If you are among this August's consumers who are actively shopping for a home for sale in Millville, you have probably already taken a look at the Millville listings and most likely jotted down some addresses you’d like to examine in detail. Then, if you find yourself in the happy situation of finding more than one Millville home for sale that passes your first in-person tour visit, the tough question arises about how to pick between two or more quality homes. Should you depend upon your emotional leanings—even if a few practical details seem to point you in the opposite direction? Or should you simply let price be the determining factor? Or is there some other criterion the most experienced house hunters rely on?
Of all the factors that could go into that decision, truthfully, pointing out which are the most important is always a subjective exercise (all except for one I’ll bring up last). Here are some of the most useful ones:
o Compare the neighborhoods, and take a close look the adjacent streets. Drive by the properties at different times of the day and at least once on a weekend. See how the neighbors keep their homes. Neglected lawns (or bars on too many windows) are not signs you may want to ignore—just as uniformly well-kept landscaping should count on the positive side.
o Next visit to the candidates, do a consciously thorough walk-over. Pace the perimeter of the home and lot. Look for fencing issues you might need to address, or even how intrusive neighbors’ windows might be. Check for signs of water pooling anywhere on the lot with an eye to whether drainage problems could become an issue when the rains come.
o If there is another home for sale on the street, drive the immediate area looking for more. If there is more than one home for sale, check the web to see if there are too many—or enough that it indicates that values are in flux. If it appears there are many—but no reason other than chance—it could be a good sign that your offer will be very welcome!
What is that less subjective factor (the one I said I’d bring up last)? It’s one that calls for becoming more skeptical than you really are: one that has you pretending to be a member of the public at large who doesn’t feel particularly drawn to either of the homes for sale you are comparing.
Put yourself into that mindset—then judge which of the homes will be easier to sell in a future where you have decided to move on. Deep-six your idiosyncratic leanings, and concentrate on elements that the majority of people would agree are those that add or subtract resale value. Experienced house hunters have bought and sold often enough that they are keenly aware of how much easier it is to sell a home that has universal appeal—even over one that’s more personally attractive. Keeping aware of the personal factors that may make you comfortable but which could adversely affect resaleability will help you determine a property’s future value to others (and, many would argue, that is the real value!)…
This summer, we’re fortunate to have a market that offers many Millville homes for sale offering exceptional value. I hope you’ll give me a call to help find your family’s next home! Call/Text me Russell Stucki at (302) 228-7871, email me at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., visit more listings at www.beachrealestatemarket.com.

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Written by Russell Stucki

Published: 14 July 2015

Created: 14 July 2015

Last Updated: 12 July 2017

Suppose you are a Millville homeowner who intends to move to a different home eventually, but for the moment, you aren’t under any particular deadline pressure that would dictate when you have to put your home on the market. In that case, you’re likely to keep tabs on overall market conditions, awaiting what looks like circumstances favor those with homes for sale.
Twice a year, the National Association of Realtors® issues their economists’ midyear forecast—it appeared last week. For those with homes for sale in Millville (or anyone thinking about adding theirs to the homes already for sale), the outlook was heartening.
The forecast was for the greater U.S. economy to improve, bouncing back from the weather-blasted winter stall which made the first quarter a disappointment. Subsequently, consumer spending opened up, causing expectation that the GDP would rise in the remainder of the year. Overall, the forecast for 2015 was positive, though lukewarm. As a whole, the year promises to be “not bad but not great.”
On the other hand, focusing narrowly on the outlook for U.S. housing market activity—homes for sale—the upside momentum was already decidedly more in evidence. The prospects for any single one of the Millville homes for sale depend upon a combination of factors, but if national activity is any reflection, the latest numbers packed what you could call a “6-7-8-9 punch”:
· Existing home sales in May notched a high water mark not seen in 6 years (and the 2009 level had been artificially inflated because of an $8,000 homebuyer tax credit).
· New home sales hit the highest level in 7 years.
· Housing permits to build new homes registered an 8 year high.
· Pending contracts to buy existing homes for sale reached a 9 year high.
Examining the demographics behind the figures, it was clear that, for the first time in quite a while, first-time buyers are back. Last year during the same period, only 27% of buyers were first-timers. They now make up a more normal 32%. As prices brought by homes for sale continued to rebound, institutional investors were disappearing from the scene, creating a more typical mix of buyers.
A major part of the reason why homes for sale were fetching “stronger than normal home price growth” had to do with a shortage of inventory—ascribed to the volume of new homes being built (or not being built). The rule of thumb is generally for about 1.5 million new homes to be constructed per year, a mark that’s failed to be realized for a number of years. In 2009, only 550,000 home were built—and the total had barely reached a million through last year. But now, with optimism among homebuilders at newly robust levels, it’s expected that normal output will have fully resumed by 2017.
The other major factor boosting sale prices was the specter of mortgage rate increases. Rising mortgage rates “initially rush buyers to decide”—just the kind of sign that could tip the scales for a homeowner who’s been waiting to add their property to the homes for sale in Millville. Should you decide that this summer is shaping up to have just the conditions you’ve been waiting for, I hope you’ll give me a call for a no-obligation consultation! Call/Text me Russell Stucki at (302) 228-7871, email me at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., visit more listings at www.beachrealestatemarket.com.

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Written by Russell Stucki

Published: 06 July 2015

Created: 06 July 2015

Last Updated: 12 July 2017

Suppose you are a Millville homeowner who intends to move to a different home eventually, but for the moment, you aren’t under any particular deadline pressure that would dictate when you have to put your home on the market. In that case, you’re likely to keep tabs on overall market conditions, awaiting what looks like circumstances favor those with homes for sale.
Twice a year, the National Association of Realtors® issues their economists’ midyear forecast—it appeared last week. For those with homes for sale in Millville (or anyone thinking about adding theirs to the homes already for sale), the outlook was heartening.
The forecast was for the greater U.S. economy to improve, bouncing back from the weather-blasted winter stall which made the first quarter a disappointment. Subsequently, consumer spending opened up, causing expectation that the GDP would rise in the remainder of the year. Overall, the forecast for 2015 was positive, though lukewarm. As a whole, the year promises to be “not bad but not great.”
On the other hand, focusing narrowly on the outlook for U.S. housing market activity—homes for sale—the upside momentum was already decidedly more in evidence. The prospects for any single one of the Millville homes for sale depend upon a combination of factors, but if national activity is any reflection, the latest numbers packed what you could call a “6-7-8-9 punch”:
· Existing home sales in May notched a high water mark not seen in 6 years (and the 2009 level had been artificially inflated because of an $8,000 homebuyer tax credit).
· New home sales hit the highest level in 7 years.
· Housing permits to build new homes registered an 8 year high.
· Pending contracts to buy existing homes for sale reached a 9 year high.
Examining the demographics behind the figures, it was clear that, for the first time in quite a while, first-time buyers are back. Last year during the same period, only 27% of buyers were first-timers. They now make up a more normal 32%. As prices brought by homes for sale continued to rebound, institutional investors were disappearing from the scene, creating a more typical mix of buyers.
A major part of the reason why homes for sale were fetching “stronger than normal home price growth” had to do with a shortage of inventory—ascribed to the volume of new homes being built (or not being built). The rule of thumb is generally for about 1.5 million new homes to be constructed per year, a mark that’s failed to be realized for a number of years. In 2009, only 550,000 home were built—and the total had barely reached a million through last year. But now, with optimism among homebuilders at newly robust levels, it’s expected that normal output will have fully resumed by 2017.
The other major factor boosting sale prices was the specter of mortgage rate increases. Rising mortgage rates “initially rush buyers to decide”—just the kind of sign that could tip the scales for a homeowner who’s been waiting to add their property to the homes for sale in Millville. Should you decide that this summer is shaping up to have just the conditions you’ve been waiting for, I hope you’ll give me a call for a no-obligation consultation! Call/Text me Russell Stucki at (302) 228-7871, email me at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., visit more listings at www.beachrealestatemarket.com.

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Written by Russell Stucki

Published: 06 July 2015

Created: 06 July 2015

Last Updated: 12 July 2017

In case you set your alarm clock to go off when it was time to buy a home, that clang you may be hearing from somewhere in the distance could be it (figuratively speaking, of course). The reason has to do with the direction of Millville mortgage rates (among others).
Now, I realize this could come across a little bit like Aesop’s boy who cried ‘Wolf’ since a year and a half ago the experts were unanimous in predicting that mortgage rates would rise throughout 2014 (to at least 5%, if I remember correctly). And not only did they not jump—after a short rise, they actually fell!
The experts were wrong. To the extent I agreed with their call, I was, too—but at least I wasn’t lonely. And I also try to be clear that predicting the future of any financial movement is never a sure thing. The same is true today…but…
Last week, less than a week after the Federal Reserve monetary policymakers emerged from their meeting, Bankrate web commentator Janna Herron published a view that sent alarm bells ringing in my head. It makes so much sense, I feel compelled to share it. Already publicized in the rest of the media was the announcement that 15 of the 17 Fed officials now agree that they expect to raise the federal funds rate at some point within the next 6 months (and one expert was quoted as expecting that as early as September or October). Fifteen out of 17 is a 88% majority, so it couldn’t get much clearer. The funds rate has been cemented to the ground at precisely zero for almost seven years. Since 2008.
Millville mortgage rates are based upon that Fed funds rate. When it rises, mortgage rates have to rise, or lenders would have to be reclassified as charitable enterprises (not likely). The reasons given for the Fed governors’ near-unanimous prediction are both the rise in the pace of job gains and, as was reported, “The Fed also noted improvement in housing.”
Now, that news may have prompted Millville mortgage-rate watchers to sit up and take notice—but not necessarily have them hearing alarm bells going off. But there were two other pieces of information:
· First, the current national mortgage rates reported last week rose. They were pegged at just over the 52-week average for 30-year fixed loans, but at 4.13% it remained below the 4.33% of a year before. In other words, still (perhaps momentarily) in the historically basement-level range.
· Second, new mortgage activity began to rise, moving 1.6% up from a week before. Applications had been dropping, but now they were on the move. This while home builder confidence levels soared, with expectations hitting the highest levels in nearly a decade.
As with any batch of economic numbers, the signs can be interpreted in multiple ways, but one way sure does seem to stand out: mortgage rates are attractive now, housing activity is almost certainly on the rise, and mortgage rates and monthly payments are very likely to become more expensive. The same thought may be occurring to more and more people as we enter the summer home-buying season: “What if I could pay less every month for the same home…for the next 30 years…”
Note to Millville home-buyers. Listen carefully: that could be the sound of your own alarm bell going off! If you think you hear it, now would be a great time to give me a Call/Text me Russell Stucki at (302) 228-7871, email me at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., visit more listings at www.beachrealestatemarket.com.

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Written by Russell Stucki

Published: 30 June 2015

Created: 30 June 2015

Last Updated: 12 July 2017