Pamela Frey-primiani

First, some info on the area....one side of Berlin Cross Keys Rd is Gloucester Twp, the other is Winslow Twp. Both sides have a mailing address of Sicklerville. Down near the Sam's Club at Route 42 is considered Turnersville, but try calling 411 asking for Home Depot in Turnersville...you won't get the number that way. Confused? That's o.k. You probably want to ask your agent to show you properties in Winslow Twp., Gloucester Twp and Washington Twp. That will cover the whole area.

As to whether to buy or rent depends on you. Are you a two-income family? You might get killed at income tax time without some good write-offs, like your real estate taxes, but I'm no accountant so talk to yours for a better reference. Could home prices in the area be higher two years from now? I don't know. No one can tell you that. Could they be cheaper two years from now? I don't know to answer to that one either. What will interest rates be two years from now? I have no idea. Have you rented before? If the answer is yes you know that's not always a picnic either.

I'll probably get blasted with readers clicking the thumbs down button because I haven't been helpful, but no one can really advise you on the rent/own decision because no one knows the answers to the above questions. Why don't you take a look at what's on the market for both options and then make the call from there. - Sat Jun 28 2008, 20:53

The Quaker Group. Hope that helps. - Fri Apr 25 2008, 19:07

A lot of people ask me this question. The answer is, we can speculate, but no one knows for sure.

I've started throwing my Realtor trade magazines away without even reading them. I can't take another "Rah-rah Real Estate" article declaring the slump over anymore, so when you see a news item or read a newspaper article, note the background of the person dissemninating the information. Their bias could make that information suspect.

All I know is what I'm experiencing lately and I've posted the following response to another similar thread on this website:

"I've seen evidence in my market that things may be turning around. Last year at this time, nothing seemed to be moving off the shelves at all. The buyers I'm working with at the moment had fourty listings to pick from three weeks ago. Twenty of those listings have now gone to contract. The reason these buyers want to own instead of rent? They don't want to live in someone else's house. These people are first-time buyers.

The most common feedback I got from buyers last year after touring my listings was that they liked the houses, but haven't sold their starter house yet to be able to bump up; therefore, they're not ready to make an offer. It's the starter homes that I'm seeing moving the most now. In my opinion, this will trickle up. Once a seller gets a contract on their starter house, they can bump up to a larger one.

I do not follow economics and the most I know about the stock market is how my 401K balance keeps dropping, but after having some difficulty getting my buyers into homes to view before they go to contract, my gut tells me we may be starting to turn around.

We won't know when we've hit bottom until the prices either start to climb, and once that happens there'll be a lot of people who sat on the fence a little too long saying "woulda, coulda, shoulda." - Fri Apr 25 2008, 18:51

I've seen evidence in my market that things may be turning around. Last year at this time, nothing seemed to be moving off the shelves at all. The buyers I'm working with at the moment had fourty listings to pick from three weeks ago. Twenty of those listings have now gone to contract. The reason these buyers want to own instead of rent? They don't want to live in someone else's house. These people are first-time buyers.

The most common feedback I got from buyers last year after touring my listings was that they liked the houses, but haven't sold their starter house yet to be able to bump up; therefore, they're not ready to make an offer. It's the starter homes that I'm seeing moving the most now. In my opinion, this will trickle up. Once a seller gets a contract on their starter house, they can bump up to a larger one.

I do not follow economics and the most I know about the stock market is how my 401K balance keeps dropping, but after having some difficulty getting my buyers into homes to view before they go to contract, my gut tells me we may be starting to turn around.

If someone needs a place to live, they need a place to live. Personally, I would never rent if I had the means to buy. If I want to paint my walls black, then they are all mine to paint black, and I don't have to beg a landlord to fix my leaking pipes or my 30-year-old-on-it's-last-legs air conditioner either.

We won't know when we've hit bottom until the prices start to climb, and once that happens there'll be a lot of people who sat on the fence a little too long saying "woulda, coulda, shoulda." - Fri Apr 25 2008, 18:27

I've read the answers from the other posters here and it's right on the money that you need to pick the agent that will do the best job, not necessarily who sold the most homes. Interview several and ask for their references. An good agent will be happy to give you the names and phone numbers of their past clients. - Sun Mar 30 2008, 17:19