By JOANNE L. PAPAIANNI
How much would you pay to live in Bradley Beach? $1 million? There are several houses for sale for more than that.
House prices in Bradley Beach are on the rise. Currently there are eight properties listed for over $1 million with the top price for a new construction at $1,899,000 at 200 Bradley Blvd.
A three bedroom, 3 bathroom Ocean Ave. house with a basement is listed at $1,570,000.
Housing prices have escalated throughout the Coastal Monmouth area recently
In addition to the million dollar homes, there are 11 for sale from the mid $750,000 range to $950,000.
In the past 12 months six houses in the borough have closed for prices ranging from $1,160,000 to $1,550,000.
There are also two houses valued at over $1 million that are under contract.
Mayor Gary Engelstad said it’s a major issue at the shore and said he would be meeting with area mayors to discuss the topic in early August.
“It’s actually one of the biggest issues in many shore towns. While the high selling prices are a nice affirmation of everything we’ve done to make Bradley a very desirable place to live, there are two sides to the coin.
“It’s great news if you’re ready to sell and downsize, but many Bradley Beach residents love their home, their neighbors, the proximity to everything and don’t want to move,” the mayor said.
He spoke about people on fixed incomes and young families who cannot afford to buy in the borough.
“Many of them are retired and on fixed incomes and are getting squeezed. High home prices also scare away younger families and impacts our school. At the same time, a lot of people are buying up substandard properties and improving them substantially.
“We’re very blessed in that a lot of our second home owners are also involved in the town with regards to volunteerism and being advocates for improvement,” he said.
Engelstad also talked about the business community.
“Our dramatically improved Main Street is also a reflection of the real estate activity in that more and more entrepreneurs are choosing Bradley Beach to locate their restaurants and businesses. We understand that our beachfront is driving this surge and that’s why we work very hard to make it a pristine, welcoming and safe place,” he said.
Addressing taxes and the impact on the town budget the mayor said, “With regards to the municipal budget, we lowered the municipal tax rate to ensure that we weren’t collecting more money than we did in the previous year. The county, school and library taxes have gone up as they deal with their own individual revenue needs.”
As real estate prices climb there will most likely come a time when they will level off or even begin to decline as has happened in the past, but the gains made in recent years will certainly remain.
