sorts … Mountain Ave on our right, flanking the impressive Presbyterian Church of Westfield, founded in 1727, and on our left, the Rialto Theater, pictured below with its restored marquee from a by-gone era..

 rialto

This is the true beginning of Westfield, New Jersey’s business district, which— no matter what the weather—is always thriving. With its national retailers and restaurants, like Victoria’s Secret and Starbucks— and wealth of small Westfield specialty boutiques and bistros, Westfield’s downtown is  magnet! 

Since this tour is about Westfield Luxury Homes … let’s turn right onto Mountain Avenue … and then bear left at the fork onto Lawrence Avenue where some of Westfield’s loveliest luxury homes reside.

Lawrence Avenue in Westfield is a delight to the eyes with it’s broad tree-lined street showcasing some beautiful old colonials, beautiful new colonials, spectacular Victorians and a few impressive ranches.  The recently built luxurious Colonial pictured here on the left, is just a few blocks from this vintage Victorian shown below it to the right. Homes like these abound in Westfield New Jersey … which is part of the reason Westfield NJ is a “destination” community.

LAWRENCE NEWER

 

 

 

 

 

 

LAWRENCE A

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Lawrence Avenue also serves as a kind of “center line” —with the beautiful Westfield Garden District off to the right, featuring some of Westfield’s older and most charming homes … like this one  

 HILLSIDE AVE

 

 

 

 

 

And the newer, usually larger Indian Forest homes  to the left of Lawrence Ave … like this one shown below …

 RAMAPO WAY1

These are just a few examples of Westfield’s Luxury homes  … and just a couple of the gorgeous neighborhoods of Westfield New Jersey.   There is so much more …

For instance, there are beautiful luxury homes in the Washington School District—to the south of East Broad Street, in the Franklin School District on the Northwest side of town, in the Jefferson school district in the South Central section, and in the Tamaques Park area and McKinley school district in the Southwestern section of Westfield NJ.  

 For more about Westfield, NJ’s neighborhoods contact Teri Malone, Keller Williams Sales Associate in Westfield, on her cell—732-423-2792 and ask about Westfield NJ’s Luxury homes and neighborhoods.

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Westfield NJ: Week-by-Week

Saturday, November 21st, 2009

11/20/2009.  It’s Getting Better, Folks!

As of this morning, there are 116 properties on the market in Westfield (down from 132 last week) including 8 properties that came on the market this week.

Seven (7) of the currently available properties have contracts in Attorney Review.

What closed this week?

  • Eleven (11) Westfield properties closed this week with an average sales price of $642,000; they had been on the market an average of 92 days.
  • Four (4) additional Westfield properties went under contract this week after being on the market an average of 65 days.  Three of them have a list price of $1,299,000 or higher!

All in all, this has been a pretty good week for real estate in Westfield NJ.

For more information, including monthly sales data with addresses and sale prices of Westfield NJ homes, please visit  www.Westfield-Area-Homes.com

Thinking of moving now that the Homebuyer Tax Credit has been extended and expanded to repeat buyers?  Email me at Teri@Westfield-Area-Homes.com for a free market analysis, and  “personal, professional, preferred” service.

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HOMEBUYER TAX CREDIT: It’s Not Just For 1st Time Buyers Anymore!

Friday, November 20th, 2009

The Federal Government has EXTENED, ENHANCED & EXPANDED the Tax Credit for Home Purchases. 

  • Extension with increased income limits:  If you haven’t owned a principal residence for 36 months, and you purchase a home, you can receive an income tax credit of up to 10% of the purchase price (maximum of $8,000 per married couple filing jointly, or $4,000 for single people or married couples filing separately) provided that
    • You enter into the contract to purchase the home  by April 30, 2010, and
    • You close on the property by June 30, 2010, and
    • Your income is no more than $125,000 for single taxpayers or $225,000 for married taxpayers filing jointly.  If you’re single and you earn more than $125,000 but less than $145,000, you can qualify for a partial credit.  Likewise, if you’re married and earn more than $225,000 but less than $245,000, you can qualify for a partial credit.

IMPORTANT:  This is a CREDIT not a deduction … so you get the money!  And, this money does not have to be repaid as long you stay in your new home for at least 36 months.

  • Expanded to include “move-up” or “repeat” buyers:  This is a new opportunity not available under the previous bill.  An income tax credit of 10% of the purchase price of a new primary residence –up to $6,500 – is now available to current owners who
    • Have owned and occupied their principal residence for at least 5 consecutive years of the last 8 years, and
    • Are purchasing a home with a sale price of $800,000 or less

These “repeat” purchasers do not have to sell their current home, but they do have to declare the home they are purchasing as their “primary residence.”

TAX CREDIT AND MULTI FAMILY HOMES

Buyers who choose a multi-family home as their principal residence can also claim the credit, but only on that portion of the purchase price representing the portion of the home that will be their principal residence. 

So, if you’re purchasing a multi-family home and you are going to live in one of the units as your principal residence, how do you know how much credit you can claim?

Simply divide the purchase price by the number of units.  10% of that amount is the amount of credit you can claim.  For example, suppose you purchase a 2-family home for $400,000:

$400,000 divided by 2 =  $200,000.  $200,000 times 10% = $20,000

Of course, the maximum credit amounts of $8,000 for first-time buyers and $6,500 for repeat buyers still apply.

And don’t forget the important deadlines:  Purchase agreements must be signed by April 30, 2010, and closings must be final by June 30.

The credit is claimed using Form 5405 at

http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/f5405.pdf 

As with all things having to do with income tax, check with your tax professional before proceeding. S/he will have the latest information and provide professional tax advice.

 

 

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Is NOW The Time to BUY in the Westfield NJ Area?

Friday, July 17th, 2009

So, you’ve found the Westfield NJ, or Scotch Plains or Mountainside NJ home you want to buy … and you’re waiting for the price to come down.  Is that really a smart strategy?  Consider that if you wait

·         Interest rates may rise, reducing your buying power

·         Someone else may buy the house while you’re waiting

·         You may miss the Fed’s $8,000 tax credit.  

So, if you want to buy a Westfield NJ (or Scotch Plains or Maountainside NJ) home, should you wait? 

If you DON’T wait, how can you get the best value? 

Answer:   Buying a home isn’t about waiting for the best price; it’s about negotiating the best price

The Westfield NJ Area real estate market has been really hot lately – so much so, that in Westfield NJ and a lot of the surrounding towns, the inventory is shrinking.    We’re even seeing multiple bids on properties that are updated and priced right.   [Incidentally, the only people who like a bidding war are sellers.]

So, how do you get a great home at a great price?

First, don’t wait!  If you see a Westfield NJ area home for sale that has everything you want – or even most of what you want – make an offer.  Don’t wait for a price reduction.  Make the price reduction yourself!

HUH? 

Do your homework, ignore the list price; talk to your Realtor (me, I hope)  and offer what you think the home is worth.  

For instance, suppose there’s a Westfield NJ home for sale that you want to buy.  First, have your Realtor run a list of all the Westfield NJ sold homes that are similar to the one you want to buy and that sold in the last 3 months.  Ask me to do an accurate comparison – amenity for amenity – and adjust for the “trend.”  This will give you a fairly good idea of what the home is worth, as well as whether prices are trending up or down.

This gives you a benchmark.  Then, you start with a relatively low bid – say 3% below what you are willing to pay for the house — and let your Realtor do her magic, negotiating the best price and terms.  

 What if the Westfield NJ Area home you want is really overpriced? (This should be rare since Realtors want to SELL homes, not just list them!)

First, take a look at my Westfield Homes Sold, or Scotch Plains Homes Sold, or Mountainside Homes Sold pages.  These pages list all the homes sold over the last 6 months or so, by address – and indicate what others have paid for similar homes in those areas. 

Another way you can spot an over-priced home is the length of time the house has been on the market – shown as DAYS ON MARKET.  When the DOM is significantly greater than normal (“normal” changes with the market), chances are everybody who’s seen it thinks it’s overpriced.

Maybe the seller is just hoping for “someone to make some kind of offer” and your low offer may come at a time when the seller is ready to move on.  

So … take a look at those overpriced homes.  If you see one you like and think it’s overpriced, don’t be afraid to offer what you (and your Realtor) think it’s worth.  (If you look at my “solds” page for any town on www.Westfield-Area-Homes.com , you’ll see a lot of properties that sold for a lot less than List Price — and generally were on the market for quite some time.)

So, don’t wait for the price to come down.  Decide the price you want to pay and have your Realtor excite the seller with YOUR offer.

For more information, visit www.Westfield-Area-Homes.com or email Teri at tmalone@weichert.com.

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