Cost vs. Value Report: 2008: REALTOR® Magazine

Cost vs. Value Report: 2008: REALTOR® Magazine

Local home sales soar in Nov., reports say - Daily Business Update - The Boston Globe

Local home sales soar in Nov., reports say - Daily Business Update - The Boston Globe

Posted using ShareThis

Great Price for 4 BR Colonial in Boxborough!

SEASON'S GREETINGS!!

Properties are going under agreement during this holiday season!! This is typically a slower time but there is nothing typical about 2009. Mortgage rates continue to stay low and inventory is lower than this time last year. The buyers are still looking to take advantage of the extended tax credit and are out and about. Prices may have hit bottom especially in the towns with strong school systems.
The spring market starts right after the holidays, so if you are planning a move, call soon!

Housing gloom in state lifts a bit more - The Boston Globe

Housing gloom in state lifts a bit more - The Boston Globe

Posted using ShareThis

Median Sales Prices Vs.One Year Ago

So, I decided to check out the difference from last year:

Median Sales Prices

As the real estate market begins to stabilize, I decided to see where the median prices were in surrounding towns. The following chart shows the median sales price for single family homes, over the last year, as of September 30, 2009. Source: MLSPIN

Supply and Demand

Supply is going down in a lot of towns which may point to a more balanced market.
Here are the absorption rates by town as of today September 6, 2009:

New York Times Article - In the Grip of Indecision

This article rings true for a lot of my clients right now.
Click on link below:

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/08/16/realestate/16cov.html

Absorption Rates-Supply vs Demand

So, what is an absortion rate? In real estate, it measures the supply vs. demand for the current housing market. We look at the number of houses that sold in the last 12 months and determine the average # sold per month. Then we calculate the number of month's supply currently on the market. In other words, how many months at the current rate, would it take to sell what is currently being offered.
In a Seller's Market there tends to be 4 or less month's supply, balanced market has 5-7 month's supply and over 7 month's supply in a buyer's market.

Here's what's happening in my world as of July 4, 2009



Harvard has one of the top school systems in the state and is an awesome town. So, why is there such a large supply of homes on the market there? Prices rose steeply in Harvard in the past several years and perhaps they need to come down some more.
Inventory in most towns is lower than two years ago but demand has slowed as well. Acton and Boxborough are experiencing a more balanced market as they have more affordable housing than Concord and Sudbury.
Absorption rates can also vary greatly within price ranges in a given town. You may have a house in Concord in the $900,000's and that absorption rate would be only 5 months, whereas a house in the 1,000,000-1,500,000 may have a lot more competition and thus a longer market time.

For more specific information, feel free to call or email me.

Cheers and Happy 4th of July!!!

Fabulous Home in Boxborough! New Price!

Rates Rising and so are Sales!

Mortgage rates are on the rise and so are pending sales! Since June 1st, in the last 12 days:

Accepted offers:
Acton 15 (48 total pending)
Concord 8 (36 total pending)

Boxborough has seen 4 accepted offers in the last 5 days! (9 total pending)

First time home buyers are driving the increase in sales but we are also starting to see the high end properties go under agreement as well.

source: mlspin.com

Keller Williams Realty is rockin'!

April '08 to April '09 the New England Region is:

+12% in agent count for a total of 2,257
+10% in Listings Taken
+10% in Listing Volume
+11% in Listings Sold
+15% in Contracts Written
+10% in contracts Closed

It's a great feeling to be part of this team!

Spring Real Estate Update

The market is buzzing as it should be with these prices and mortgage rates! The sales continue to vary by town and price range. The buyers are out in full force, knowing that things could turn soon. Acton sales are out pacing previous years while Concord is still lagging. This has a lot to do with price. The first time home buyers are buying and that will trickle up, allowing trade up buyers to buy and so forth.

If you have any questions, please ask! Email: ginette.brockway@verizon.net.

Cheers!

MOVING ON! Well, the first quarter sales numbers are in and as usual, the results vary by town. Acton appears to be bouncing back while Concord is still experiencing fewer sales. This may be because the moderate priced areas are selling and the high-end buyers, most affected by the stock market, are still regrouping.

There is pent up demand as buyers have been waiting for the market to bottom out. It would seem that we are close to the bottom if we haven't already hit it. The buyers are out and I am very busy with buyer and seller appointments. People are moving on with their lives and taking advantage of the low prices coupled with low interest rates. This is probably the best time to buy that I will see in my lifetime!

Here are the first Quarter Single Family Sales for the last 5 years:

2008 is over and looking back, the actual numbers are not nearly as bad as other parts of the country. I analyzed the market going back 20 years to try and determine if we were going to see an increase in sales in 2009. If you look at the other downturns, the answer would be yes. There are different factors this time so it's really difficult to predict. One thing we know for sure is that these cycles happen and the real estate market will improve again, it always does. Low interest rates are sparking some activity now and people are tired of waiting and need to get on with their lives.


In terms of local towns, I am including data for Acton and Concord. If you are interested in others areas, let me know and I would be happy to chart those as well.

Median prices in Acton were level over last year according to MLS, Concord however experienced a 12% dip. This is less dramatic than the 2006-2007 trend which showed Acton prices down 11% and Concord down 19%.