This post was contributed by a community member. The views expressed here are the author's own.

Real Estate

How to Choose the Best Home

How to choose the best home and the benefits of using an experienced Realtor

mark slade, Community Contributor

Posted Fri, May 23, 2025 at 4:44 pm ET

What are your priorites for House Hunting?

First and foremost, most buyers will eventually settle on an area that provides them with the best fit for work commuting, schools as well as finding the right home for the right money.

There are many ways to do your research, especially with the internet being so robust with ideas and suggestions as well as using AI to help refine the process and reflecting on what matters most to you.

Find out what's happening in Park Slopefor free with the latest updates from Patch.

It's easiest to figure out your needs for bedrooms, bathrooms, office spaces, etc., as a starting point. Choosing the style of home--Colonial, Tudor, Split Level and Ranch, to name a few--is usually a preference you will likely refine after you have viewed a variety of styles to see how it fits your needs, much like trying on a pair of shoes.

Find out what's happening in Park Slopefor free with the latest updates from Patch.

this is actually an Expanded Ranch style and can be viewed at www.2reid.com

this is actually a Colonial style home and can be viewed at www.46Yale.com

this home is an example of a Split Level home and can be viewed at www.21Rutgers.com

Here is a link to a post I made a while ago regarding the different types of home styles you can choose from:

So let's say you have already made it to this point and now know what style you are looking for, the next step is to see what your choices are and how they work with your budget. Word to the wise, working with a lender is a very important step; but the idea is to find out what your monthly budget would be and not to necessarily focus on a price range as you will find that taxes can vary greatly when even looking at similar style, sized and priced homes.

When you get to this stage, its normally best for you to start to interview Realtors to work on your behalf. Why, you may ask? Well, its because they will hopefully have the experience necessary to provide you with the best advice as it relates to your needs. Their advice should include up to date town specific statistics so you can see if you are searching in the right towns and also if your expectations are property set for what might be the case when it comes to making an offer.

Here is an example of what I mean, as I track 6 towns on a weekly basis to produce what I refer to as Market Snaps. I do this for Maplewood, South Orange, West Orange, Montclair, Livingston and Union as these towns represent some contiguous towns where I do the majority of my business as a Realtor.

As you can see, 6 towns that are within 30 minutes of one another range in average price paid from $570,287 to almost three times that $1,509,034. The percent paid versus asking price ranges from 5.8% Over Asking to as much as 24% Over Asking. So, as you can see, there is a lot to know and benefit from in simply learning about the market in each town.

That also applies to searching for a particular type of home. Let's say you have decided upon a ranch and want to live in Maplewood, well that's going to be a more challenging scenario as the vast majority of the homes in Maplewood are Colonials. Your chances get a little better if you include South Orange in the mix and improve substantially if you then add West Orange to the mix.

Speaking of West Orange, we end up placing a lot of our SOMA (South Orange and Maplewood nickname) buyers in West Orange as they quickly learn that they can get that much more for their money. Further, while West Orange isn't what we commonly refer to as a train town, it does have 6 jitney routes that will take you to a local NJ Transit train station with service to NYC Penn Station. Here is a link to the West Orange Jitney Service if you are interested: www.WestOrangeJitney.com

Another example of how a professional Realtor can help you is to be even more specific with what you may need to do with "win the prize (offer)," and also determine what the best spend could be for a home.

If you had decided upon a Ranch or Expanded Ranch and were buying in South Orange, you would see that the average list price for such was $1,150,000 this year and the average price paid was 10% higher at $1,263,836. Yet, the Expanded Ranch property featured above is asking $999,000 for a bi-coastal designer driven home (www.2reid.com).

Let's say you aren't looking to buy a renovated, or what is commonly referred to as a "flipped" home. Well there are many options out there and these homes can offer substantial value to you as you won't necessarily be overpaying for design choices that made the house look pretty but to you, could actually be a turn off. So, if you are looking for a classic Colonial in a hot town, with chestnut wood trim, exceptionally tall ceilings and more, then you would consider www.46yale.com. This home would be perfect for that Brooklyn Brownstone lover that has now decided to move across the Hudson River to a town with Mid-Town Direct Train service to NY Penn that wasn't much different from my days commuting from Park Slope to NYC on the F train.

And, if you are looking for something smack dab in the middle of luxury designer and classic Colonial, then we are happy to recommend www.265Village.com where you can get an updated kitchen and a home that is 6/10's of a mile to the South Orange Train Station:

In the end, there are so many different options and considerations that will govern how you proceed with looking for a new home as well as procuring the home and ultimately moving in.

As always, we are available if you have any questions or need any advice at 917-797-5059.

Mark Slade Keller Williams 917.797.5059 Good Homes Selling a Maplewood/South Orange/West Orange area home involves many steps and having an experienced Maplewood New Jersey Real Estate Agent and Realtor®, specializing in the Bedroom Communities of New York City in Essex/Union County— Millburn, Short Hills, Montclair, West Orange, South Orange, Livingston, Maplewood, Springfield, Summit, Madison, Chatham, Scotch Plains, Fanwood, Cranford and Westfield--by your side will make the transaction run a lot smoother. I would love to be your Maplewood/South Orange New Jersey Area Real Estate Professional! I assist both buyers and sellers in the Bedroom Communities of New York City, mostly served by NJ Transit’s Mid-Town Direct Train Lines, offering commutes of 45minute or less to NY Penn Station, with either the purchase and or sale of residential real estate.

As an Accredited Buyer’s Agent (ABR), I have received special training to guide and educate you through the entire home buying process. From start to finish, I listen to your needs and desires in what you would like and take the information you give me to find you home. My GO-TO team can provide you the best in Real Estate advice with regard to attorney choices, Home Inspectors and Mortgage Loan Officers

I am also a Luxury specialist (CLHMS), I have received special training to guide and educate you through the entire home buying and selling process. Not only does this extra training help me better understand this upper echelon in real estate, its benefit include a special luxury website: www.njluxhomes.com and a corresponding worldwide luxury network that helps to put luxury buyers and sellers together.

As your Maplewood/South Orange/ West Orange New Jersey listing agent I am well versed on as your local expert in all things in the West Orange, Maplewood and South Orange area Real Estate Market. You can expect personalized service that includes a detailed consultation on how to best position your Mid-Town Direct home to be competitive in today’s market with training to provide my clients with an in-depth Advanced Comparative Market analysis, and advice on staging. As my office’s technology officer as well as both a Zillow Platinum Premier and Trulia Premier agent, I use the latest and most up-to-date marketing methods to get your home in front of as many buyers as possible. Being your New Jersey Real Estate Agent and Realtor ® not only involves just finding the home or selling the home, but being your guide, negotiator, advisor and advocate and making sure that your needs and goals are met. Being your New Jersey Essex/Union County area Realtor® (with a little bit of Morris County thrown in for good measure) is one of my truest passions, and “Helping You Find Your Dream Home” is my number one priority. Don’t forget These Helpful Sites:

www.bedroomcommunitiesofnyc.co...

www.njluxhomes.com

www.bedroomcommunitiesofnyc.co...

www.goodhomesforgoodpeople.com

www.unioncountyproperties.com

One of our most recent reviews: