Chris Coccia is proud to announce that Carmine Prudente and his staff have joined Coccia Real Estate Group, LLC in East Hanover. Carmine and his team bring years of established service and experience to an already dynamic sales team.

Carmine Prudente began selling Real Estate in 1981 at Frontier Realty located in Florham Park. The owner of Frontier Realty Jack Fineman, quickly recognized Carmine as an asset and promoted him to the position of office manager. Carmine remained at Frontier Realty until he decided to make the bold decision to open his own office in East Hanover in 1994. Prudente Realty served the community of East Hanover for nearly fifteen years and quickly became a power house team employing more than one hundred agents over the years.

Prudente’s team nearly doubles the staff of an already growing team of “Coccia” agents. The new Realtors consist of residents from Florham Park, East Hanover, Montville and Whippany and speak Italian, Portuguese, Spanish, Mandarin, Chinese and Taiwanese.

Coccia expanded his office space at the beginning of last year to keep up with demand from the community. The office is conveniently located next to 7-11 in the Berkeley Plaza and is brand new from the ground up. Coccia Real Estate Group is proud to say that it currently houses more than 70% of East Hanover agents under one roof. “A comprehensive marketing plan consisting of print advertising, the internet and cable TV is the secret to selling homes in today’s market.” Says Christopher Coccia, Broker/Owner. “The other important ingredient is a well trained, knowledgeable team of agents who are willing to sacrifice to achieve their goal.
For more information on buying or selling with the help of a “Coccia” agent please feel free to contact them by phone: 973-887-2500 or stop by and meet them: 434 Ridgedale Avenue, East Hanover, NJ or see them on the web at www.CocciaRealEstate.com.  

The middle of March has arrived and with that a resurgence of buying and selling has begun.

In the last two weeks Coccia Real Estate Group listed several homes. Some of them are well kept gems that are quite the bargain.

49 Dacotah Avenue, Parsippany - bedroom, 2 full bath colonial with partly finished basement. Home features modern kitchen and baths, family room with lots of windows and cathedral ceilings, formal dining room, deck and nice yard. Just move right in!

18 Herman Street, East Hanover - bedroom, 2 full bath bi level with updated kitchen and baths in 2007. Ground level contains in-law suite with second kitchen, full bath and bedroom. 1st floor kitchen has granite counter tops, new cabinets and hardwood floors in living room and dining room.

193 Morris Tpk, Randolph - Truly move in condition 3 bedroom , 2 full bath ranch w/ 2 car garage. All good sized rooms, beautiful ¾ acre, level property w/ pool, central air, updated in 2005. Updates include: windows, siding and doors. Above ground, newer oil tank.

9 Townsend Dr., Florham Park - This lovely 4 Bedroom Colonial with open floor plan will surely impress. A stunning home, only 12 yrs old (from ground up) features: large eat-in kitchen w/center island, family rm w/fireplace, sunroom w/cathedral ceilings & skylights and master bedroom w/full bath & walk-in closet. Enjoy the 56 X 20 deck, tiki bar and large backyard perfect for entertaining.

I am proud to say that we were able to get some of the homes listed above under contract all ready. That means that we are seeing signs of life out the Spring Real Estate market…and that’s great news for everyone!

Skilled staging is essential in this unpredictable market with so much property for sale. A buyer needs to see and feel your property.

In my real estate and staging experience, I’ve discovered that it is always simpler to stage a unit when it’s bare, which allows the unit to become a clean canvas. When cleverly decorated, it can de-emphasize the lack of good space planning or it can highlight prime features in new or older construction.

MY STAGING CHALLENGE

Last year one of my clients tried to sell his house. It was on the market for nearly a year. First, he tried to sell it on his own. Next, he used a non-local REALTOR® that was not familiar with the area. He was beyond frustrated so he finally pulled the listing. He finally tried Coccia Real Estate Group, a local, aggressive Real Estate office. We recommended a local staging person that made some very basic suggestions.

Problem areas: The home was dated in style. It shrieked 1980’s with mirrored walls, grey marble floors, large wall vents, white Formica cabinets in the bathrooms, and old white appliances in the kitchen. A gaudy Lucite ceiling fan hung in the dining area with warm purple, puffy valences. In the living room was a wooden, sea captain spindled stair case rail with carpeted stairs leading to the bedrooms upstairs. The fireplace was back-splashed in cemetery green marble.

The best features: The home’s top assets were the living room’s floor-to-ceiling windows, and its balcony with panoramic views of New York City. The kitchen also had gorgeous custom cherry cabinetry.

What I did:

• I removed the puffy valences to open the vista.
• I had the place painted white to modernize walls and bring in the marina since the mirrored walls reflected the light.
• The place was cleaned thoroughly.
• I placed real plants inside and on the balcony.
• I chose all modern furniture and artwork.
• Splashes of color finished the look.

The result: The unit sold in four months.