Some neighborhood row house plantings on Morris Street, Paulus Hook Historic District, Downtown Jersey City.

Some neighborhood row house plantings on Essex Street, Paulus Hook Historic District, Downtown Jersey City.

This row house on Jersey Avenue near Hamilton Park which is currently under renovation transacted for $760,000 during the fourth quarter of 2007.

Vision Design & Development has several apartments available at the corner of Washington Street and Sussex Street in the Paulus Hook Historic District of Downtown Jersey City.  Five condominium units consisting of a 1980 sq. ft., 3 bedroom, 3 bath corner penthouse duplex , a 1530 sq. ft 2 bedroom, 2 1/2 bath duplex, a 930 sq. ft. two bedroom simplex, a 725 sq. ft. one bedroom simplex, and a 685 sq. ft. 1 bedroom garden unit. Units will feature central air/heat, exposed brick, wide-plank hardwood flooring, recessed lighting, stainless steel commercial-grade appliances, natural stone counter tops, washer/dryer, original fireplace, and restored original detail.

This 4 family row house on 8th Street near Hamilton Park transacted for just over $1,600,000 during the second quarter of 2008.

If you are trying to sell your house in the current real estate environment, then be prepared for buyer’s abuse, especially if you are trying to sell your house without using a realtor.  I have been trying to sell my house in NYS by owner (FSBO) in combination with using a flat fee listing service.  The flat fee listing service gets my property on the local multiple listing (mls) and requires me to pay a buyers/sellers commission.  I selected to pay 2.5% to the agent that brings me a buyer, however I really have no one representing me and this can make the process a bit harrowing.

Since March 2008 three buyers have throw me the same low ball all cash offer of $450,000.  In all cases I did not respond to these offers.  I had two other offers which were higher than the three all cash offers but they came with qualifying statements attempting to let me know that the buyers are in the driver’s seat.  One buyer made me an initial offer of $470,000 (not a bad first offer) however the offer came with the statement that he was making offers on three other houses simultaneously.  I perceived this statement to mean his offer was not negotiable, so I pleasantly wished him good luck in his search for a home.  I also received an offer of $465,000 which came with similar qualifying statements and I pleasantly declined without making a counteroffer.

Eventually I received a call from a real estate agent that had shown my house to her clients the previous day.  She said her clients were interested in two houses in my area and that her clients were more interested in the other house than in my house.  She requested that I make a lower offer than my asking price of $498,000.  She indicated that she knew her clients offer but could not disclose it.  So I requested that I get back to her the following morning, but she insisted that her clients needed to make a decision before 12 noon.  So I reluctantly got off the phone to discuss it with my wife.  My wife suggested that we drop the price to $490,000 but I decided unilaterally that I would drop the price to $480,000 in an attempt to conclude the transaction and move on with our lives.  I presented the offer to the realtor and she said that she would write up the paperwork, leading me to believe that my offer was below her client’s undisclosed offer.

Five hours later I get a call from the buyer’s agent and she presents me with an all cash offer of $450,000 closing in two weeks.  I was pissed, but I politely refused and hung up the phone.  The following day she called me requesting that I further bid against myself and reduce my asking price.  I again politely declined and several days later she presented me with a new offer of $470,000 with a 20% down payment. 

Well the abuse just kept coming from these latest buyers. On several occasions we had come to a meeting of the minds on price and terms, yet they just kept changing their minds and continued to drag out the process in an attempt (what I perceive) to wear me down.  Eventually after 5 weeks I dropped the price to $483,000 on the MLS and scheduled an open house for the weekend.  These buyers became very upset over my actions and nearly threatened to pull out of the deal (by the way they still had not signed the contract and put up the deposit).  This experience reminded me of an old relationship I had with a woman.  This woman had several affairs with other men while I kept attempting to accommodate her and preserve the relationship.  Finally I decide to act in my own best interests and she accused me of having ruined the relationship.

If you are about to sell your house be prepared for the rocks.  There are a lot of buyers running around just throwing rocks in an attempt to beat you lower and lower and lower.  At the same time you have to be realistic about the market.  Don’t put your house on the market and price it too high.  The fact that I am receiving offers is an indication that I am close to selling.  You may need to give someone a good deal but you don’t want someone to steal your property from you and you certainly would like to transact without the hurling rocks.

Long Island has many great communities and schools. The north shore is especially appealing with small water front towns and quaint town beaches untouched by commercialism.  Many towns connect to New York City by rail and the Long Island Rail Road is due to connect to Grand Central Station by 2013, ”East Side Access – Bringing Long Island Rail Road Into Grand Central Terminal”.  Currently the LIRR connects to Penn Station at 34th street.  Recent NY Times article about Huntington Long Island, ”The Heart and Soul of Suburbia”. 

Below: Caumsett State Historic Park in Lloyd Neck, Huntington LI.

This house near the train station in Huntington sits on a level ½ acre and is for sale.

Disclosure: A party associated with Rowhouser.com has an interest in the property described above.

Many of my friends with children will either travel to places like Atlantis in the Bahamas or Disney World in Florida, but living in an urban environment I need something a bit more remote and private, so I took my family to Caneel Bay Resort in St John’s, USVI.  I had been there before but this time I would be traveling with two toddlers.  Of course we missed our direct flight to St Thomas and had to take the next flight transferring in Miami, but American Airlines was pretty accommodating for just an additional $100.  In getting to the airport, forget about a car service and forget about long term parking.  With two toddlers you might as well pay the $30 a day for short term parking just for the convenience.  The resort was relatively accommodating.  As soon as I got to the front desk I told the attendant I needed a refrigerator in my suite with plenty of cold milk for my kids plus two strollers and a crib.  I had all this within the hour.

Caneel Bay.

Trunk Bay.

Maho Bay.

My daughter in Maho Bay.

Caneel Bay looking West.

Looking at St Thomas from Caneel Bay, St John’s, USVI during the day

Looking at St Thomas from Caneel Bay, St John’s, USVI at night.

Will we see more motorbikes in urban New York with rising fuel prices? Motorbikes are abundant in many European cities.  The sound of a motor scooter can give our urban neighborhoods a European feel and they conserve fuel, but sometimes they can be a nuisance parked on the sidewalk. ”The Vespa gets a tastes of the Big Apple”.

New York Times article in the Sunday Times, ”Hoboken Weathers the Market”.

New apartments to be marketed at the corner of Morris Street and Green Street, Downtown Jersey City, Paulus Hook Historic District, The Asprey House, 64 - 66 Morris Street.  Priced from the low $600,000’s to the mid $1,200,000’s.  From approximately 1050 square feet to over 1500 square feet, some with additional roof deck or garden space.  Contact the developer and/or sales office for specific information and a prospectus.

A reflection of the US dollar losing ground against other currencies.

Oil pastels of historic Jersey City.

New York Times article of interest about the Hudson-Bergen Light Rail, ”A Rail Line Generates New Life”.

This row house on 7th Street in Hoboken NJ has an interesting glazed brick facade with floor to ceiling windows.  The property is for sale through Hudson Place Realty Inc. for $1,400,000. The lot size is 16.67’ by 50’.  Below right is a picture of this property under construction during November of 2007.  Sign in window indicates Studio One Architects.