For the fourth time since 1999, Gebroe-Hammer Associates has arranged the sale of Ridgewood Commons in South Orange, N.J., a 66-unit five-story multifamily asset located at 10 N. Ridgewood Road in the township. The firm’s Executive Vice President David Jarvis exclusively represented the seller, 10 North Ridgewood Road LLC, and procured the unnamed buyer, a private investor who acquired the property for an undisclosed price.
“Ridgewood Commons is a highly regarded icon known for its classic architecture and unique interior design touches that make it distinctive for its era and, of course, today,” said Jarvis, who first sold the 1940-built property for the original developer back in 1999 and three more times thereafter.
Comprised of a mix of studio, 1BR and 2BR/2 Bath layouts, Ridgewood Commons’ distinguishing features include tiered steps between rooms in select units, arched entryways, an art-deco lobby and a high-identity canopied lobby entry. All apartment homes have newly renovated modern kitchens and bathrooms and all common areas have been updated. Exterior enhancements range from a new roof and windows to façade and pointing.
Situated within the bustling village center business district and a short walk to the Midtown-Direct train station, Ridgewood Commons has tremendous long-term appeal among the area’s upwardly mobile career starters, established millennials, college students and faculty members and highly educated empty nesters.
“South Orange’s Village Center is one of the most high-demand, pedestrian-friendly neighborhoods in the state,” said Jarvis. “Thanks to a highly strategic location at the intersection of two major county thoroughfares of Scotland Road and South Orange Avenue—as well as the Valley Street extension—this business district and its eclectic collection of shops and iconic storefronts is the hub for happenings in the entire region.”
As a model for successful transit-driven community repositioning, South Orange is home to two train stations—one of which is South Orange Station that is adjacent to Ridgewood Commons—along NJ Transit’s Morris & Essex and Gladstone lines.
Just 16 miles from Manhattan, Ridgewood Commons is at the crossroads of an extensive highway and bus-service network. NJ transit operates two bus links that include Route 92 running from South Orange Station to Branch Brook Park in Newark, with a stop less than half a mile from Ridgewood Commons at Valley and 1st Streets. South Orange Avenue, Wyoming Avenue, Valley Street/Scotland Road and Centre Street are all primary roadways connecting to the Garden State Parkway, Routes 24 and 124 and I-78 and I-280.
“Southwest Essex County is one of the most affluent suburban residential/commercial corridors in the state that ranks in the top 15 percent nationally,” said Jarvis. “It has an extremely diverse tenant cohort that is a melting pot of artists, designers and people working in the media; professionals, managers, sales and office workers; and business and finance professionals. Rounding out this mix are undergraduate and graduate students and faculty at Seton Hall University.”
Since 1975, Gebroe-Hammer’s brokerage activities have concentrated on all multifamily types from high-rise to garden-apartment properties. While initially focusing on New Jersey, the Livingston, N.J.-based firm has evolved during the past 47 years to also dominate Eastern Pennsylvania and New York State submarkets as well as represent client interests nationally. Widely recognized for its consistent sales performance, the firm is a 17-time CoStar Power Broker.
