Home sellers in Nutley choose Matthew De Fede because he brings a rare combination most agents simply can't match: nearly 20 years of hyper-local Nutley expertise paired with a background as a Creative Director for brands like JPMorgan, Merck, Roche, and the Guggenheim. That marketing pedigree shows up in every listing from professionally crafted photography and copy to a strategic online presence that gets homes noticed by the right buyers, not just the most buyers. As owner and broker of Realty Executives Elite Homes, Matthew has built his reputation one transaction at a time, earning over 150 five-star Google reviews from clients who felt genuinely represented, not just processed.
Sellers trust him because he treats every listing as a brand to be positioned, not a box to be moved the result is properties that command attention, generate stronger offers, and close with fewer surprises. In a market where experience and presentation both matter, Matt De Fede offers sellers a level of craft and personal accountability that's hard to find anywhere else in Nutley.
A Record Sale in Nutley NJ, 57 High St sold for $1,300,000
57 High St in Nutley's Spring Garden section wasn't just a listing — it became a milestone. Priced at $1,299,000, the 5-bedroom, 4-bath luxury home was the highest-priced home to hit the market in Nutley in decades. When it closed for $1,300,000 on August 19, 2024, it set a new benchmark, outpacing the next highest Nutley transactions that year — 518 Prospect St at $1,175,000 and 357 Prospect St at $1,000,000. The sale didn't happen by accident. Matthew De Fede built a multi-channel campaign around the property, using Facebook, Instagram, and Google Ads to geo-target high-net-worth buyers in Nutley, Montclair, Short Hills, and even Manhattan, paired with video tours, drone footage, and 3D virtual walkthroughs that showcased the home's scale and drew interest from out-of-state buyers. He also hosted private, invite-only open houses designed to feel as elevated as the home itself, complete with gourmet appetizers, live music, and a sommelier-led wine tasting. The result: a home that sold in just 11 days on market — a fraction of the township's median — and cemented Nutley's arrival as a legitimate luxury market.
Another Sale In The Summer of 2024 Was 53 Kenzel Ave in Nutley, Sold For $1,200,000
53 Kenzel Ave is another proof point in Matthew De Fede's run of record-breaking Nutley sales. Tucked into a sought-after pocket near Kingsland Park, the new-construction 4-bedroom, 3-full-bath, 2-half-bath home blended traditional charm with modern upgrades — an expansive open floor plan, a gourmet kitchen with granite countertops, custom cabinetry, and stainless steel appliances. It had the bones and the story; what it needed was the right marketing and the right buyers, and that's exactly what Matthew and his team delivered. Rather than shaky iPhone walkthroughs, they produced a cinematic lifestyle video complete with NYC skyline teasers, drone footage, and staged daylight and twilight scenes designed to create emotional engagement before a single buyer stepped through the door. Facebook and Instagram ads targeted NYC commuters and move-up buyers across Bergen and Essex counties — even reaching zip codes in the Hamptons — while a custom blog page and keyword-rich YouTube content built lasting search visibility around terms like "luxury homes in Nutley" and "Nutley million dollar homes." The result: thousands of impressions, a flood of showing requests, and a sale price of $1.2 million another record for Nutley and further proof that in this market, presentation is what separates a stale listing from a headline sale.
518 Prospect St in Nutley Set A Record For The Block in 2024
518 Prospect St stands as one of the top luxury sales of Matthew De Fede's 2024 in Nutley. Located in the town's prestigious Spring Garden section, the pristine 4-bedroom, 3-full-bath, 2-half-bath home offered breathtaking views of New York City in the fall, along with a chef's kitchen equipped with granite countertops, a stainless steel Viking stove, and custom cabinetry — the kind of finishes that make gourmet cooking and entertaining feel effortless. Beautiful hardwood floors run throughout, complementing the home's open, inviting layout, while the expansive backyard features a large pool and huge yard, giving the property a private, resort-like feel just moments from parks, top-rated schools, and NYC transportation. The home closed at $1,175,000, landing it as the second-highest-priced home sale in Nutley for 2024 — right behind Matthew's own record-setting sale at 57 High St — and further reinforcing his position as the agent driving Nutley's luxury market forward.
Recently 180 Highfield Ln in Nutley Listed for $780,000 SOLD for $910,000.00
180 Highfield Lane is one of Matthew De Fede's standout recent sales in Nutley's desirable Highfield Lane corridor — a street known for classic, stately homes just minutes from NYC transit and top-rated schools. The 4-bedroom, 3-bath home hit the market and moved fast: it sold for $910,000 on March 30, 2026, closing 15% above list price after just 6 days on the market — a clear sign of a listing priced and marketed to spark competition rather than simply sit and wait for a buyer. That kind of result doesn't happen by accident; it's the product of Matthew's signature approach — strong visual presentation, targeted digital exposure, and pricing strategy designed to create urgency among serious buyers from day one. For sellers on Highfield Lane and throughout Nutley, it's another example of what's possible when a home is marketed by someone who treats every listing as a launch, not just a listing.
Why Matthew De Fede's Marketing Outpaces the Competition in Nutley
In a market as tight-knit as Nutley, most real estate agents rely on the same playbook: a yard sign, an MLS listing, a handful of iPhone photos, and maybe a boosted Facebook post. It's a formula that gets homes sold — eventually, and often for less than they're worth. Matthew De Fede, owner and broker of Realty Executives Elite Homes, operates from a fundamentally different playbook, and the gap shows up in days-on-market, sale prices, and the caliber of buyers he attracts.
The Creative Director Advantage
Most agents learn marketing on the job, picking up basics as they go. Matthew didn't come up through real estate — he spent years as a Creative Director and Art Director for brands like JPMorgan, Merck, Roche, and the Guggenheim before ever listing a home. That background isn't a footnote on his bio; it's the engine behind everything his office produces. Where a typical listing gets a few snapshots and a templated description, a De Fede listing gets brand-level thinking: composition, narrative, and visual consistency that make a $700K home look and feel like it belongs in the million-dollar tier.
Content Built to Perform, Not Just Exist
Plenty of agents "do social media." Few build content systems. Matthew's office runs structured content calendars, tested post templates, and a defined brand voice across Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube — not sporadic posts thrown up when someone remembers to. His Instagram strategy leans into hyper-local, place-based content — Nutley street tours, neighborhood drives, community moments — because that's the format proven to actually stop the scroll, rather than generic listing photos every other agent posts.
Cinematic Production Where Others Use a Phone Camera
Drone footage, twilight and daylight shots, staged lifestyle scenes, 4K video — these are standard on Matthew's listings, not upgrades reserved for the priciest homes. Combined with geo-targeted Facebook and Instagram ad campaigns aimed at NYC commuters and move-up buyers in Bergen and Essex counties, his listings reach qualified buyers who are actively searching, not just whoever happens to drive by.
A Data-Driven, Not Gut-Feel, Approach to Pricing and Exposure
While many local agents still price by comparison and hope, Matthew's office layers in demand data — pinpointing where buyer interest is clustering street by street — and pairs it with paid search and PPC campaigns that put listings in front of active seller leads before a competitor even knows the property is coming to market.
The Proof Is in the Results
This isn't marketing for marketing's sake — it shows up in outcomes. Multiple Nutley listings under Matthew's stewardship have closed at or near town records, sold well above asking price, and moved in days rather than months. A track record like that isn't luck; it's what happens when a real estate transaction is treated as a full brand campaign instead of a paperwork exercise.
The Bottom Line
Nutley has no shortage of real estate agents. What it has very little of is an agent who thinks like an ad agency and executes like one. That's the difference sellers are paying for when they choose Matthew De Fede — not just a listing, but a launch.
