Hudson County real estate bouncing back
Good volume of sales reported Hoboken is 'hot'

Wednesday, March 09, 2011
By ROSE DUGER
JOURNAL CORRESPONDENT

Residential real estate sales are starting to pick up along the Jersey City waterfront and in Hoboken, according to Hudson experts who monitor activity throughout the county.

While sales in Hudson County were down 5 percent last year, "things are selling," according to Joseph Hottendorf, executive vice president of the Liberty Board of Realtors, an organization that includes Realtors from throughout the county, from Bayonne and Jersey City to Hoboken, North Hudson and West Hudson. The organization also includes Realtors from Bergen, Essex and Passaic counties.

While the nation's sluggish real estate market has affected Hudson, portions of the county appear to be on a slow rebound, Hottendorf said.

Some areas have been hit hard by short sales, but others - including Downtown Jersey City, Hoboken, Bayonne and Secaucus - have seen very few short sales, he added.

"Considering how bad the economy has been the past two years, Hudson County as a whole has been pretty good," Hottendorf said. "Things are selling. The amount of sales were down 5 percent last year, but that's not a major drop in sales. There's a nice volume of property being sold."

Jane Estes, an owner and broker of record at Empire Realty Group, LLC, in Hoboken has also seen promising signs in the Mile Square City. She cited statistics showing that the amount of time residential units were on the market there dropped from 9.55 months in January to 6.77 months in February. That trend signals a rise in sales, particularly among one- and two-bedroom units, she said.

"I think we're getting into a spring market," said Estes, whose agency handles properties in Jersey City, Union City, Weehawken, and North Bergen, in addition to Hoboken. "We're finding that things are going under contract, at least in the one- and two-bedroom realm in Hoboken. People are, I think, taking advantage of the interest rates while they're still low."

Estes said she has also noticed a trend by Hoboken families to remain in the city and seek out larger, three-bedroom units or brownstones, rather than move to the suburbs when they have children. She credits a wider variety of school choices and services available in the Mile Square City as the reason for this change in attitude.

"I think Hoboken is still very unique. It's still hot," Estes said. "People can possibly find more space in the outer areas, but if they want all of the benefits of the city and transportation, you can't find that outside of Hoboken."

For sellers in today's market, the key is pricing your property competitively, Lawrence Perlaki, broker of record at Joseph A. Del Forno Inc. of Jersey City, said.

Perlaki has also seen that properties near the waterfront and PATH stations are selling more, but he noted that those priced reasonably are the ones gaining attention.

"The market has been down," Perlaki said. "Things are selling where the sellers are being realistic and understanding the market. The properties priced lowest are getting some attention. People are looking at everything on the market."