On the Road Again ... from Ocean City (NJ) to California This is my 3rd posting about our trip to California to see our son and his wife for the holidays.  And if you have viewed the other postings, we are driving out my father's 2004  Chevy Sedan to give to them.  "See the USA in your Chevrolet ... America is the greatest land I know" as song by Diana Shore year's ago. Well, we stopped about a half hour past Knoxville, Tennessee last evening about 6:30 PM.  We drove forever yesterday and covered over 1,000 miles.  We got started at 4:30 AM because the first three days are the long milage ones in our effort to get to Santa Fe where we want to stop for three nights.  We enjoyed the Route #81 through Virginia as mentioned in the last posting, but all the way to Knoxville ((TN).  Our first... 12/11/2009

Our 1st Day out ... as we drive to California ... from Ocean City, New Jersey So we got up and out by 4:30 AM this morning (Thursday), and I'm typing away on my "HP Mini" wireless which is working great.  I have checked my emails, answered several phone calls, and more ... plus I drove the first four hours.  Our goal today (by the way, please reference my posting on Wednesday so that you know what we are doing) ... this is our second posting regarding the trip ... is to put on milage.  We could have stopped at Roanoke (VA), but with the beautiful day, sunshine, the rolling hills of Virginia, and my wife, Leslie driving her 3rd hour ... we are going to make it to Tennessee tonight.  We liked the Route 66 and 81 through the northern Virginia area ... very rural after about 10 miles out of... 12/10/2009

Taking My Father's Chevy to California ... Leaving Ocean City, NJ on Thursday 12/10/2009   I plan to do some postings on the road as my wife, Leslie, and I start our automobile adventure driving cross country in "Scoop's 2004 Chevrolet 4-Door Sedan," which I plan to give to our son, Nick, and his wife, Cori who live in Novato, California ... about a 30-40 minute drive from San Francisco. We inherited the automobile when my father passed away, and we kept the car in Lancaster County ... but after selling that property, we had three cars.  And our son and his wife had only one ... although they often use public transportation.  So we decided to drive out at what is often a slow time of the year for a realtor in a resort community along the Jersey Shore. But as the old saying goes, when th... 12/09/2009

Another rainy weekend at the shore ... the Jersey Shore ... Ocean City, New Jersey   A rainy December weekend is always a bit better than a snowy one.  Well we can often go through the entire winter without one of the latter.  And often it can be a bit warmer here on the barrier island just next to Atlantic City called Ocean City.  At the same time, when it rains, you can get a chill that goes to the bone as you walk around the island on a rainy day in winter.   It's been a fairly busy Saturday for me here in the office ... the phones aren't ringing and the people aren't arriving.  However, I've been waiting for communication regarding two different sale properties.  I represent the Seller in one with his property/my listing receiving a contract and now a counter from the Seller.  I rep... 12/05/2009

Summer Rentals In the Northend & Gardens in Ocean City, New Jersey   We are closing in on the end of the calendar year, but we are only 175 away from Memorial Day ... and the start of the 2010 Summer Rental Season.  That's right here in Ocean City, New Jersey ... a short half hour from the casinos in Atlantic City, within another 30-40 minutes of Cape May, and a short hop from almost anywhere in South Jersey.   Check out our summer rental web-site at www.FrenchRentals.com ... you can review a wide variety of rental locations including single family, small 1920-30s cottages, large multi-units, condominiums of all sizes, and beachfront locations too.  We, French Real Estate, happens to be located in the northern part of the island so we run from about Sixth Street through to the Longport ... 11/29/2009

2009 Beaujolais Nouveau ... arrives in Ocean City, New Jersey   If you happen to be a wine drinker, you probably know about "Beaujolais Nouveau;" and for those who do not ... this is the first wine from the gathering of the grapes in France at the end of the growing season.  The last three years have been good in terms of taste:  just-picked fruit that is food-friendly.  The price of these bottles range from about $8 to $14 with a number of choices.  Because they always come out at this time of year, right before Thanksgiving, many choose to add it to their wines for Thanksgiving.  Other have a party just enjoying the new wine at this time of year.  This should be a quick tasting of the 2009 ... buy it now, drink it before the new year. For a long time this was quite an activity with "B... 11/28/2009

UP TIME ... at French Real Estate in Ocean City, New Jersey   I'm a sales and rental real estate agent in Ocean City, New Jersey in the northern part of the island ... that area identified on the maps as "the Northend" and "the Gardens."  Let me tell you just a little more about this interesting section of Ocean City (NJ) ... it starts at Sixth Street and runs to the end of the island where you leave via the Longport Bridge.  It is one of the widest part of the island which means you have Bay Avenue on the west side and a "900" block of many streets.  Going on, Atlantic Avenue which starts at North Street runs only to 9th Street, Ocean Avenue again starting at North runs only to 16th Street.  One more, Central Avenue again starting at North is about an 7-to-8 minute walk to the beach is... 11/28/2009

The Day after Thanksgiving ... A Great Time to Buy a Property ... in Ocean City, NJ  08226   The real estate market slowed down quite a bit during the "fall buying period.  And we now find ourselves in the post-buying period leading into the December holidays.  So you may ask:  "when is the best time to buy?"  Mostly, if you come down to Ocean City, New Jersey right now from the close of the Thanksgiving weekend to the middle-to-late February; you are in one of the very "great times to buy."  Why?  No competition out there during this time frame.   So if you receive my weekly BEACH NOTES newsletter for "Owners and Buyers," or the monthly one for "Rental Tenants;" you will find me saying that we have now entered "one of the best buying periods of the year ... which means the end of 2009 ... 11/27/2009

Listing Log Update ... from Ocean City, New Jersey   For years I have used the wording, Listing Log Update as the message sent to my owners who have listed property with me.  I have found the wording to be useful and my format tends to provide them with a quite regular review of showings, property adjustments in the same location and price range, etc.  Generally, I have drafted a full page regarding the present real estate market here in Ocean City, sometimes going into detail on sale listings and/or recent sold/pending property or even sold  property to a certain date in the calendar year comparing it with past years.   All of these details and extended information has been designed to provide the owner with more knowledge about his/her property and what has been happening in our marke... 11/23/2009

LOOKING BACK ... LOOKING FORWARD ... from Ocean City, New Jersey   Part 4   During the last three postings we reviewed what has been happening to real estate in Ocean City in 2009.  We looked back to past year stats, and we also highlighted the unique spring and fall buying periods in Ocean City's schedule with the summer rental season. We will now look at some obstacles of a general and particular nature to help us think about the next buying period.  Mortgage rates and the process of obtaining a mortgage are two factors that must be carefully considered here.  Will rates stay the same in 2010.  Will the process get any easier ... i.e. will they make it work a bit smoother for some of the buyers on the fringe. Have we been having more difficulty because we are a resort community, an in... 11/19/2009

LOOKING BACK ... LOOKING FORWARD from Ocean City, New Jersey   Part 3 ... The first two parts reviewed my reasoning for thinking about real estate by going back into past years and also by planning ahead for the next year.  I also covered some of the recent 10-year "sold property" history here in Ocean City, New Jersey.   Let's take a look forward into 2010.  In Ocean City we have returned to a two-part focus in terms of sales ... the spring buying period which covers late February through early June ... our most extensive sales effort of the year, and the fall buying period which covers September through late November ... our second major effort following the busy summer rental season. Obviously, you can also see that we have two less attractive time frames ... the holiday month of Dec... 11/18/2009

LOKING BACK ... LOOKING FORWARD ... from Ocean City, New Jersey In Part 1 (11/16/2009) I mentioned that at this time of year I start to analyze 2009 by reflecting back and forward as well.  I also talked about looking at real estate from a local perspective even though national economic news can impact on all areas as it has done since October, 2008.  I also mentioned that many people tend to generalize real estate in terms of a national perspective instead of so many smaller units like our own area, Ocean City (NJ). Part 2   In order to understand almost anything one must reflect on "the history of things."  In our case, that means taking a careful look back to reflect on the "sold property" market through the past 10 years.  Why should we do this?  Because this may tend to provide us ... 11/17/2009

LOOKING BACK ... LOOKING FORWARD ... from Ocean City, New Jersey Part 1   About this time during the calendar year in a resort community like Ocean City, even though the "Indian Summer" that often arrives in late September or early October has arrived later in November this year, I find myself thinking about the business year in real estate:  how I have done, the agency, and the overall stats across our barrier island.  I also begin to think about the coming year as well:  will it be the same, better, worse.  As I do this, I also reflect on the bigger picture across Cape May County, the state of New Jersey, and the United States as a whole. It always amazes me when anyone talks about real estate that they inject "a sort of national perspective" into the whole thing.  Clearly, the past f... 11/16/2009

Resort Real Estate and the differences from "real world" real estate ... in Ocean City, New Jersey   We "resort realtors" know we're a bit different ... with many of us along the coastal locations next to oceans, or in the mountains at the ski areas, or along lake locations all over the place, or in other warm and cold areas that tend to attract seasonal people.  Wherever the resort, you will find resort realtors.  And there is an obvious difference in what they do, where they do it, etc. This is particularly true in "South Jersey coastal communities along the Atlantic Ocean.  Most of our property owners live one, two, three, or more hours from our location here in Ocean City, New Jersey.  Weather is always the major area of concern for owners, more so when they are not here at the time... 11/14/2009

Rain, Wind, High Waves, Shore Erosion ... in Ocean City, New Jersey   It's that time of year where a spin-off of the Gulf storm heads up the coast providing South Jersey with another weather incident.  Now when you come from northern Lancaster County in 3-Mile Island territory you always carefully try to understand the meaning of "incident."  In our case, it may not be "as serious, but it can be "very serious."  Overall, weather is always the critical ingredient on a barrier island.  So my first recommendation for potential buyers here in Ocean City, New Jersey would be to always try to visit your perspective property at some point during the rain.  Water has a funny way of accumulating in many different locations throughout the community.  Knowing about this is an important aspect of b... 11/12/2009

2010 Rentals in the Northend & Gardens ... Ocean City, New Jersey   The rental process in a resort community such as Ocean City, New Jersey is a continuing one throughout the calendar year.  So from about Labor Day each calendar year we have two different years in action ... the concluding shoulder season and holiday periods in the present year as well as the beginning of summer rentals in the next year. Part of the rental process during the late summer months involves obtaining "rental rates" from owners for the next calendar year.  Mostly, we find that the rental properties and rates are up and running by September or October in most agencies.  As a smaller office agency in Ocean City, New Jersey; we tend to focus the majority of our rental efforts in the Northend and Gardens ... that... 11/11/2009

Condominium Sale Listings in the Northend and Gardens in Ocean City, New Jersey   As of this posting, we find 139 of the 718 total condominium sale listings throughout Ocean City in the Northend and Gardens.  That represents about 19% of the listings in our particular area from "north of Sixth Street to the end of the island. It certainly represents quite a diverse grouping of condo listings ... although one will not find a single efficiency and only five 1BR units in the mix.  Let's review the numbers in more detail:  3 under $200,000, 9 more under $300,000, and 13 additional ones under $350,000.  Of the first 25 listed condominiums, only one is to be found in the Gardens.  We find an additional 14 more under $400,000 and 13 more under $450,000 ... again only 2 additional units in the ... 11/07/2009

Looking for a Single Family in the Northend or Gardens ... in Ocean City, New Jersey   If you are a dedicated reading of my blog postings, you are truly an amazing person.  Thank you.  But continuing on, you might realize that I have been talking "a bit de'negative" in my last few postings.  I've been saying that it is not the end of the "South Jersey Shore Revival," but it does appear to be knocking off a bit early here in November, even before Thanksgiving.  I'm no longer going to try to explain it ... why ... I have no real concrete answers. But I do have some interesting single family stats that might be useful for any buyer out there trying to find a single family right now.  There are 97 single family sale listings in the Northend and Gardens as of this posting date ... 33 of them... 11/06/2009

Sale Listings in Ocean City, New Jersey   In our first full week of November, 2009 we find the following number of sale listings:  (1) Throughout Ocean City - 1,034 listings ... (Singles) - 244, (Multi-Units) - 72, (Condominiums) - 718.  Looking back for a three year period, we find the following:  in 2008 - 1,006 sale listings, in 2007 - 1,156 sale listings, and in 2006 - 1,389 sale listings.  Clearly, the 2008 and 2009 years have a similar number as compared to the 2006 and 2007 years.  Having a lower sale listing inventory is certainly a positive step ... obviously, we are not where we want to be as yet, but we are moving in the right direction. Looking just in the Northend and Gardens, that area from north of 6th Street to the end of the island at the Longport Bridge, we find (2) No... 11/06/2009

Must Make a Decision on a new "Smart Phone" ... need some assistance ... from Ocean City, New Jersey   I've been a "Palm Pilot" guy for some time ... starting out with the palm as a unit for contacts and calendar items in the beginning, later with the first palm phone moving into that with internet use as well.  I'm now wrapping up my second year with the "Treo."  There is a new Palm phone ... the "Prelude," I think; but Verizon has not brought it out on the market as yet.  I've looked at some of the Blackberry phones ... and I have my eye on an I-Phone, but it would mean that I must change services. What do I do?  Well, I ask for feedback from some of my readers first.  My basic needs are to have a ready source to receive phone calls or the occasional text message from my real estate c... 11/05/2009