Real estate agents, brokers and property owners -- some of whom have been living in Bayonne their entire lives -- have seen a change on the Gold Coast's southernmost city.

City officials, who have been spending most of the year digging shovels into the ground for a number of different projects, have high hopes that the buildings that will tower over Avenue E and Broadway in several years will bring new people into Bayonne, which will in turn revitalize the city's downtown business district and service industry.

But those in the business of selling real estate have already seen a positive change in the local market.

In 2013, there were 380 properties sold at an average price of $248,000. Every year since, both the average price of properties and the number of sales have risen, according to Joe Hottendorf, executive vice president of Liberty Board of Realtors in Secaucus.

By the end of August, there were 537 sales in residential properties this year, with an average price of $283,000.

"And we still have four months to go," he added.

The sales on these one- to four-bedroom properties and condominiums have been improving since 2012, while values have also increased 25 percent, according to Chris Piechocki, a real estate agent in Bayonne for the past 16 years.

"There's a great amount of demand and such a lack of inventory that buyers are basically backed up," he said. "And as soon as something becomes active it's pretty much done right away as long as it's priced right."

He sees younger people coming in from "over-priced areas" like Brooklyn, but also sees people who were looking to move to Hoboken or Downtown Jersey City and see a better opportunity in Bayonne.

"I just had two couples who submitted applications who were both from Hoboken," he said. "They feel like their rents are just too inflated in these other areas and they want more for their money; they realize they can have money in their pocket and be an extra 15 minutes from those restaurants and bars.

Meanwhile, property owners here have seen their property values rise substantially while courting multiple offers to sell.

Michael Morris, a city resident and frequent speaker at city council meetings, commented during an August meeting that he had received offers for his properties "substantially higher than what I even thought they were valued at."

"I've had agents come to me directly and ask if I'd consider selling because it's the right type of property that their clients are looking for, and I always leave it open," he said in an interview with The Jersey Journal.

Critics, Morris among them, have expressed concerns over the number of abatements offered to attract developers. City Council meetings have been drawn out with discussions of the terms of abatements.

But everyone seems to recognize the need for redevelopment.

"I'm not against redevelopment in any way, I'm all for it. I have a particular vision, but it's not for me to say," Morris said. "But if you do it the smart way, you win."