Cooling Real Estate Market? Not for Property Owners in Moorestown's Peachtree Pointe Neighborhood!

In 2005, southern New Jersey township Moorestown was named the "Top Town in America" by Money Magazine. In the article itself, the author noted that the average house sales price (the final selling price) was in the range of $250,000 to $285,000. Unfortunately, those numbers were incorrect. At that time, the average 'sold' price for a Moorestown home was actually $485,000 to $500,000. You can pretty much imagine the dilemma faced by our local realtors in this town of 19,000 plus residents. Where are those wonderful, quaint $250,000 houses? (The only thing that $250,000 at the time would buy you was a twin/duplex in the town center, a 3 bedroom, 2 bath house in a somewhat dilapidated neighborhood, or maybe one of the town's older townhouses or condos.)

The average sales price of a home in Moorestown now, two years later, is still in the $485,000 to $500,000 sales price range. When I state 'average', I do mean 'average'. A home in an established neighborhood like Stanwick Glen sells for $600,000 and upwards. A home in what was once the 'premier' neighborhood of Northwest Estates sells for $700,000 plus. Both of these neighborhoods have homes that for the most part are twenty plus years old. Some have been very nicely updated with sun rooms, pools, finished basements, etc. There are also the town's two Toll Brothers developments, Moorestown Hunt and Laurel Creek Country Club. The "Hunt" boasts well over one hundred houses on miniscule lots, and pretty much look like tract housing.

When first built, they were priced between $200,000 and $250,000, a real bargain at the time. Young families snatched them up. Ten years later, many of those 'babyboomers' have already cashed in on their investments; Hunt homes sell in the range of $450,000 to a high of $600,000. Oddly enough, most of those first residents moved from the Hunt to older, more established and prestigious neighborhoods, escaping the cookie cutter mentality that is prevalent there. Every single house is the same house on the inside; the exterior facades may vary, but once you open the door, bingo! It's the same layout as homes on either side.

Laurel Creek Country Club is the town's haven for business transplants. It is very much a transient neighborhood. Folkds buy there for instant neighborhood and the possibility of instant friendships, activities and playmates for their children. Originally priced at $450,000 for the 'estate' homes, they are several notches above the same builder's Moorestown Hunt development. Currently, the estate (i.e., larger) homes which bear absolutely no genuine connection to what normally is considered an 'estate' home, sell in the $750,000 to $899,000 price range. Friends who live there tell me that it is a very competitive, 'keeping up with the Joneses' lifestyle there. Many of those who have been there more than a few years have already sold their homes and turned a nice profit; they, too, have moved to older, more established and prestigious neighborhoods closer to the center of town.

Laurel Creek boasts well over one hundred homes: the 4 br, 2.5 ba 'estate' homes, many of which have been expanded by the addition of sun rooms or solariums, the carriage houses, which are 3 bedroom, 2.5 bath shrunken versions of the estate homes on tiny lots (estate homes are generally sited on .35 to over an acre lots; the carriage homes are located on slightly under 1/3 acre lots, so close that you could toss a pebble and hit your neighbor's garage with ease). There are also townhomes that range in price currently from $350,000 to $470,000, depending upon improvements and the individual owner's need to sell. The townhomes were envision by Toll as being owned by young professionals, with no children. Ha! Nearly all of the townhomes have at least one school aged child in residence (they are not age restricted). Oddly enough, there are several families in the townhouse area who used to be actual 'familes': husband and wife divorced, mom got custody of the kids, and both mom and dad could just about afford only the townhouses in Laurel Creek. Some of these 'broken' families live directly across the street from each other.

About a quarter mile away from the Laurel Creek Country Club community is a 30-home development called "Peachtree Pointe". The neighborhood is basically one large circle of homes, each on a minimum one and a half acre to five acre lot, with two small courts branching off from the main street, Cove Road. (One is Cove Court, the other Landing Court. The 'Landing" and 'Pointe' references come from the neighborhood's close approximation to Burlington County's Rancocas Creek.) At least a dozen homes sit on the banks of the Rancocas itself; only one, however, is actually water-accessible and has a dock. The other homes had, at some point in time, permits available for docks - all of which have expired.

When I say that they sit "on the banks" of the Rancocas, it is on the banks that they are. All of these 'waterfront' homes claim several acres of land on which they sit; one, for instance, is a stately white stucco French Provincial home which comes with five acres of property. However, the home, its small front yard, and slightly larger back yard with an inground pool and gazebo, are really located on one useable acre. The other four acres of property, on which they pay hefty taxes, are literally underwater. From the end of their backyard is a long, murky marsh which (eventually) stretches out to the Creek. If a pier permit were ever made available again - which is highly unlikely - it would call for a pier jutting out almost 80 feet - yes, 80 feet - from the property edge to true navigable water.

We bought a home in Peachtree Pointe 14 years ago, with the thought that my husband's business would move us within 18 months to a year, based upon past history. Things never turn out the way you expect, do they? We are still here, have been seriously considering moving for the past five years, and have been steady watchers of the real estate market in Peachtree Pointe for that same amount of time. We had our home listed for six months at a price of $979,000, and received an immediate offer of $900,000, with upwards negotiation expected. Unfortunately, my husband (better know as Idiot Kicker Husband) rejected the offer outright and refused to negotiate at all.

The home itself is really quite charming: 4,000 feet of actual finished, living space, three fireplaces (including one very cool copper-trimmed one in the kitchen), five bedrooms, an office, a full au paire suite - which could be used as an artist's loft or made into two separate bedrooms, as it has a full bath - slightly over two useable acres of land on an exterior lot backing up to open space, a Sylvan fenced inground pool, room for horses or llamas, huge room sizes, hardwood floors, cedar siding, three full finished floors with an unfinished basement. If I could, I would put this house on a trailer and move it to a different state! This was 18 months ago. The market in Peachtree Pointe, over the past five years, has had some odd and unusual fluctuations and price tags. The oldest home was the neighborhood's model, which is 20 years old. The newest, a two-family residence with a waterview and one of the largest homes in New Jersey that I've ever seen, should be completed on the last remaning lot within the next six months.

During the last five years, the most inexpensive house was a four bedroom, three and a half bath colonial on slightly under 2 acres with an inground pool. It was situated on an 'interior' lot, and was approximately 2700 square feet in total; the actual sales price was $855,000. The most expensive house that was sold during this time was a 5 bedroom, six and a half bath stucco French Provincial mini-mansion on three waterfront acres (two of which were underwater). The home boasted marble floors, hardwood floors, a finished basment that included a trophy room, home theater, and two pools: one indoors and one outdoors. Oddly enough, the front door of this home is quite close to the road of the cul de sac in which it's sited.

It was sold to former Philadelphia Eagles wide receiver Terrell Owens for $4,000,000. (You might want to check out another of my AC submissions regarding 'Life in Terrell Owen's Neighborhood".) Since Mr. Owens' departure after a short and stormy stay in Philadelphia on to the Dallas Cowboys, the house has sat pretty much vacant. It is still for sale. Yes! You could be the owner of T.O.'s home for a mere $3,400,000! And that include his annual New Jersey property taxes of approximately $31,000! (Note: these are annual taxes, my dears.)

The most recent sale was of an 8,000 square foot (I believe it was actually more like 6500 square feet; a poorly finished basement was included in the agent's notation of square footage) white stucco French Colonial waterfront home with an inground pool on five acres. The house sold for $1,500,000; its annual taxes are $27,000. There was a lot of marble, hardwood flooring, a totally redone kitchen that was very charming and beautifully done but rather small, a maid's room, and an impressive front entrance with a semi-circular drive and a large, imposing working stone fountain greeting visitors. (Unfortunately, the seller became angered with the buyers early in the course of the negotiations, and one of her very last acts as a resident of New Jersey was to have her movers load the entire fountain into a Pod and have it delivered to her new South Carolina home. The sellers were really ticked, to put it mildly, and have yet to put in a replacement fountain. As of today, visitors are greeted by a rather unsightly pile of stone slabs were the original fountain was located.)

Actual sales prices over the past five years average out to slightly over $1,000,000. Homes sold include a 4 BR, 3.5 bath vinyl-sided (the only vinyl-sided home in Peachtree) colonial for $1,500,000 in a for sale by owner deal (buyers drastically overpaid for the home on this occasion; it is an interior lot with an inground pool and cabana, but an unfinished basement and very close to the main road), $1,300,000 for a very contemporary all brick waterfront home, $1,100,000 for a newer Victorian home on an interior lot with a lot of curb appeal (several buyers vide for this house), and $1,100,000 for a very pretty all brick home across from the water with a sunroom.

At present, 30% of the homes (30 in all) in Peachtree Pointe are currently listed for sale. Perhaps the best buy is a 6 bedroom, 6.5 bath home on the water. Its taxes are high, the home is very much a South Beach design (a rounded contemporary, all white stucco with a black and white interior theme, lots of marble and granite, no pool.) The home is priced at $1,400,000. It has two major flaws, however, hence its current list price versus the original list price of $4,200,000. (It has been on the market for over two years now.) The exterior stucco is faulty and needs to be repaired/replace entirely. Assuming that this work costs between $30,000 to a high of $100,000, the list price is still a bargain for a waterfront/actually waterview house with 10,000 square feet of living space. The second problem is that it was owned by an older couple whose three grown children lived there in individual suites. Both the husband and wife died, he of a heart attack and she of breast cancer. The oldest son and daughter have moved out; however, the youngest son, distraught over his parents' death and other emotional problems, committed suicide in the house by way of a shotgun to the head. A lot of karma and possibly even exorcisng of demons may be necessary to restore it back to a 'normal' home.

There are two other 'waterfront' homes for sale. One is a 5 bedroom, 7000 square foot all brick contemporary colonial which doesn't have a pool but does have a completely refinished basement, most of which is consists of a stage and dance floor. The owners, both physicians, are of Filipino descent, and hosted many cultural meetings, fundraisers and events at their home. It is listed at $1,650,000, down from its original list price two and a half years ago of $2,600,000. The other waterfront is that of Mr. Owens', again on the market for over two years. Its original list price was $4,100,000, priced for what his agent told me was a 'quick sale'. Now at $3,400,000, it remains overpriced, even though the large home does sit on two combined lots. A pretty standard white colonial with 4 BR, 3.5 baths is listed at $950,000.

Lacking much curb appeal, its biggest drawback is that the lot backs directly up to a very noisy main road. Their back yard is also directly across from another road, which has lead to more than a few people over the years driving their cars directly into the backyard, once into their breakfast room. There is also a very lovely all brick colonial with lots of curb appeal on an exterior lot listed at $1,090,000. While the house looks great from the outside and is very nicely updated and maintained on the inside, and has lots of lush landscaping, it has virtually no back yard, just a stepp drop off to an adjacent stream. Not good for a family with children! The last home, which like the other two colonials was listed within the past week, is a white stucco three-story colonial perched on a slight hill and offering a slight waterview of the creek. With 5 bedrooms and 4 baths, the house is owned by a delightful young Indian couple who have decorated it with numerous cultural touches. It has a sunroom in addition to a very nice inground pool. This home is listed at $1,350,000.

It will be interesting to see at what prices these homes will actually sell, and for how long they remain on the market. The average turnaround time for a Peachtree Pointe home to sell is between 60 and 90 days. Since we plan to re-list our home within the next six months, we keep close track of what's going on around us.

What are the advantages and disadvantages of buying/owning a Peachtree Pointe home? The 'negatives' might include the fact that all of the homes here are on septic systems. We personally experienced only one problem with our septic about twelve years ago. Not having ever owned a home on a septic system before, we did not know that you have to have it maintained - and pumped! - on a regular basis. (The neighborhood does have public water.) Also, the homes are on very large lots and quite a distance from each other. I've been told that people buy here because they want/need large homes for large families, they want the privacy of living a good distance (several miles) from the center of town, and have family ties and connection to southern New Jersey and already have a network of family and friends in place. People generally tend to keep to themselves here, although newer neighbors are making an effort to bring the community together with block parties, etc.

The pluses, I think, are substantial. The homes are all custom-built, each built by one of only four builders who were able to purchase lots by the developer. Each of those builders are 'old Moorestown' contractors, who had and maintain fabulous reputations for building quality, unique and structurlly very sound homes. Each carries the 'brand name' of those builders. The lot sizes, especially in a township like Moorestown where the average lot size is under an acre, is also a big plus. We have had sports team picnics, pool parties, and even soccer, lacrosse and field hockey practices on our huge, level back yard. One year, we hosted a neighborhood holiday pool party. The day ended up with a game of softball on our front lawn! It was a wonderful, memorable day. Each bedroom in our house has its own walk in closet. The entire first floor is hardwood, and the stairs and hallways on the second and third floors are as well. Everyone - and I do mean everyone - takes great pride in landscaping and maintaining their properties from the exterior.

No two houses are alike. With the exception of the Key ?West house that needs a good spiritual re-birth, all of the homes are consistently classics. And the views are wonderful! From our third floor windows, we too can see Rancocas Creek. Walking around the neighborhood in the early evening gives you the chance to catch up with neighbors. The development has always been very well maintained by our local Department of Public Works, presumably because we have a fairly high ratio of doctors, surgeons and lawyers who live here. (Former residents included not only T.O. but also 'Gorgeous George' of professional entertainment wrestling game, the owners of a large deli meats national company, and two former NFL players.)

It's worth a visit to Peachtree Pointe, not only if you want to see these houses and especially Terrell Owens'. (Catch it while you can; it could be sold soon!). There are two Indian physicians who are building a joint home together on the remaining, last lot left in Peachtree. The house is quite a sight to behold: 22,000 (yes, 22,000!) square feet of living space, with a three story foyer, two kitchens, two living rooms, two famiy rooms, an enormous main kitchen, a breakfast room which can seat twelve, a four car garage, eight bedrooms, heaven only knows how many baths. Only top of the line finishes are being used: Viking, SubZero, marble, granite, stained and leaded glass, Brazilian hardwoods. Not much of the lot itself will be left, as the house towers over it. And what, you might be guessing, will be their annual taxes on this waterview mansion across the cul de sac from T.O.'s? $61,000 per year. Not a misprint: $61,000 annually, according to the township's tax assessor's office. With that kind of money, I'd buy a cute 2 bedroom, 2 bath condo in Florida for myself. But I'm guessing that the good doctors already have one or more of those!