Local Market Observations
What do you see in your housing market this weekend? Statistics? “For houses selling for $400,000 and above, there is a 10 to 20 month supply, depending on the price. For houses in Chittenden County selling for more than $650,000, it’s 20 months. In an ironic twist, Maura Collins, policy and planning manager for the Vermont Housing Finance Authority, said she believes the tax credit programs the federal government offered potential homebuyers in 2008 and 2009 to spur sales are probably hurting the market now. ‘It really helped keep the market moving when it was really scared and dead, but what we’re seeing now is that the dead market is probably dead longer because people who would have bought this year or next probably already did it a year ago,’ Collins said.”
“‘I wouldn’t be surprised if there was very little movement this summer, even with low interest rates,’ Collins said. ‘They’re not going to lower interest rates any more. They won’t do a tax credit. They already did that and with the federal budget being what it is, they can’t do it again.’”
“Collins said that while she doesn’t see a double dip in Vermont, housing prices continue to fall in most of the state outside of Chittenden County. ‘In 2010, we found the statewide median price of a home recovered by 2 percent, but when you look at the broader picture, prices are still falling in most of the state,’ Collins said. ‘Volumes are still way down,’ Collins said. ‘Nothing is moving.’”
“What a ride this has been, eh? Magic Mountain’s Apocalypse has nothing on our housing market these past few months. By the numbers, April sales in Southwest Riverside County were down 15 percent from March and 14 percent under April 2010. In Temecula sales were down 14 percent from 2010 but up 17 percent over 2009. Murrieta was down 18 percent from 2010, just 7 percent under 2009. Lake Elsinore was down 19 percent from 2010 but even with their 2009 pace.”
“Foreclosure filings in California fell to lows not seen since the fall of 2008. Foreclosure sale cancellations rose 27 percent from March, primarily due to increased efforts by lenders to work with more short sales. Their success rate hasn’t improved much, but the four major banks have all indicated a renewed willingness to explore short sales.”
“Activity on the courthouse steps slowed from the prior month, with 17.2 percent fewer sales Back to Bank and a 15.8 percent drop in properties purchased by third parties, typically investors. The average Time to Foreclose continued to climb, increasing 3.3 percent to 312 days. That’s right, people are now staying in their homes an average of 312 days without making a payment. Of course that’s the average – tales of two years or longer are not uncommon, especially among people who have attempted a loan modification followed by an attempted short sale only to wind up in foreclosure.”
“It remains a seller’s market in Richmond, according to the Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver. In its latest statistics released Thursday, the median selling prices of local houses, condos and townhomes surged again in May compared to April, with a single family Richmond home selling for the median price of $990,000. That’s up five per cent compared to April’s $940,500.”
“Long-time Richmond realtor Patsy Hui was somewhat surprised that Richmond house prices jumped again last month. While some realtors speculated that the earthquake and tsunami in Japan scared off the Chinese buyers who have largely fueled the Lower Mainland real estate market since November, Hui is more a believer in statistics. With more than 900 homes listed for sale, there’s simply too much supply in Richmond, Hui said.”
“Though the market isn’t as hot as it was in December, January, February and March, she’s still seeing some homes receive multiple offers and selling for above asking price.”
“Over the last couple of years they’ve become a staple, stretching over two or three pages of each Wednesday’s Gazette. They are notices of foreclosure or sheriff’s sales, and they’re the local result of a sub prime mortgage crisis and an 18-month national recession. Last year, one in five of the single-family homes sold in Janesville was the result of a foreclosure, according to figures from the South Central Wisconsin Multiple Listing Service.”
“In Janesville last year, bank-owned properties accounted for 132 of the 659 single-family homes sold. In Wisconsin, about 14 percent of the homes sold were bank-owned homes or properties in some stage of foreclosure.”
“Mike Eliason, Kitsap County Association of Realtors executive director, said the size of membership in the association usually reflects the marketplace, and for the past four years, numbers have dropped from 1,100 to around 600. There were 1,600 active residential listings in Kitsap County in April, down 13 percent from a year ago, according to numbers provided by Sandy Foote with Windermere Real Estate/West Sound. ‘It’s a good thing because there’s less homes to choose from. We have a limited number of buyers and the more houses we have, the less chances it will sell,’ she said.”
“On the downside, 23 percent of homes sold within the last six months were bank-owned (foreclosures) and another 8 percent were from short sales — two categories referred to as ‘distressed sales.’ ‘A lot more people are buying bank-owned houses. Typically they are better priced,’ Foote said.”
“Some uncertainty about the market is created by the so-called shadow market, properties banks are ’sitting on’ instead of foreclosing, and properties in the foreclosure process. Many Realtors believe, however, that the banks will be releasing those gradually so as to not cause even further price dips.”
“Fred Depee with John L. Scott in Port Orchard is seeing another shift in Kitsap County, reflected nationally as well. He said government regulations such as in Urban Growth Areas are skewing property values. ‘I don’t think most people realize real estate in Kitsap County is never going to be the same,’ he said. ‘I see it nationwide. It’s been obvious but subtle the last three to four years in Kitsap.’”
“He said the other side is that many young people today don’t think they’ll be able to afford a home, so they are losing the dream of homeownership. ‘If people lose the dream of homeownership it will dramatically change the landscape,’ he said.”
