With winter break behind us and Pesach more than two Adars away, we can now give our full attention to the highs and lows of the spring real estate market. Many buyers are paying special attention to the slight dip in interest rates, which are currently in the mid to upper sixes, down from their highs in the upper sevens, hoping that these lower rates will help make purchasing a home a bit more affordable. It is unclear if that will bear out, as home prices continue to move slightly higher. In fact, this past January gave us a new all time high sale price number for Teaneck, Bergenfield and New Milford, with the price of an average home sold in January hitting an all time high of over $700,000. For some context, last year for the month of January the average sale price of a home was $556,000.

The relief may come from homeowners eager to move on, as there appears to be an earlier than usual increase in inventory. This may hopefully signal a broader willingness of sellers who have waited on the sidelines these past few years to finally put their homes on the market. This past January, 42 new homes came on the market in Teaneck, Bergenfield and New Milford, while last January only 30 houses were listed. Anecdotally speaking, there are more calls coming in these days from current homeowners looking to take the plunge and sell.