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  …. 

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..

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 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  

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

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.

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.

    Tweet This Post

• 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.

The answer is “marginally” in that the national ”mood” certainly affects all of us.  But I’ve noticed that, by and large, Westfield Area residents who are thinking of selling are not putting it off “just because the market is down.”

And here’s why:  Most who are planning to sell and then buy another home recognize that while they may get less for their home, they’ll also pay less for the one they ultimately buy.

For others, they’ve decided that since their children are grown, they simply don’t need to live in such a large home … selling, even in a less than optimum climate, alows them to move on NOW — an important and refreshing lifestyle attitude. 

So, what has sold recently in Westfield, Scotch Plains and Mountainside NJ lately? For a complete list of all solds in the past 6 months, go to www.Westfield-Area-Homes.com and click on the “solds” section for the community you want to know about.  Addresses, List and Sold prices, style of home and days on market are all displayed.

Want to know the current market value for your home?  Email me at SuccessMentor1@comcast.net or give me a call on my cell 732-423-2792 — it’s always on– and the service is FREE and wihout obligation!

I want to ensure that each and every buyer who previews the property will be “struck” by its special features.  I consider that part of my job.

So, for most of my listings, if my sellers will agree to at least consider following through with the stager’s recommendations,  I hire — at my own expense –one of the best stagers I kn0w, Phyllis Pafumi.

Phyllis charges $175 for the initial consult and she does a wonderful job.  Furthermore, she comes with her own team who can paint, swap out counters, re-do cabinets, floors, etc. — all at really reasonable prices.

I firmly believe that by “showcasing” my sellers’ home, we ultimately get the best price in the shortest time.

For more info, email me at SuccessMentor1@comcast.net, or call 732-423-2792.

–Use toothpaste & sponge to remove crayon marks from painted wall
–To cover a dark-painted wall (red, dark blue, dark green), use a tinted primer
–Cleaning with toothpaste will delay tarnish on silver
–Mix 1 part baking soda with 6 parts water, shake well, and use as an odor-reducing spray
–Shine hardwood with ¼ cup apple cider vinegar mixed w/ ½ gal of water
–To create a chalkboard wall or panel, use Peel ‘n Stick adhesive film designed as “chalkboard”
–To remove fingerprints from Stainless Steel Appliances, use olive oil on lint-free cloth
–For “dents” in carpet left by removed furniture –Put ice cube on dent and let it melt. Then use fork prongs to “fluff up” carpet pile
–To hang a new chandelier, use “S” hook to hold fixture while you thread wires
–To “green-up” a brown lawn, use a green Spray paint made for this purpose
–Use car wax paste to shine older wood cabinets
–To remove stains from Microwave interior, mix 2 cups of water and ½ cup of white vinegar in micro-safe dish or cup. Microwave on HIGH 3½ mins. Let stand 5 minutes. Remove mixture and wipe inside of micro clean.

Email me at SuccessMentor1@comcast.net for more info.

Just as you want to “put your best foot forward” when being interviewed for a new job, you want to put your Westfield NJ home’s “best features” on display when you’re trying to sell.

So, the first thing is to make sure your Realtor knows what you consider to be the  “best features” of your Westfield NJ home.  Most Realtors will ask … but if yours doesn’t, make sure you tell your Realtor what you like best about your home during your initial meeting with him or her.

Staging.   When I’m listing a home in the Westfield NJ area, I think staging is so important that I hire a professional “staging consultant” (at my own expense) nearly every time!  Most Stagers will tell you–beyond a neat and clean home–here’s what we need to focus on:

• Exterior maintenance is the first thing a buyer sees.  So,  
  • Start by mowing the lawn and trimming the shrubs so they don’t hide the windows or look overgrown. 
  • If your home has shutters, freshen them and the trim with new paint.
  • If your home has painted clapboard, it too may need to be re-painted.  Vinyl sided homes can be power-washed so your home looks fresh and well-maintained. 
  • Remove all toys from the driveway, walkway and front of your home.  Not only do toys detract from the attractiveness of your home, they can present a real hazard to visiting potential buyers.
• Re-paint Interior. Everyone’s home reflects their choices in decorating. If your son sketched “team banners” on his bedroom wall, you may wish to repaint his room since some buyers will worry they won’t be able to cover up the “artwork”.
• Paint colors should be neutral, but usually not white except for ceilings and trim. Taupe, grey and Vanilla come in enough shades to both match your current furnishings and provide variety.
• Wallpaper – Remove or Not?  Wallpaper patterns are very personal … if you can, remove the wallpaper and paint a neutral cover with white trim.
• Repairs – Many times, we live with small items that need repair, but which are not sufficiently bothersome to us to take the time to do them.  If you’re marketing your home, though, you need to take care of these.

MOST IMPORTANT:  Regarding repairs, remember:  Even if it’s  just a “little” problem, if it is obvious to the buyer, the buyer may think:  “I wonder what ELSE is hasn’t been maintained?” 

So, for instance, if your upstairs tub overflowed and left a water stain on a downstairs ceiling, you need to make the stain go away – usually by repainting the ceiling.

• Carpeting vs wood floors … While some people like carpeting, others prefer the gleam of wood. If your carpeting is relatively new and unblemished, ask your Realtor to note that you have wood floors beneath the carpeting. 

If, however, your carpeting is showing signs of wear, it will be best to remove it and have the wood floors beneath buffed or even refinished.

If you don’t have hardwood beneath the carpeting, consider investing in having hardwood installed in the main living areas (kitchen, living room, dining room, entry hall).  Nearly everyone searching for a Westfield NJ home wants (and expects) hardwood.

• Lighting can play an important role in a buyer’s sense of well being when they’re visiting your home.  If you make sure each room has plenty of light – open blinds and curtains, leave soft light on — your buyer will feel more cheerful and have a more positive opinion of your home.
• The pleasant fragrance of a reed diffuser is one of the best ways to entire a buyer.   A citrus fragrance, by the way, is preferable to a sweet fragrance – because citrus always smells clean!

The time-honored idea of “a pie baking in the oven” fragrance is not always a good idea since the buyers may not like the scent.  In general, cooking odors of any kind are a turn-off.  (Think “pregnant lady”)

• Camouflage flaws or short-comings with a little ingenuity.  For instance, does a room look too small?   Sometimes, removing a table or chair can make all the difference!  What you’re aiming for is serenity, ease of movement … flow. 
• Closet Space is important to nearly all homebuyers – as a Realtor, I often hear “you can’t have too many closets!”   You don’t want your closets to look stuffed, so a good rule of thumb is to remove 1/3 of everything in each closet.  This is also true of bookshelves and bookcases.
• Remove personal photos & memorabilia … all photos, etc., should be packed away in preparation for your move.  This removes things that would otherwise distract the buyer from her purpose – to see if your home should be her new home!

AMENITIES … should we add them?

The answer here depends wholly on your competition.  For instance, if most properties in your neighborhood have central air, you might want to add this amenity if it’s not too expensive.  Why not just lower the price of your home?  Because some so-called “amenities” are such “must haves” for the majority of buyers, your home might not otherwise sell!  CAUTION:  This is not always true, so please, please consult your Realtor before you incur the expense!

 Finally, ask your Realtor’s advice.  Realtors market many homes to many buyers.  A good realtor will know just what to suggest to make your Westfield NJ home stand out among the many that are currently listed in Westfield NJ Homes For Sale.

And remember:  “It is what it is” and having a dedicated Realtor market your home is, perhaps, the most important thing you can do to sell your home. 

Need More Answers NOW?   Call or email me today!  Or visit me on http://www.westfield-area-homes.com/

Suppose you bought a 3 bedroom, 2 ½ bath home with a garage 5 years ago in Mountainside NJ for $400,000 and spent $60,000 upgrading it.  Now you’re thinking of selling, but with the market decline of the last few years, if you sell now, you’d probably sell at around $400,000 – essentially recouping your purchase price, but not the cost of the upgrades you made. 

That means a $60,000 loss on your Mounainside NJ home, right?  Not really.

First, if you had not purchased your Mountainside NJ home 5 years ago, but instead rented a home in, say Scotch Plains NJ, like the one you actually purchased in Mountainside NJ, you would have paid about $2500 a month – or $150,000 for the 5 years — assuming no rent increases   

As you can see below, in this scenario, you’ll actually GAIN $55,000! 

Not bad in a “down” market!

PLUS – you’ve gained the income tax refund each year because of the Mountainside NJ taxes and the home mortgage interest you paid … (there are no tax benefits to renting)!

Second, if you’re also purchasing a new home, you’ll save on that purchase because prices have come down.  Let’s say, you want to purchase a home you saw on Westfield NJ homes for sale  for $800,000.  Since the Westfield NJ home sale prices have declined over the past 5 years, the Westfield NJ  home you’re now purchasing for $800k would have sold at around $900,000 in 2004.

So, you not only gain on the sale of your Mountainside NJ home, you save on the purchase of your new Westfield NJ home.  Sounds like a win-win to me!

Hope this helps you if you’re a seller in the Westfield NJ area who’s  struggling with the qustion “To Sell or Not To Sell” in this market …. For more info, contact Teri at www.Westfield-Area-Homes.com.

·         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.

“All real estate is local …”  What that means is that no matter what is happening in the rest of the country, even in the rest of NJ, you need to know what is happening in YOUR town of Westfield, Scotch Plains or Mountainside, NJ — and those communities that surround it — before you put your home on the market.

For instance, while prices have come down significantly around the rest of the country,

• Westfield NJ Homes Sold reflect only a 4% decrease since January 2009. 
• Scotch Plains NJ Homes Sold  show a reductions of about  15.6% since January 2009, and
• Mountainside NJ Homes Sold indicated a 15.7% reduction since January.

Even more important, unlike 2005 and 2006 when even homes in poor condition were selling, if you want to sell your home in the current market, it needs to be in tip-top condition – or priced lower than other homes for sale in your area.

So, STEP 1 is to visit my website, www.Westfield-Area-Homes.com and check out Westfield NJ homes for sale or Scotch Plains NJ homes for sale  or Mountainside homes for sale depending on which is your community.

STEP 2 — select 3 or 4 homes for sale that closely match your Westfield, Scotch Plains or Mountainside home, and ask me to preview them with you.  This should give you a pretty good idea of how your home compares with the current homes for sale – your competition.

STEP 3 — check out the Westfield Homes Sold  or Scotch Plains Homes Sold  or Mountainside Homes Sold  page for your community – again, I post this information on www.Westfield-Area-Homes.com.  This gives you an idea of what buyers of homes like yours are willing to pay.

Finally, I’ll prepare a detailed Price Trend Analysis … taking into consideration the amenities and condition of your home compared with those that have recently sold and those that are currently for sale — and we’ll position your home so that it sells quickly!

Does my home need to be the “best” in order to sell?

At the end of June, 2009 the Westfield NJ real estate absorption rate is about 4.7 months.  That means there are enough buyers out there to purchase every available Westfield home for sale in 4.7 months.   The Scotch Plains NJ real estate absorption rate is 4.8 months, and for Mountainside NJ real estate, it’s 2.8 months. 

Given that there are currently more homes for sale than there are buyers, you want buyers to consider your home one of the top 3 or 4 homes for sale in your price range – and you want me to aggressively market your home (not just put it on the MLS).

Let’s say, after looking at the current crop of Westfield NJ homes for sale, we determine that your home should be priced around $600,000.  As of this writing, there are 13 homes for sale in Westfield that are priced in the $500k-$600k range.  So you want your home to be one of the top 3 – that is, in the top 25% range.

And I can help you with that!  If you list with me, I’ll start by hiring a “Stager” (I pay for this consult).  She’ll let us know what we need to do—economically – to get your Westfield NJ home ready for sale … things like

• De-cluttering
• Removing personal photos
• Cleaning closets
• Removing – or moving around – furniture, etc. to make your home look as spacious and restful as possible
• Replacing light fixtures for an easy, affordable update
• Freshening the paint with neutral, up-to-date colors
• Cleaning and showcasing the outside, including windows – sometimes a few flowers can do wonders
• Updating – where it can be done economically

For instance, a Westfield NJ home I recently listed (and sold) needed a new kitchen.  But the expense would have been too high.  So my seller opted for new paint and new laminate counters – making the kitchen very neutral and easy to live in until the new owners would be able to afford a new kitchen!

Most important, don’t try doing all this on your own.  Your home is usually your biggest investment.  So this is when you want expert advice.

I promise I and my team will provide it.  I never forget that my livelihood depends on making your dreams come true!

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