Cherry Hill housing market still strong
By TERRI AKMAN
Cherry Hill Sun
8/10/2006

When Lori and Ross Miller bought their home in Springdale Crossing more than five years ago, they knew they had found a wonderful place to raise their family. It offered an ideal location between Philadelphia and the Shore, and was filled with families with young children. They have since discovered that they made a great real estate investment as well, with their house doubling in value.

Cherry Hill Township boasts approximately 26,000 homes that run the gamut from pre-war to planned suburban neighborhoods, and high-rise rental to custom ultra-luxury homes. When Money Magazine included Cherry Hill in its list of the best places to live in America, it took into account the town’s vast housing opportunities.

“We have a very diverse community. We have a mixed housing stock in the community, some newer, some older. There’s something here for everyone,” Mayor Bernie Platt said. “We’re finding out that as people are selling their homes and downsizing, a lot of them are staying and moving into apartments. And, younger people are buying the homes, which are bringing young families and children to the township.”

Case in point: the Miller family. They were living in Oakton, Va., when Lori became pregnant with her oldest daughter. Lori had grown up in Margate and wanted to live closer to home. Cherry Hill’s ideal location between Philadelphia and the Shore fit the bill.

“We’re centrally located, my husband wanted to be near major highways, and my family’s close. Aside from the property tax issue, I love it. When I moved to Virginia, it was such a transient area, and everyone was your best friend at first. But no friendships lasted. In New Jersey, people are very standoffish at first, but once they’re your friend, they’re your friend for life. To me, that’s the key,” she said.

It doesn’t hurt that real estate values continue to stay strong, even in a down market. The median priced home in Cherry Hill is $257,000, and it is the homes in this price range that remain in demand.

“I talked to some real estate people recently, and the housing market is cooling off for the higher priced homes. But there is still a shortage of the median and lower priced homes in the township. It hasn’t cooled over that much in Cherry Hill. It’s cooled off some, but not a lot. We’re still a hot community,” Platt suggested.

According to Barbara Beirao, a Weichert Realtor, the Cherry Hill real estate market is still doing well. She believes that as homeowners noticed increasing prices and quick sales, they put their houses on the market to see how much they could demand. As things began to cool off, many of these homes were left on the market.

“Yes, there is a downturn in the market. Interest rates are higher and there are a lot more homes on the market. But people still ask for Cherry Hill as much as they always did. It’s just that I’m showing more houses than I used to,” Beirao said. “When a house came on the market, people were running to see it, because there wasn’t any inventory. Now, we have more inventory and more to show. Sellers are negotiating more because they have to.”

According to the Multiple Listing Service, during the first six months of 2006, the average home stayed on the market for 56 days, compared with 48 days during the same time frame a year earlier. Of the 1,218 homes listed between January and July 2006, 1,137, or about 93 percent, had either sold or were pending. In the first six months of 2005, there were 1,116 homes on the market, and 1,428, or roughly 78 percent, had either sold or were pending.

“The interest in the township has been pretty strong for the last couple of years. There’s been a consistent demand for new residential development. All of the development in the township has retained a very high value over the years,” said David Benedetti, director of community development for Cherry Hill Township.

The newest thing to happen in the local real estate market is the development of the Garden State Park property, which will include 1,790 units. The Plaza Grand, an over-55 community will feature 608 luxury condominiums, Park Place will build 120 condos and 240 town homes and there will be an additional 822 apartments.

Money Magazine’s recognition of the town can only help bring more attention to an already growing community.