Arne Craven's Blog Posts

Hard to believe but here it comes. should be another good year according to most of the pundits but too difficult to call at this early stage. Impeachment, trade conflicts, interest rate decisions,

Thanksgiving gone and Christmas just moments away. So what can we expect for 2020? Rates don't look like they will move in either direction in the near future. Financial markets have had a very nice

The Fed has just reduced rates by another 25 basis points and has indicated that they may take a pause. Looks like there may never a better time to think About a mortgage. Prices on LBI are just

When I tell you the older you get the faster the summers go (and the other seasons too quite frankly) you can take that to the Bank. All indications are that rates will continue to fall and just a

Hard to believe we are into August which means that the fall buying season for LBI is right around the corner. Lots of moving parts which can affect the market at this time...Fed, 

Well it's that time again and the Island is hopping . All the regular visitors showing up for their rentals with some expressing interest in buying...and why not. LBI  is such a wonderful place

Recent events on the political front are creating a fair amount of uncertainty about where the economy is headed in the near term. The trade and tariff situation is at this time creating a negative

If you have not been to the Island for a while you will be surprised by the new look as soon as you come over the Causeway. Hotel LBI is in the final stages and it is really quite impressive. Over

If you have not been down to LBI for over a year or so you will be greatly surprised when you come on the Island. Hotel LBI looks like it is in the final stages and it is really impressive with over

Hard to believe we are heading into March already. I can almost smell the roses (one can dream) Maybe a little early but new properties starting to come on at a decent pace in preparation for the

The outcome of the most recent Fed meeting should be very encouraging for the housing market. The decision not to raise rates and the dovish outlook for the balance of the year should only be

Everyone focused on the holiday season right now but if you are thinking about making a purchase after the holidays now is the time you should be doing some searching,  saving and tracking

Well it's that time of year again and looks like it is going to be a busy buying season on LbI. Interest rates have inched up again but judging from the comments from potential buyers that has not

Can you believe it...Labor Day already !!! how did that happen.  Rental season at an end and new listings will be coming on the market shortly. Lot's of folks waiting for that to happen as the

Hard to believe that September is right around the corner and the fall market is almost upon us. Yeah I know September is not quite the fall but that is when new listings come on the market on LBI.

Bad weather notwithstanding the sales market on LBi continues to be vigorous.The trends in terms of sales and average sales price continues to go in one  direction...up. The number of units

Hard to tell from the recent weather but the Spring buying season is here and it looks like it is going to be a busy one. Actually I think it started early this year as activity has been quite.

If you are thinking about buying something in the coming months you should probably be talking to your lender about interest rates now. They are definitely on the move up and the expectation is that

Well, looks like it is going to be an interesting year. New tax laws, interest rate hikes, continued good economic growth.  Should be a very competitive real estate market. Be sure to check

Well, another year come and gone. I think 2018 is going to be very interesting. I also think the first few days of the stock market will be very telling. Is it time for the long predicted correction

As I write this blog, the market is up huge with the Dow Jones leading the way up by 350 points. It would appear that approval of the GOP tax plan is being factored in. So what does that mean?

Hard to believe we are coming into November and heading down the homestretch for 2017. What a year this has been at The Van Dyk Group on LBI. New highs achieved in both sales and rentals. Home

Merchant mart on Saturday and Chowderfest on Sunday with great fall weather both days. Lots of open houses of all types throughout the weekend. Interest rates still very low so maybe it's time to

Hard to believe that the summer of 2017 is over. How did that happen? Well, for one thing time passes quicker when you are busy, and by all accounts it has been a very busy time for both sales and

Every day we Realtors receive what is called a hot sheet from The Multiple Listing Service. Basically it details all of the activity for Long Beach Island in terms of new listings, price changes,

For several months now I have been harping about the level of activity for sales and rentals on Long Beach Island. The numbers tell the story. Several Agencies are reporting that sales activity on

No signs of any kind of letup with the sales and rental activity on Long Beach Island. Mortgage rates continue to be very good and I am finding that folks who are in a position to pay cash are

I have been speculating for some time now that sales activity on LBI is looking like it is going to be very active and will evolve quicker than it usually does. No more speculating. My office set a

Well, March just wrapping up and I can't  recall seeing this much activity on the Island at this time of year. Looks like the Spring season is already in full swing. Rates are still low and

    Purchasing an investment property could potentially yield a great return, however like any home purchase, it could be a financial risk if material costs and

We are just wrapping up January and I personally am working with some buyers and having a somewhat difficult time finding sufficient inventory in some cases. Closings on the Island continue to be

Well...Christmas is gone and the phone already is ringing like it is Spring. Looks like a busy time shaping up for 2017 on LBI. Buyers are very active on the website and it looks like rentals

Looks like 2017 rental activity on LBI is going to be a repeat of 2016 which was a banner year. Lots of repeat renters coming back for the same properties and the newcomer market is very

Normally by this time of year activity tends to slow down on LBI but it is actually still quite busy. Properties continue to come on the market and there is still plenty of time to get a nice

With September come and gone, it would appear that December is almost a certainty for an interest rate hike. Of course with the level of global volatility we experience these days, it is entirely

Well, we are just wrapping up a fantastic rental season on LBI. Lot's of people inquiring about 2017 already so looks like next year is going to be very busy also. Unless I am mistaken, it would

The peak rental season is half over and the fall buying season on LBI is right around the corner. Essentially this means that more properties will be coming on the market quite soon. Lot's of

So where are the safe havens now? with the events of recent days, and what may be coming  right behind... Brexis? Ilalexis, Nexis, Swexis, Grexis. Not likely to happen you say but with the

So what is going to happen at the June Fed meeting. A few weeks ago the overwhelming consensus was that the Fed would stand pat and not do anything until later in the year. According to the pundits

Weather lately on LBI has been pretty crummy but it has not slowed the buyers down very much. As an example, I had a client that I have been working with for some time reach out out to me about

Activity on LBI is shifting into high gear. Rental properties are flying out the door and the number of sales are starting to take off. Prices appear to be slowly moving up and mortgage rates

The end of February and it is 64 degrees on the Island. People all over this place this past weekend there is lots of activity. Rental activity is thru the roof so if you are thinking in that

As the month comes to a close it takes with it the worst January in the history of the stock market. That's the worst as in forever. The week finished up strong with oil making a decent gain

Well the day is not over yet but it looks like the stock market is off to its worst start in 84 years. I have been watching the markets for a long time and quite frankly I have never seen volatility

Around this time of year things tend to slow down significantly on LBI...not quite the case this year. Rental activity looks like it is on pace and perhaps even going to be busier than last year,

Hard to believe another summer is over. Just so true when they say the older you get the faster it goes by. Have you let another year go by without reaching out to buy that dream house on Long Beach

Economic uncertainty continues to be at the forefront with the stock market leading the way. The market seems to swing by the hour and I am convinced that no one really has a clue. The Fed seems

Well it's been a bumpy ride for sure of late in the  Stock  Market and by most accounts it will be that way for  the near term at least. Hard to recall a time when the Market has

Hard to believe that July is about to end already. Lot's of folks have already enjoyed another wonderful vacation on the Island with many more to come. The new Acme has been a huge success and now

The Island is shifting into high gear and it is looking like summer is in full swing. The beaches are active already and the Acme is jamming. The new Acme by the way is fantastic and you should

The weather is heating up and so is LBI. Lots of folks coming down to the Island already, I guess this past winter motivated lots of folks to get an early start. Rentals are up big time over last

Well the traffic lights are still off and it's getting harder and harder to cross the Boulevard. You know what that means...the Island is coming alive . Lots of stores, eateries, etc. open for the

Looks like buyers are not waiting to get Easter out of the way. I was out this past weekend with three buyers  and all seem anxious to get something done sooner than later. Similar to the

No... not the weather, at least not yet. The activity is heating up significantly. I have actually seen a couple of price increases this week. If rental activity is any indication  of  

The ground hog is telling us that Spring is still aways off, but the number of  buyers poking around on LBI may be forecasting an early Spring buying season. Cold weather does not seem to

It will be very interesting to see what kind of dynamic 2015 will bring. The stock market has performed very well in every year ending in a five with the exception of one. The economy has done

The holiday season is here and typically there is a slowdown in activity, particularly in the second home market...right? This past weekend one of my buyers sent me eleven properties that he would

It would appear that by all measures the overall economic situation has improved and the outlook going forward is quite positive. Recent corporate profits for the most part have been very good and

Not sure where the summer went but here comes the buying season on Long Beach Island. Preliminary indications are that it is going to be busy.Lot's of new listings coming on the market already and

Lot's of folks sitting on the sidelines looking at properties every day and waiting for prices to drop a little further. Sure... that can happen in some cases, as there are always properties that

Lot's of people asking themselves that question these days.How about CD's...have you checked those rates lately? how about the stock market...well if you want to invest and take a ten year nap and

Well it's about that time of year !!! Renters are wrapping up for the season and all those properties that you wanted to view but could not get into will shortly be available for your inspection.

If you have been waiting for some sign that the market has finally bottomed out on the South end of Long Beach Island we may well be at that point. A recent analysis of property sales on the South

To buy or not to buy ...that is the question. Whether it is nobler to wait until you are sure that prices have hit an absolute bottom and perhaps miss out on the opportunity to take advantage of a

May 16: "As Time Goes By" 7pm at the Island Branch of the Ocean County Library in Surf City. Elaine Bromka and Reathel Bean weave together readings of 2-person scenes from notable plays. Call 609