2010 Mar 31st

The Weekly Wednesday Wrap Up – Hoboken Condo Sales & Activity for the Week of March 30th

Categories: Weekly Wednesday Wrap Up

Hoboken Condos Sales & Activity – Week of March 30th.

Spring has sprung, or at least it was supposed to. baby_bunniesAlong with it have come lots of new listings. Sort of like baby bunnies, once you have a few you just can’t stop from having even more. My instincts and life on the street tells me there will be more new listings after the Easter holiday. The real question is, will the Hoboken buyers come out of hiding and start making offers or are they still scared by the uncertainty in the market? There is no question that some properties out there are selling at numbers that even a short time ago would have been surprising. I’ll be posting the 1st Quarter 2010 results in a few days. Perhaps that will give us some better insight as to what is really going on.

I’ve noticed a few other interesting things lately. There has been some debate about Hoboken rent control. In fact, the Mile Square Taxpayers Association has filed a class action suit about it. Of course, any time rent control is even mentioned, tenants who enjoy rent control start crying over the loss of affordable housing. Does anyone know exactly what percentage of Hoboken housing units are subsidized, Section 8, or free market versus rent controlled? Another thing I have noticed is that every single new listing says “taxes under appeal”. The other day I read that Jersey City has to borrow $8 million to pay the successful tax appelants. So if everyone in Hoboken with high taxes appeals, won’t Hoboken have to borrow money or raise everyone’s taxes? The rent control and tax issues are intertwined. It seems that the buildings that pay the least in taxes (proportionally) are the 8 and 10 unit walk-up rental building filled with rent controlled units. The landords claim they can’t afford higher taxes because the rents won’t cover them. But the reason the rents won’t cover is because the units are rent controlled. Do the tenants have to meet any sort of income or asset test to be protected by rent control? Or is it like the old days in NYC when Mayor Koch lived in a rent controlled apartment for $441 a month which was worth $1,200 on the open market, much to the chagrin of many New Yorkers. Then there is the issue of whether landlords of rent controlled units have any motivation to improve their properties. The one thing I know for certain, this one isn’t over yet.

Here are this weeks numbers vs. a week’s ago numbers:

Studio & 1 Bedroom Hoboken Condos:

17 new listings.

232 total active – $378,283 average asking price. Average 78 DOM.

4 dabo. Average 48 DOM

5 sold. Average price $343,100. DOM 45.

14 price reductions.

Two Bedroom Hoboken Condos:

14 new listings

263 total listings. Average list price $572,520. Average 87 DOM.

5 dabo’d. Average 86 DOM.

6 sold. Average price $507,083 Average DOM 212.

23 price reductions.

Three Bedroom and Larger Hoboken Condos:

3 new listings

52 active listings. Average price $904,144. Average 100 DOM.

1 dabo’d. Average 86 DOM.

2 sold Average price $565,000. Average DOM 101.

8 price reductions.

Hoboken Condo Open Houses

If you are in the market for a Hoboken condo, our Hoboken Open House Google Map is your single best source for locating every open house in Hoboken. It’s posted on Friday every week. The info is updated weekly. If your google search seems to pull up an older version, click on the title link to get the most current map. Like this report, due to MLS regulations, to receive the map with the actual links, you will have to request it using the request form on the post. It only takes a second.

Want to Receive New Listings & Price Reductions Daily?

If you would like to be emailed the new listings and price reductions each weekday in either 1br, 2br or 3br categories just email us at [email protected] letting us know which size(s) you would like and we’ll add you to the daily email list.

A word about that – if you have an ongoing relationship with another agent we are not going to email you listings. You can ask your own agent to do that. So what is an ongoing relationship? Is that not up to you? Have you been working with another agent on a regular basis? More importantly, are you happy with that agent’s service? If so,we respect that relationship. If not, find an agent you like!

If you attend an open house or see several properties with several different agents, that’s not an ongoing relationship. That’s the nature of our job. Despite what some agents in town would like to have you believe, simply showing a buyer a single property, or even a few, does not a relationship make. You are the consumer – you get to decide with whom you wish to work. Unless you’ve signed a “buyers agency agreement”, which is highly unusual in Hoboken, an agent doesn’t have any “hold” over you. So find an agent you like, trust and whose advice you respect. It’s your money, no?

For more information you can always contact us at 201 993 9500.

Thanks for reading and, as always, we welcome your comments!

Posted by Lori Turoff | Currently 35 Comments »

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