Home Bidding Wars are Back?
April 2nd, 2009 Categories: Market Conditions, Real Estate
Current events and local news coverage has not been presenting a very rosy picture out there for the housing market. Economic news is overwhelmed with negative results.
So, Why am I dealing with multiple offers?
- A Hopkinton foreclosure home currently has fifteen, yes 15, offers on it! My Buyer had to offer over asking price just to have a chance at it!
- My Milford estate sale listing is Under Agreement with only 17 days on market.
- A listing I have on Fisher Street in Medway had 3 offers on it and is awaiting Bank Approval on the “short sale”.
Here is an April 1st article about some national experiences like this: Read the rest of this entry »
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Strength in the Ashland Housing Market
March 3rd, 2009 Categories: Ashland, Market Conditions, Real Estate
Ashland Massachusetts is a community that is tucked away in the shadows of the larger Town of Framingham, but some people have noticed it!
The housing market is reflecting overall declines of 12% in median prices, but Ashland is holding up very well.
The median prices in single family homes for the town is $419750, for the 12 months ending 3/1/09. The median price for the 12 months prior to this was $423750.
This is an overall decline in median price of 1%!
The inventory of available homes in Ashland is quite low. There are only 47 single family homes on market. This is a decline of 23% from a year ago.
The single family homes on market have been available for an average of 176 days, or almost 6 months.
The real estate industry uses a term called “consumption rate” to describe whether we are in a Buyer’s Market or a Seller’s Market. Read the rest of this entry »
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Tarot Cards for the Massachusetts Economy
March 2nd, 2009 Categories: Market Conditions, Real Estate
There is an awful lot of data out there on the state of the market. Many of these articles give projections of how long this recession will last, and others how a buyer/investor could take advantage of this housing crisis. One of the best sources I have found is the Greater Boston Housing Report Card.
In October 2008, The Center for Urban and Regional Policy at Northeastern University put together this report card. Here are my summary of some interesting sections:
Building permits are an indicator that new homes are not being added to the marketplace. This results in Read the rest of this entry »
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National Dec Housing Numbers
January 27th, 2009 Categories: Market Conditions, Real Estate
All real estate is local. National numbers are important to the country, but your local town holds the numbers that you really care about as a homeowner. CNNMoney.com posted an article with December sales and median price results nationally.
Here is the national summary:
Annual number of sales in 2008 was 4.91 million units.
This rate in 2007 was 5.65 million units
The rate in 1997 was 4.37 million units.
In the Northeast specifically, the sales pace in December was 720,000 units, down 14.3% from December 2007.
Median existing home price was $175,400.
Median price in Dec 2007 was $207,000, which is a 15.3% drop.
The report states that home prices were pushed lower by the high volume of distressed sales, which accounted for 45% of December transactions.
Take a look at the local numbers that we report on www.Metrowesthome.com for a better feel for numbers critical to you. We are seeing very low inventory right now and something has to break, either more inventory or it is going to put upward pressure on pricing.
Ed and Doriane Daniels are part of The MAhome Team, a Metrowest Boston real estate group ready to answer any questions or concerns regarding our local market. They can be reached at 508-341-7880.| Discussion: No Comments »
If you wait for the Robins, Spring will be Over.
October 28th, 2008 Categories: Ashland, Framingham, Holliston, Hopkinton, Market Conditions, Real Estate
I couldn’t keep from creating this blog title after reading it in a Warren Buffett Op Ed piece. It was in the New York Times Oct 17th. Now, I understand that everyone will critize the Realtor speaking positive about the real estate marketplace, but I am excited about this Low!
When is the “Low”?
You won’t know it until you see it in the rear view mirror.
Now don’t get me wrong, I am a real estate agent in a very down market. I am working harder and dealing with more emotions then I have in my 10 years. If I can manage scraping up a little cash, I will be putting it into equities and real estate NOW.
I worked an open house a few weeks ago, and at least 3/4 of the visitors were interested, but waiting for a bit longer for the market to fall further. This was a very real display of pent-up demand.
Another contridictory real world example is a client looking for a $800K home in Holliston but not having more than a handful of options in the past 3 months. Do I really need to direct mail a neighborhood to let them know I have a Buyer for them? That is not the real estate market that the Boston Globe is reporting about!
In scanning over the region’s 3rd Quarter real estate stats, the median prices are reporting grim news to homeowners:
Holliston down 13.6%
Hopkinton down 8.7%
Framingham down 7.2%
Ashland down 7%
Natick down 5.4%
In regards to the number of sales, the region has 12.8% fewer sales!
OK, where you are ready to jump out a window, I am now salivating! Yes, I do own a home, but I am not ready to move yet. Therefore, no sweat.
Take a deep breath Massachusetts, the sky has not fallen and it is time to start figuring out how to take advantage of this market, not how to escape it!
| Discussion: 2 Comments »
Foreclosure Update in MA
July 30th, 2008 Categories: Market Conditions, Real Estate
The Boston Business Journal and the Warren Group reported today that the foreclosures in Massachusetts doubled over the first 6 months of the year compared to last year.
Not good news, especially for the 6,707 homeowners who had foreclosure deeds recorded on their homes.
The recording of a foreclosure deed is the final step of a foreclosure process. In the lengthy process that the banks go thru in order to foreclose, looking at the different foreclosure filings is a great indicator as to how the MA market is doing.
The first step in the foreclosure process is called “petition to foreclose”. These numbers are a bit confusing. In June of 2007 there were 2,308 petitions filed, and in 2008 there were only 350. This is a huge drop. Perhaps a more accurate number may be the year-to-date petitions which increased to 13,076 from 12,899 in 2007, which is a 1.4% increase.
The explanation by The Warren Group is that a recent law passed postpones foreclosure petitions. Ah-ha, that explains it!
So back to that first number, with 6,707 foreclosure deeds recorded in the first half of this year. You have to compare it to the market as a whole to put it in perspective. (at least I do)
The Massachusetts housing market has experienced 40-50,000 single family home sales for the past 10 years. The condo market accounts for about another 20,000 sales per year.
Doubling our current pace brings us to a bit over 13,000 foreclosure deeds. That would be 22% of the yearly market. Sounds like a big number! I will keep you posted on how this changes and if this recording of foreclosure deeds turns out to not make it to a final foreclosure in the end.
| Discussion: 3 Comments »
Why low Housing Starts is good news for the market
June 20th, 2008 Categories: Market Conditions, Real Estate
I saw this graph of the Housing Starts for the past 3 years, and I fell that it is only good news for the overall depressed housing market.
The May stats fell by 3%. The May building permits also declined, and this number is widely looked upon as a leading indicator of future activity.
Here’s the explanation of my optimism:
Less supply = More demand = Home Prices Increase.
That was easy, now we just have to see it in action!
The President of the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) suggested that home builders are “doing the right thing.” A decline in the production of new homes will lower the supply of available homes, which is a key step in stabilizing the housing market. The NAHB also pushed for Congress to pass a housing stimulus package to boost demand.
| Discussion: 1 Comment »
Mortgage Interest Rate Historical Perspective
June 18th, 2008 Categories: Market Conditions, Mortgage Updates
A mortgage broker friend sent over this chart to me a bit ago and I wanted to share it with the readers. Sometimes with all the reporting and the daily grind we lose perspectives on our current situation. In terms of mortgage interest rates, boy, do we have it good?
If you would like to research refinancing or getting a pre-approval, feel free to give me a call. I have worked with several mortgage brokers and lenders who would look at your financial picture for no charge or obligation. Service is an important factor in this area, and shopping for that last bit of the lowest interest rate may not be worth the headache. I can get you started in the right direction.
I also came across this graph of the Number of Home Sales in MA since 1991.
If the MAhome Team can answer any of your real estate related questions, give Ed or Doriane Daniels a call at 508-341-7880.
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Crystal Ball on Holliston Real Estate
May 15th, 2008 Categories: Holliston, Market Conditions
The market in Holliston is showing signs of life. OK, not out of the woods yet, but there are certainly some indications that the slide has ended.
Take a look at this market report graph on Median Price:
Since January, the 90-day trend line has Read the rest of this entry »
| Discussion: 1 Comment »
How Rumors Get Started 101
April 30th, 2008 Categories: Market Conditions, Real Estate
I read an article from the Milford Daily News this Sunday that made me pause. The article headline reads:
Clerk: 805 Vacant Homes in Franklin
Now that got my attention because the town is not THAT large and the housing stock isn’t all low end condos or multi-families, which I am noticing large inventories of vacant and bank owned properties.
So I dug a bit deeper…
My conclusion: what a great example of bad reporting on the market!
Am I sensitive because I am a Realtor? Am I more positive about the real estate market because I rely on the success of home sales to have food with my meals?
No, I determined that I am logical and analytical about this market, if I do say so myself. Show me the stats and I will buy into it.
So why don’t I agree with this article (read full text here)?
- No reliable source
- Sending wrong messages to the public
- No relevance to conclusions drawn
Let’s take this article apart:
| Discussion: 2 Comments »
