April Showers Bring Home Buyers

With New Jersey finally warming up, home buyers are slowly becoming more active in participating in the Ocean County housing market. April’s bizarre weather may have slowed down some of the activity, but persistent home buyers are motivated and improving the market from last year.

The Single Family Home market saw an 11.5% increase in the number of new listings, going from 1,199 new listings in April of 2014 to 1,337 in April of 2015. Single family homes saw a 2.4% increase in the number of closed sales, from 419 closed sales in April 2014 to 429 in April 2015. Townhouse-condos saw a 32.4% increase in the number of new listings, from 145 in April 2014 to 192 in April 2015. Closed sales for townhouse-condos decreased 11.3%, from 62 in April 2014 to 55 last April. Adult communities also saw a rise in the number of new listings—in April of 2014, there were 506 new listings, while April of 2015 saw 549 new listings. Adult communities had 237 closed sales in April 2014 and 204 in April of 2015, resulting in a 13.9% decrease. The total market saw a 12.5% increase in the number of new listings, from 1,923 new listings to 2,163. Closed sales for the total market increased 18.4%, from 817 in April 2014 to 967 in April 2015.

Single family home sellers reported receiving 95.2% of the original asking price after an average of 108 days on the market. Townhouse-condo sellers, after an average of 98 days on the market, reported receiving 95.8% of the original asking price. After an average of 82 days on the market, adult community home sellers received 95.6% of the original asking price. The total market reported receiving 95.1% of the original asking price after an average of 100 days on the market.

For more information, visit www.oceancountyrealtors.org.