Phyllis Maffucci
Sales Associate / Summer Rental Specialist
The John C. Conover Agency
732-259-8985 cell
732-897-9200 office
phyllis@conovernj.com
711 Sewall Ave, Asbury Park
2 Family
$309,000
1227 Asbury Ave, Asbury Park
Mixed Use
$198,999
412 Sewall Ave, Asbury Park
Summer Rental
$15,000/month
283 Lenox Ave, Long Branch
Summer Rental
$50,000/season
In the National Association of Realtors Magazine, known to industry professionals as RealtorMag, a recent article by the same title talked about 9 Neighborhood features that can hamper a home’s value. Here’s how the article reads:
Certain neighborhood features near a home – like cemeteries and power plants – could drag down a home’s price. Realtor.com recently identified which of those features could make the biggest impact. To calculate, realtor.com analyzed home prices and appreciation rates in ZIP codes of the 100 largest metro areas across the country where a specific so-called “drag-me-down facility” – such as power plants or a homeless shelter – was present.
Realtor.com’s research team then calculated the potential discount by comparing the median home price of the ZIP codes with the facility with the median price for all homes in the same country. The following neighborhood features emerged as the ones that could potentially drag down home values by the greatest amounts.
- Bad School – down by 22.2%
- Strip Club – down by 14.7%
- High renter concentration – down by 13.8%
- Homeless shelter – down by 12.7%
- Cemetery – down by 12.3%
- Funeral Home – down by 6.5%
- Power plant – down by 5.3%
- Shooting range – down by 3.7%
- Hospital – down by 3.2%
Source: “The Neighborhood Features That Drag Down Your Home Value – Ranked,” realtor.com® (March 28, 2016)
If you read the posts that follow the article you will see that readers were more than happy to share some of their own, such as; near a freeway or major highway, train tracks, an airport, a chemical plant, recycling/trash center, water tower, high tension wires, sewage processing plant and a flood zone… Good call readers!
Now I’ll add a few of my own; a house on a busy corner or main thoroughfare, or a house that faces on-coming traffic because it meets the end of an adjacent street. In Edison, the town where I grew up, there was a house whose driveway matched up with a road that came to a T and you could only make a left or right when you got to the end. On a dark evening, if you didn’t know the neighborhood, your car could end up in their garage. Finally, the homeowners got so tired of pulling cars out of their garage door they moved the driveway to the other side of the property and put up a wall of railroad ties where the old driveway used to be. Problem solved.
There are many factors that can reduce the value of a home; including bad neighbors that weren’t there when you bought the house. Buying the right home is tricky, but it’s also about buying in the right town. Features that may be a drawback for some people can be a plus for others. How? Because it allows a buyer to purchase a home in a town they might not otherwise afford to, or buy a bigger home than they could afford if it were in a different location. Just like finding your not-so-perfect mate, you can find the not-so-perfect home and be very happy. It may not be perfect, but it’s perfect for You!
Here are some key factors to remember when buying a home in a less then desirable location. First, make sure you don’t over pay for the home. Even in a sellers market, reduce your offer by double or even triple the diminished value percentages listed above.
Second, watch the growth of your neighborhood and your community in general. Towns can change rapidly when something new like a hospital, hotel, or transportation center is built even if they’re not close by. When there’s several new home developments popping up it means your town is about to explode, wait a year or two, then stick a for sale sign on the front lawn, it’s done. In other words, strike while the iron’s hot. If your town is the new trendy place to be, people will want your house regardless. When your town starts to look like it’s busting at the seams, you’ve probably waited too long.
Third, don’t overdo the improvements; make it comfortable and beautiful, moderately. If you redo your kitchen and bath with expensive marble or granite, it may end up in a dumpster when they knock down your house to build a strip mall, or it becomes commercial office space. Always plan for the future when making any investment and having a 4 or 5 year selling plan is not only wise, it’s a necessity when buying a home with a deficit. On the other hand, if you purchase your home with the intention of being there in your retirement years, then the only thing that matters… is that you love it.
Regards,
