Chatham Township vs. Chatham Borough - A Home Appraiser’s Analysis -updated 2024
Updated January 2024 - Chatham Township and Chatham Borough are highly desirable areas to live in New Jersey. This is due to the commuting proximity to New York City, highly ranked school systems, strollable downtown, and mix of old homes and new construction in a quiet location.
Location, as it is often said, is the most important factor in real estate. It’s one thing you can’t change. As a real estate appraiser, I not only take into account location but since I inspect properties on an individual basis, I am looking at style, age, condition, quality, house size, lot size and more. Beyond that, I’m looking for comparable sales for the fair market analysis as well as the real estate market in general.
How do each of the Chathams fare against each other?
Chatham Township (these statistics are from the Garden State MLS)
Chatham Township Real Estate
At this point in the year, it is common to see a lower value during the winter months but this change is unprecedented. The median sale price in Chatham Township was higher at $1,539,500 during the summer compared to $727,000 in the past 3 months. In 22 years of appraising, I haven’t seen a median drop like this. I’m not equating these numbers to the depreciation rate. First if you look at the volume of sales it has dramatically declined from 84 to 56 to 29. Apparently the lower priced homes are selling and higher priced homes have been pulled off the market. And with these lower priced homes, the average list price to sale price ratio increased over the year from 100% to 104%. The average days on the market has been pretty consistent at about 3 weeks which shows this market still has a lot of demand. The average sale price in the past 12 months was $1,417,487. Finally, the max sale price in the last year was $4,150,000.
Chatham Borough
Chatham Borough Real Estate
The median sale price in Chatham Borough shows a more realistic analysis of how the market is moving. The beginning of the year has a slow start with lower value at $937,500, the summer peaks at $1,022,500, and drops slightly in the Fall to $975,000.
The average sale price was $1,164,805 over the past 12 months which is quite a bit higher than the median at $967,575. The average list price to sale price ratio was strong with the past 6 months average 106%. This means when it comes time to buy or sell a home, you can expect to pay approximately 6% above the list price on average. The average days on the market remained extremely low at 2 weeks which shows this market has a lot of demand. Finally, the max sale price in the last year was $2,850,000.
Chatham appraiser comparing the two
When comparing the two areas from a real estate statistics perspective, both are highly desirable areas as homes typically take under a month to sell. Chatham Township has a higher average sale price and max sale price. The homes and lots on average are larger. Chatham Borough has the downtown area and train station which may be more desirable to some people.
Currently, the inventory in this area is limited and the demand is still high, however rising interest rates can reduce buyers purchasing power. There is still interest from New York City residents looking to move out to the suburbs and Chatham is often on the list of desirable markets. They do share a school system.
The real estate market can be challenging. Hiring a professional to help determine fair market value can help make a difference of thousands of dollars. As an appraiser covering the Chatham markets, I have performed appraisals for buying, selling, tax appeals, divorce, estate planning, and refinancing. Please give American Realty Appraisals a call at 908-233-1337 to obtain the most accurate fair market value so you can make an informed decision.