Around Burlington County

So how is the market these days?  That's a question I often hear from prospective buyers and sellers alike.  If you listen to the national media, most of the stories you hear are all doom and gloom.  You constantly hear about how hard it is to sell a home right now and how hard it's becoming for buyers to get a mortgage.  Are we in a tough market right now?  In one word...Yes!  But if you are motivated enough to buy or sell, it can happen!

At the end of the day, the biggest factor is price.  If the home is priced approprietly and aggresivley...it will sell!  Yes things have slowed down, but homes are still selling!

Compared to this time last year, home sales are down about 15%.  In 2006 at this time, almost 4,000 homes had been sold in Burlington County year to date.  So far this year, about 3,400 homes have sold.  I'll say it again, yes things have slowed down, but homes are still selling!

In Burlington County the average price continues to hover around $300,000.  This includes condos, townhomes and single family homes.  Of the homes that sold this year, they are on the market just under 3 months on average.  Of the homes that sold, they are selling at about 94% of listing price.  Again, this is a listing price that is priced approprietly and aggresivley.

Bottom line, if you are motivated to sell it can happen.  The days of pricing it higher to see what happens are gone.  Nothing will happen!  If priced properly with the right marketing plan, homes will continue to sell. 

For more information about Burlington County Real Estate please feel free to contact me.

Ravi Shah
Prudential Fox & Roach
856.914.4853

On Friday, August 3rd, a two-alarm fire spread through Moorestown Town Hall on West Second Street.  A majority of the building was damaged by fire and water which has caused Municipal Services to be relocated.  It is estimated that it will take six months to make the building usable again. 

Town offices are temporarily located in the Moorestown Library, which is across the parking lot on W. Second St. 

All council, Planning and Zoning board meetings will be held at the William Allen Middle School until further notice.  William Allen is located at 801 N. Stanwick Rd, near Bridgeboro Rd.     

If you have any questions about Moorestown, please feel free to contact me - a REALTOR® who has lived in town! 

After only being open a short time, it looks like the Quiznos sub shop in Delran has closed it's doors. 

The Quiznos was located in the Hartford Corners Shopping Center which is a relatively new center with major retail stores like Lowes Home Improvement, Shop Rite & Staples.  This is the second eatery to close it's doors this year.  Amazon Cafe went first several months ago. 

So does this spell trouble for small eateries in the area?  Subway is almost always empty whenever I drive by and the couple of times I've stopped in.  The Salad Works doesn't seem overly busy either. 

Hopefully this is not a trend that will continue!

~Ravi Shah, Delran Real Estate
Prudential Fox & Roach
856.914.4853

Alright, so you're from out of town and thinking of moving or visiting New Jersey.  One of the first things I recommend learning is how to navigate NJ roads.  Sounds easy enough right?  Not always! 

So you're cruising along down a main highway and want to make a left turn.  The only problem is that at every intersection you try to turn, you see signs saying No Left Turn.  What gives?  The first thing you need to know is that in many places you need to turn right if you want to go left!  What!?!?  That's right, welcome to New Jersey...we like to do things a little bit different!

Let me introduce the concept of a Jughandle.  Now jughandles do exist throughout the US...it just seems NJ has an overabundance of them!  In many towns, you can not make a left turn at an intersection.  So how do you go left?  Welcome to the jughandle! 

Here is a definition from Wikipedia:  A jughandle is a type of ramp or slip road that changes the way traffic turns left (when driving on the right). Instead of a standard left turn being made from the left lane, left-turning traffic uses a ramp on the right side of the road. In a standard forward jughandle or near-side jughandle, the ramp leaves before the intersection, and left-turning traffic turns left off it rather than the through road. Right turns are also made using the jughandle.

Sounds simple right! In summary...if you want to make a left turn, get in the right lane.  You'll see a sign indicating All Turns, Left Turn or U Turn and you'll take an exit ramp that circles around to get you through the intersection. 

Here is a graphic from Google Maps illustrating a jughandle on Rt. 130. 

And remember, if you're at an intersection with a jughandle, you will see a NO LEFT TURN sign in the left lane.  This does mean NO LEFT TURN!  Do not stop in the left lane thinking you'll make a left anyway!  The person behind you going in excess of 50 mph is not expecting anyone to stop at the intersection and will run into you!  Believe me, I've seen it happen!

Next time, I'll introduce you to the concept of circles!

If you're thinking of relocating to New Jersey...give me a call!  I'd be happy to show you around!

As some of you know, my wife and I recently rode in the American Cancer Society Bike-a-thon back in July.  It was my first event and I even had to go out and buy a new bike.  It was tough since I only had about 2 weeks to train before the ~60 mile ride.  I am happy to say though that we made it and raised money for a great cause.  So far, Team Lockheed has earned over $200,000!!   

Now it's time to put that bike to use again!  Coming in September is the Multiple Sclerosis City to Shore ride.  It's a 2 day event, 75 miles each way from Cherry Hill, NJ to Ocean City, NJ down at the shore.  My wife and I have joined up with Team Lockheed Martin again along with a couple of our neighbors.

If you will be in the Delaware Valley Region during the last weekend of September and interested in riding, let me know.  If you join with us you can receive a discount on the registration fee. 

If you're not riding...WE NEED YOUR SUPPORT!  Below is some information on MS and what happens with the funds raised.  If you're interested in sponsoring us, your financial support would be greatly appreciated.  You can make a donation online

Here is information on Multiple Sclerosis:

Every hour of every day another person receives the life changing diagnosis of multiple sclerosis. MS is a chronic disease of the central nervous system with no known cause or cure. Symptoms may include numbness, fatigue, paralysis or loss of vision.

For more than 50 years, the Greater Delaware Valley Chapter of the National MS Society has been at the forefront of providing help and hope through promising research. In fact, the Society has provided more than $500 million for research and is committed to raising an additional $32 million by 2010.

In addition to supporting ground breaking research, the money you raise allows people with MS to live more independently by providing:

• Information & Resource Center
• Home Care
• Physical/Occupational Therapy Programs
• Care Management
• Transportation
• Medical Equipment
• Personal Care Supplies
• Financial Assistance
• Employment Services

These services that empower people with MS would not be possible without the support of people like you.

Here it is...the July 2007 Moorestown Real Estate Update.  This past month, 30 homes sold with an average price of $551k.  In addition, 14 other homes went under contract.  What is interesting to note is that the number of homes being listed for sale has continually dropped the past 3 months.  As the summer heats up, looks like the amount of homes on the market is starting to inch downwards. 

On average, homes are on the market about 3 months before they sell.  In all, the average price for Moorestown continues to hover around the $600k mark.   

As of today, there are 179 homes currently for sale.  This ranges from the $200k cape to the multi million dollar mansion.  So if you are interested in living in Moorestown, you're sure to find a home regardless of your price range. 

Here is a snapshot of activity over the past 3 months:

If you have any questions about Moorestown, please feel free to contact me - a REALTOR® who has lived in town!  You can also Search Moorestown Homes for Sale at my website.

 --> Click for more information on Moorestown, including a picture tour

Based on information from Trend for the month of July 2007 on August 9 2007