2019-10-07 12:37
Morris County neighborhoods
are already boasting their traditional pre-Halloween decorations. Like ‘mums
and pumpkins, the appearance of mannequin goblins and ghosts is, after all, som… Read More
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Mary Menard is your source for all things related to New Jersey real estate. Read the latest news and tips when it comes to buying and selling a home in Morris County.
2019-09-30 14:47
If “downsizing” figures large as a goal many Morris
County homeowners are seriously considering, The Washington Post is now
citing a newer phenomenon that many older home b… Read More
2019-08-28 14:47
For Morris County neighbors who are curious
about how Labor Day got started, most of the readily available references seem
to hedge just a little. They have introductory lines like &ld&hell…Read More
2019-08-19 18:39
Oftentimes those lists naysaying common “myths”
about selling a house are actually addressing assumptions. If “myths” are
stories handed down through the genera… Read More
2019-08-12 12:53
As soon as you begin to
plan to sell your Morris County home, you’ll soon find one thing everyone
agrees upon: the need to de-clutter. But where to start? For any home that’s
bee… Read More
2019-06-17 17:45
It might seem that some actions
are perfectly obvious—and that among them are the many things you shouldn’t
do immediately before moving to a new Morris County home. Yet, as movi… Read More
2019-05-29 18:16
There aren’t a lot more
important aspects to selling a home than the Big One: pricing.
Pricing Morris County real
estate—setting an asking price that attracts a horde of qual… Read More
2019-04-29 12:23
One frequently
underestimated aspect of effective real estate marketing is memorability.
If you will be selling your
Morris County home anytime soon, once you’ve prepared for its p… Read More
2019-04-09 15:01
If your retirement planning includes
transitioning to a new home, one of the first orders of business will be to
settle on a reasonable budget for housing in retirement. The most relia… Read More
2019-03-11 16:26
This spring’s Morris County homes for sale
will, as always, highlight the special features that make them stand out. Just
which features those are for today’s buyers is wha… Read More
2019-03-05 18:50
If you have your sights set
on a brand spanking new Mountain Lakes house, the romance of a home that’s
witnessed the comings and goings of previous generations probably doesn’t c… Read More
2019-03-05 18:41
A couple of storylines
have dominated national real estate news outlets for more than a year. Morris
County homeowners who are less industry-focused have been hearing the same
thing fr… Read More
2019-02-18 14:53
Although the typical adult spends at least a fourth of
his or her income on Morris County real estate-related matters, many basic real
estate terms—even basic ones—aren’t w… Read More
2019-02-11 17:37
The numbers are in!
If you are among the local
homeowners counting the days until Morris County’s hot selling season begins,
unless your house is already in perfect showing shape, y… Read More
2019-02-07 20:37
Last Saturday investment commentator Rebecca Lake presented the kind of analysis that would warm the heart of Morris County rental property proponents. Her report appeared on the U.S. News w… Read More
2018-11-26 15:22
U.S. News and World Report may not be the primary source most homeowners turn to for Morris County real estate news flashes, but this month they have brought up some relevant insights regard… Read More
2018-11-12 20:36
Last week ended with such horrendous news in California that it was a blessed relief how in at least one narrow slice of the news—one of interest to Morris County house hunters, among… Read More
2018-11-06 19:39
Downsizing has gotten a lot of attention as Baby Boomers—many of whom have become empty-nesters—discover that they don’t need the space, expense, and elbow grease required… Read More
2018-09-24 19:07
Throughout the country, spring and summer are when the most serious house hunting takes place. Springtime is, after all, the season when it just feels right to undertake major initiatives&md&hell…Read More
2018-09-17 16:06
Prepping your Morris County house for sale can be a challenge or a pleasure—for the most part, that’s determined by how much attention you’ve been able to give the place in… Read More
2018-09-10 14:57
Mountain Lakes Schools are currently ranked #9 in New Jersey and #2 in Morris County! Read more…
https://www.niche.com/k12/d/mountain-lakes-school-district-nj/
The post Mountain… Read More
2018-09-05 15:42
Real estate is bugging 29 million Americans—and who can blame them? According to Realtor Magazine, more than 10% of U.S. adults say they are losing sleep worrying over residential issu… Read More
2018-08-27 14:23
It’s been quite a while since inflation was a subject that cropped up regularly in the news—yet it’s never ceased being a major factor affecting Morris County real estate w… Read More
2018-08-13 18:50
Last week, CNBC’s Jeff Brown came up with a report on how some investors are proactively countering “worries their nest egg will come up short.” That might sound familiar t… Read More
2018-07-30 19:40
If you’re keeping abreast of the latest Morris County real estate doings and you come across the word “surban”—that isn’t just some sloppy spelling. It’s… Read More
2018-07-23 18:42
For those who may have been wondering how the final GOP Tax Bill could affect possible real estate investment plans and tax liability next year, the changes can be significant.
I know, I kno… Read More
2018-07-02 19:55
For the most Morris County July 4th celebrants, the period between the last barbecued hot dog and the first firework (even if it’s only on TV) can drag on so long that it threatens the… Read More
2018-06-18 13:30
If anyone out there is looking for the most mediocre Morris County real estate agent to represent them, they are keeping it secret. Although people usually prefer not to behave in dull, pred… Read More
2018-05-22 19:00
It may sound paradoxical, but one proven way to sell your Morris County home is to make it boring…or at least, a little bit more boring.
The principle here stems from buyer psychology… Read More
2018-05-15 14:48
When is the best time for selling your Morris County house? Is there even a best time?
If the change in residence is triggered by some inflexible external factor (like a transfer at work), t… Read More
2018-04-30 17:06
Spring is Morris County’s prime selling season, which means that, in addition to the welcome appearance of springtime flowers, we can look forward to the seasonal crop of Morris County… Read More
2018-04-23 18:26
When it comes to figuring out how to begin up the path to homeownership, Morris County renters are left pretty much to their own devices. For the majority of first-time buyers who will use h… Read More
2018-04-16 15:05
When Equifax issues a warning specifically directed at online house hunting, Morris County real estate searchers (including readers right here) have ample reason to pay attention. You probab… Read More
2018-04-09 18:45
The majority of Morris County homeowners make most home furnishing decisions piecemeal rather than in a single remodeling blitz. Even when you move to a new home, for practical reasons most… Read More
2018-04-02 15:35
“Circumlocution” —the hefty word for “beating around the bush”—describes what the national real estate news feeds have been practicing for… Read More
2018-03-28 19:17
Morris County readers who perused The Washington Post’s “Real Estate” section recently found a most encouraging piece of information—particularly if they were among m… Read More
2018-03-20 15:26
Amazon—or, more precisely, the Amazon phenomenon—is bound to have an increasing impact on Morris County residential neighborhood preferences. The connection hasn’t yet been… Read More
2018-03-05 15:55
When Morris County homeowners sit down to plot out their household’s long-range financial plan, the value they ascribe to their Morris County home usually deserves a leading role. As r… Read More
2018-02-26 14:28
Many Morris County homeowners will be planning to list their properties this spring because it’s when future home sales would be expected to peak. Historically, at least, spring is whe… Read More
2018-02-12 20:23
If you’ve learned to skip past onscreen click-me’s with hyperlinks reading, “Top 10 Secrets” or “Best Kept Secrets of the Pros,” you can usually rest assu… Read More
2018-02-05 17:12
There’s no challenging that ancient fable about the boy who cried wolf—which boils down to a simple story about why false alarms turn into more than minor irritants when a real w… Read More
2018-01-29 21:18
You might think that when your house is in terrific shape, that’s all you need to guarantee a quick, successful sale. Just because it is located in a desirable Morris County neighborho… Read More
2018-01-22 15:46
Since buying a house in Morris Countys is rarely a spur-of-the-moment decision, the shrewdest way to use any lead time is to fortify your side of the coming transaction. After all, there wil… Read More
2018-01-15 14:42
We’ve all witnessed the remarkable rebound in real estate values—and last week, the scale of that recovery was the subject of a CNBC commentary. “A growing number of homeow… Read More
2018-01-08 16:07
Some predictions for New Year 2018 may be controversial, but one trend is beyond question: almost every sector of everyday life in Morris County will continue to be transformed—either… Read More
2018-01-02 15:55
Last week’s “Moneywatch” article on CBSNews.com was a surefire attention grabber. It promised to reveal a single “must do” tip for first-time homebuyers. The ma… Read More
2017-12-27 17:43
It’s irresistible: peering into the new year, trying to guess what the Morris County real estate landscape will look like in the coming 365 days. At the close of an outstanding 2017, a… Read More
2017-12-19 16:28
Because buying a home has long been a hallmark of success in America, whenever that possibility seems to weaken for the average Joe (or Josette), it comes as sobering news. Back in June, CNN… Read More
2017-12-11 15:14
Over the weekend, at the same time California’s Santa Ana winds were dealing chaos in the west, the premature arrival of winter weather was pounding the other side of the country compl… Read More
2017-12-04 15:57
For local homeowners whose Morris County homes will be up for sale in 2018, there’s bound to be some consternation regarding how much time, effort, and budget need be directed to the p… Read More
2017-11-27 18:03
Officially, it may not be winter in Morris County yet, but the end of November is more than a signal to turn to the last page in 2017’s calendar. It’s definitely time for Morris… Read More
2017-11-21 16:10
Whether you are investigating Morris County rental housing activity because you’re looking for an investment or just a place to rent yourself, it’s important to become informed a… Read More
2017-11-13 14:47
Every mortgage lender develops their own unique guidelines for evaluating the factors contained in a home loan application. These may change from time to time so that their portfolios stay … Read More
2017-11-06 16:12
It’s one of those Morris County documents most of us stash in a safe, out-of-the-way place—somewhere in the furthest recesses of a linen closet or at the back of a bureau drawer… Read More
2017-10-30 13:54
Hardly anyone decides to put their own Morris County house up for sale without wondering whether there wouldn’t be a better time to do so. There are a couple of different ways to look… Read More
2017-10-23 17:28
Morris County gardening enthusiasts already know this—but for those whose thumbs are anything but green, right now is a special time of year where landscaping is concerned. It’s… Read More
2017-10-16 14:52
Back when Morris County mortgage interest rates plummeted by 46% in less than four years, it precipitated a sort of refi tsunami. The volume of Morris County refinancings was nothing short o… Read More
2017-10-09 14:16
You don’t have to be holding a showing or open house to appreciate time-saving maintenance and organizational tips. Nowadays, many of these are being called “home hacks”&md&hell…Read More
2017-10-02 14:47
“Pet-Friendly” is a term that used to be confined to the Morris County Homes for Rent ads and a few open-minded hotel chains. Given the 84+ million American households which now… Read More
2017-09-25 18:48
Most Morris County small businesspeople will recognize this post-startup scenario. It’s the moment when the whole idea of long-range planning first starts to make sense.
Although every… Read More
2017-09-20 15:25
A couple of weeks back, the ultimate authority on Morris County mortgage rates hadn’t minced words. That was Freddie Mac, whose opinion about mortgage rates constitutes the final say i… Read More
2017-09-11 16:36
What a simpler world it would be if Morris County home buying could be reduced to anything like a simple 4-Step process. Even better if those were four easy steps. Actually, without actually… Read More
2017-09-05 14:14
A while back, Forbes noted what they called “The Four Ways the Real Estate Market Changes” after Labor Day. The article recognized a truism that holds for most parts of New Jerse… Read More
2017-08-21 16:06
When you have a firm timeline that governs when you’ll be selling your Morris County house, it’s one decision that’s made for you. Of course, it’s not always that eas… Read More
2017-08-14 19:17
Figuring out the perfect pricing for any Morris County home for sale would be easier if there were a way to confirm past instances that hit that mark precisely. But that can’t be done… Read More
2017-08-07 16:28
Selling your Morris County home is never something you do on a whim. There can be rare situations when the decision to sell is a sudden one that’s forced by unexpected life circumstanc… Read More
2017-08-01 19:45
Mortgage rates in Morris County remained mostly steady this past month, at least partially due to the predictable July-August doldrum effect. When the summertime vacation schedules of Washin… Read More
2017-07-24 14:34
When the Morris County weather turns sizzling, you might think that house showings might go better by holding off for milder weather. After all, as the mercury rises, energy levels tend to w… Read More
2017-07-17 14:55
The content the National Association of Realtors® publishes is usually staid and non-controversial. After all, what they put out there has to ring true for the real estate industry in ev… Read More
2017-07-10 15:19
An overstuffed curbside mailbox, blazing porch light at noon, or a pile of newspapers out there by your front door all indicate a couple of things Morris County homeowners would do well to a… Read More
2017-07-03 16:00
All of a sudden last month Morris County readers might have come across a number of new articles dealing with the same topic: the problem young first time home buyers are encountering due to… Read More
2017-06-19 13:49
Last week, following the Fed’s hike in the rates they charge banks, you might expect a matching rise in mortgage rates for Morris County home buyers and refi applicants. If the experts… Read More
2017-06-12 18:44
Not everyone who is looking at the homes for sale in Morris County needs to come up with a winner right away. If their own house has just been listed, they may reasonably estimate that it wi… Read More
2017-06-05 14:22
The science of pricing a house in Morris County isn’t really a science.
The thing about science that makes it reliable is that its findings can be confirmed experimentally. If Galileo… Read More
2017-05-30 15:07
As summer approaches, Morris County homeowners may also recall the challenge of retaining a reasonably comfortable home environment during the inevitable spells of hot weather. Everyone has… Read More
2017-05-22 19:30
I think you’ll agree that the relationship between avocados and dream homes has been elusive for a long time. In fact, any connection between the delicious green fruit (it’s not… Read More
2017-05-16 16:09
If you’re a typical Morris County consumer, like most New Jersey residents, it wasn’t too long ago that you were being constantly bombarded by offers to let you in on a secret: y… Read More
2017-05-01 20:01
Selling your Morris County home takes marketing, of course. Highlighting its features—the specific details that the Morris County MLS lists for every property—is only the beginni… Read More
2017-04-24 17:24
It usually takes at least some digging to come up with relevant news for Morris County real estate watchers. Last week provided an exception.
The boldest headlines, cable TV info crawls, and… Read More
2017-04-17 20:35
Morris County real estate—like all real estate—is a supremely local activity. Area homeowners who like to keep an eye on New Jersey and national trends do so because some of them… Read More
2017-04-10 14:17
Showings—whether here in Morris County or anywhere else—can succeed or fail as a result of quite minor details. Appreciating that fact isn’t hard to do when you relate show… Read More
2017-04-03 13:46
While much attention is directed at the phalanx of youthful first-time homebuyers, the Millennials and GenXers aren’t the only groups who are having a substantial influence on th… Read More
2017-03-27 14:22
Morris County house sales do usually respond in the seasonal pattern that is familiar in most other areas. Spring and summer lead the way for weather-related, financial, school scheduling an… Read More
2017-03-20 18:36
The attachment we build to the places where we live is an easy-to-understand human emotion. Almost everyone who has ever moved away from a family home has experienced a sense of loss that ca… Read More
2017-03-13 13:45
Time Magazine ended last week with a commentary that could foreshadow how this year’s Morris County housing market might differ from years past. Author Bill Saporito identified a misma… Read More
2017-03-07 21:20
Keeping an eye on Morris County mortgage rates is a useful pastime for anyone who tracks local home sales because of the immediate effect they have on affordability. It can’t get much… Read More
2017-02-27 19:11
Without knowing it, many people develop something akin to a split personality when it comes to buying a home. In the beginning, as they pursue their ideal Morris County house, they automatic… Read More
2017-02-20 15:32
Buying a home as a place to live certainly has important financial implications, but they are only part of an equation that has major lifestyle implications. A given house may be a really te… Read More
2017-02-14 15:07
When even severely draught-ridden California neighborhoods are having trouble coming up for air, you know that 2017 is turning out to be one of those winters. Punxsutawney Phil only confirme… Read More
2017-02-06 15:08
When you first contemplate packing and moving, it’s advisable to take a deep breath first, then close your eyes and mentally recall the best, most positive moments from past moves.
Oka… Read More
2017-01-30 15:19
To end the suspense, the answer to the title question about when is the optimal time to buy a home in Morris County has been officially answered. The answer is, more or less, “now.&rdq&hell…Read More
2017-01-23 18:54
If this is going to be a year of upsets, the rules for when Morris County listings are best initiated might be primed to fly out the window. There’s no guarantee that 2017’s Morr… Read More
2017-01-16 15:34
For more than a year, it’s been the happy trend across the nation for the average DOM (days on market) for residential properties to have been declining. It’s a “speed of s… Read More
2017-01-09 18:33
When, as the holiday lyrics have it, “the weather outside is frightful,” that makes it a good time to start planning the coming year’s home improvement projects. If you wai… Read More
2017-01-03 15:07
It’s that time again: the annual look at whether there is a convincing consensus among real estate experts for what to expect in the coming year. Morris County homeowners and potential… Read More
2016-12-27 19:52
If you are like most Morris County homeowners, this is not the time of year you relish thinking about next year’s April 15 tap on the shoulder from Uncle Sam. Nonetheless, the calendar… Read More
2016-12-19 21:29
The holiday season surely makes for a neat package: wrapping up the whole year in a sort of satisfying finale. Whether it’s your Christmas or Hanukkah, Kwanzaa or any other holiday you… Read More
2016-12-12 17:54
Most of us favor a high degree of predictability when it comes to things like the interest rates on mortgages. In that realm, “poised” is a bad word. When anything is poised, it… Read More
2016-12-06 14:38
If you listen to the Chairman of the Index Committee at Standard & Poors-Dow Jones, the nation’s housing market has reached an important milestone—one likely to be appreciate… Read More
2016-11-29 14:53
Last week, when Morris County mortgage rates began to rise abruptly, you’d have to say that it was actually a double-barreled surprise. In addition to the sudden blip up on the mortgag… Read More
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