By ED SALVAS
In what is believed to be the highest price ever paid for a single-family house in Asbury Park, the sale of a restored seven bedroom, three bathroom house on Sixth Avenue closed recently for $1.1 million. The century-old home at 602 Sixth Ave. had been on the market for more than a year, according to Bill McClellan, a broker with Prudential Zack Shore Properties, who closed the sale with his partner, Carl Chesna of the Prudential Zack Asbury Park office.
 Coaster Photo: This house on Sixth Avenue in Asbury Park recently sold for $1.1 million. |
McClellan said the seller had been asking $1.15 million for the 4,000-square-foot house, which has been completely restored to its original grandeur, including all new windows and other amenities, which cost approximately $500,000. The house also has three fireplaces, but the 10×10 foot kitchen is the same size it was when the house was built, bucking a trend in real estate to expand the kitchen with such features as an island and countertop ranges.
McClellan and Chesna declined to identify the buyer other than to say the house has been sold to a family from Passaic County with small children who plan to make it a weekend/summer retreat. They said another house, a Grand Avenue Victorian, sold a few years ago for $1.2 million, but that was a private sale that was not handled through the MLS (Multiple Listing Service), and that house was also furnished with many valuable antiques.
McClellan, a native of North Carolina, moved to Asbury Park four years ago and teamed up with Chesna, a New York City native who had been living in the city for three years, and they set out to make their mark in the real estate field as the citys redevelopment was beginning to take off and buyers were beginning to take a closer look at the market.
Four years ago, it was singles or gay couples that were our main clients, McClellan said, but today were seeing more married couples and families.
Despite the changing demographics, there are many similarities, according to Chesna, who says buyers still tend to be affluent and educated and like the urban atmosphere offered in Asbury Park. They say a strong sense of community in the mile-square city is also a draw.
A lot of people here love it in Asbury Park and theyve spread the word, Chesna added. But that doesnt mean that selling in Asbury Park is any easier.
People are still a little fearful, McClellan said because of news reports of criminal activity that is published or broadcast in North Jersey and New York.
The media has an impact on real estate, McClellan said. Doom and gloom stories depress business. But on the positive side, beachfront redevelopment stories have been making news as Madison Marquettes redevelopment of the beachfront is being covered throughout the area.
Madison Marquette has had a tremendous impact on real estate. The buyer (of 602 Sixth Ave.) would never have bought without Madison Marquette, McClellan said. McClellan and Chesna point to several areas of the city that remain hot in real estate terms. They say northwest Asbury Park has always been good, especially the Rainbow Neighborhood including Fifth and Locust avenues and Jeffrey Street. And on the east side theres been activity between Sunset Lake and Deal Lake east of Bond Street. Fifth Avenue along Sunset Lake is also picking up with the anticipated redevelopment of the former Salvation Army Retirement Home at the corner of Kingsley Street, one block from the boardwalk.
Since theyve been selling in Asbury Park, McClellan and Chesna have seen a steady increase in prices and say there are now four homes on the market priced at $1 million or more. There are 111 single family homes listed for sale in Asbury Park and 148 condos. But the condo market is reaching the saturation point, agents say, as new construction is completed and apartment conversions come on the market.
Working as a team allows McClellan and Chesna to capitalize on their individual strengths. Chesna handles the marketing and administrative side while McClellan takes advantage of his 15 years in real estate sales. They also have established their own Web site www.BillandCarl.com. Together they are part of a 35-member sales team at Prudential Zack Shore Properties, an 11-office company that stretches along the coast from Rumson to Long Beach Island.
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