Strong shore season in store for 2015

From the Press of Atlantic City:

It may seem a bit too early to worry about your plans for July and August, but it may be too late already to rent some local beach houses in the prime weeks of those prime summer months.

Real estate agents from Cape May to Long Beach Island report that their weekly rental homes are moving faster than last year — considerably faster, in some places.

“Interest is strong,” said Frank Shoemaker, of Ocean City’s Berger Realty. “We’re running about 35 percent ahead of where we were last year. We’ve already booked 7,000 rentals for 2015. Last year, we booked over 12,000” for the whole summer, he added.

Two counties to the north, Prudential Zack Shore Properties — which has three Long Beach Island offices — is ahead of even that impressive pace. On a mid-week in late winter, AnneMarie Aresco of the Beach Haven branch ran the numbers and found that “so far, as of this moment, we’re up 37 percent from last year.”

And while no agents expect potential renters to have any trouble finding a place to enjoy a week at the shore, they say customers may have to adjust either their desired locations or desired vacation schedules —or both. Because while there are plenty of homes on the weekly market, some of those prime July and August weeks are booking up, particularly in the most desirable spots.

Still, for all the demand they’re seeing, agents say most renters don’t have to worry about paying a lot more than they’re used to.

“We haven’t seen too much change,” says Allan Dechert, the broker and co-owner of Ferguson Dechert Real Estate, which is based in Avalon but also covers Stone Harbor. “We advise owners that unless they made substantial changes to their property, they should maintain their pricing. We’re competing against a lot of different markets, so you need to stay in line.”

Farther south, Justin Aftanis of Cape May Realty agreed with that assessment.

“We’ve seen some small increases, but not anything we’d put a percentage on. Call them cost-of-living increases,” Aftanis said.

Unicorns on Myspace will save the NJ housing market

From HousingWire:

It is obvious that the Great Recovery has impacted regions in the U.S. unevenly. One local market has had more to deal with than others: the state of New Jersey. The Great Recovery has been anything but Great or Recovery for the Garden State. With slow job growth, high taxes, and the collapse of the real estate market, New Jersey had enough to deal with without having two catastrophic storms hit consecutively: Irene (2011) and Sandy (2012).

Back in 2011, Irene came with the price tag of $1 billion in damage to 200,000 homes and buildings, making it the costliest disaster in the states history.

Then came Sandy the following year, which brought estimated losses to businesses of up to $30 billion in New Jersey alone.

But this spring, 2015, could present itself as a big pivot for New Jersey’s real estate market

1. Pent-up demand turns into a buying surge?

Over the past few months, there have been a number of very credible articles citing negative metrics, including mortgage apps dropping 3.5% and extensive number of days listings remain on the market.

What the warm weather appears to be carrying with it: some unexpected, pent-up demand and some badly needed inventory, according to a few New Jersey brokers.

“From the beginning of March, our office has seen a significant jump in business and activity for our office in Toms River,” said Robert Cecchini, operating principal at Keller Williams RCI Group in Toms River, New Jersey.

2. Technology to make New Jersey brokers better prepared

Expertise and engagement

Facebook advertisements: Facebook advertisements are clearly the new ‘must-have tool’ on the block, but social media isn’t replacing the foundational personal referral, it is simply enhancing it.

Wait, hold it, right there. I let it slip when you blamed the housing market problems on Irene and Sandy. But Facebook?

Are you kidding me?

Facebook is the fix NJs housing market problems? What kind of crap is this?

3. Emerging demographics: The single millennial as the new buyers

There is a new market segment of homebuyer: the pre-married millennial.

Oh for f*cks sake, this just gets better. The pent up demand from unwed millennials on Facebook will save the housing market (Pretty sure that unwed Millennials arent using Facebook anymore.)

Certainly the business calls for more intentionality in establishing one’s expertise and professionalism.

Holy Christ WHAT DOES THIS EVEN MEAN.

4. Real-time broker/buyer instant access

A broker is no longer held to physical face-to-face meetings, but can now give access to view the home virtually via technology to the home, paving the way for the actual inspection. These virtual open house platforms include:

Myspace and AOL Instant Messenger? Who the hell wrote this? Myspace and unwed millennials on Facebook are going to save the NJ housing market… I would have bought that house, but the broker didnt hit me on myspace with a link to a video chat Said no one ever.