Havre de Grace Real Estate Dec 2011 & Year End

With the New Year upon us, it is now time to evaluate what we can expect out of the economy in 2012. Nationwide unemployment has slimmed down to 8.5%, and housing has started to show signs of life. Although the banks are expected to release a large number of foreclosed properties to the market, interest rates are still quite low, and because home prices have been so reasonable, affordability is at an all-time high. Home sellers can also expect to take advantage of this market, since they will make out huge when they purchase a new property, in spite of the fact that they may not get as much as they’d like from the sale of their existing home. It’s a balancing act.

Speaking of balance, we are still looking for that magic level. In Havre de Grace, MD, sales actually decreased in December over the same month a year ago. However, during this period in 2010, this area was experiencing a heavy influx of new residents, since that was when the Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) was at its peak, and many people were aggressively shopping for homes. I also recall a rather busy January last year, so we can expect the numbers next month to appear gloomy on the surface, even though they are actually somewhat skewed.

13 homes got new owners during the month in Havre de Grace, transferring at a median sale price of $311,000, which is up almost 14% from the same month in 2010. It took 42% more time to locate a buyer, with the average time on market being increased to 186 days. The total number of properties currently listed is lower as well, with 152 properties available for sale. The 5-home difference between last year and this year can be explained in the number of distressed sales, with eight closing last December, compared to the three during December of 2011.

The fact that the economy has started to climb out of the slump is only evident in the way that the market finished out the 2011 year, since the overall total sales for the Havre de Grace zip were almost identical to what they were in 2010. At year-end, there were 202 homes that sold, up ever-so-slightly from the 205 that sold in Havre de Grace, MD in 2010. The leveling of sales may indicate that we are poised for a surge that might be beginning in the spring of 2012. Feel free to contact me at scott.miller@century21.com or by visiting www.scottmillerrealestate.com.

Havre de Grace Real Estate November 2011

There was a rather notable shift in the market for Havre de Grace real estate from last November to November of 2011. Although the number of homes sold actually decreased by 31%, the price of those properties transferred went up by 17.5%. When I saw this, I had to look even further; not because I thought that it was a fluke, but to see what type of homes were actually selling.

I found out that they were actually all over the place. The lowest-priced home sold was a little foreclosure on Alliance Street that went for $51,000, and the most expensive was a condo down at Heron Harbor that changed hands at the bulky price of $550,000. Of course, there were others mixed in; a new construction in Greenway Farms, and a brand new 3 acre colonial with over 4,000 square feet in Briney Farms (see picture).

So where does this bring us? Havre de Grace is changing a bit, with a large portion of the property there being a little pricey, and as we all know, this end of the market is less susceptible to unemployment and other issues plaguing millions of Americans these days. What is going to happen as the market rebounds is kind of counterintuitive; the average price of a sold property will actually go down as the economy improves, since more lower-priced homes will sell which will moderate the figures.

Havre de Grace Real Estate October 2011

The statistics portraying the real estate market in Havre de Grace actually indicate a clear picture of the overall economy. There has been some major uncertainty in the financial markets, with much of the turmoil being caused by what is happening on an international level. BRAC seems to be a thing of the past, with the effects on the local real estate market being much less significant than expected.

Only 7 homes changed hands in October in Havre de Grace, MD, during October, as compared to the 17 that sold last year during the same time. First, we have to keep in mind that the market was in pitiful condition last year, so when we see a 58% drop off in sales, there is even more cause for concern. The median sold price is down to $200,000 from $305,000 from last year, but I wouldn’t read too much into that since it’s such a small sample. Additionally, despite the fact that only 7 homes sold, it took them an average of 153 days to get someone to sign on the dotted line.

Even though lending standards have gotten high, it’s not as difficult to get a loan as one might think. FHA loans can still be gotten for as little as 3.5% down, and there is a renovation loan program that will assist with the costs to improve a home that might need repairs. There is also the USDA loan that allows buyers to purchase with no money down, and even in those situations, it is possible to have the seller pay some of the closing costs. Some areas of Havre de Grace are actually eligible for this type of loan.

Interest rates are still at record lows, so it is still an opportune time to take advantage of this market. Don’t be scared off by the turmoil that has already passed- let’s move forward and reap the rewards of steady appreciation. Visit my website at www.scottmillerrealestate.com for more information.

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Havre de Grace Real Estate September 2011

Things improved in Havre de Grace real estate during September- whether compared to August 2011 or September of 2010. There were 20 homes that changed hands in Havre de Grace during the month, as compared to 17 from last year at the same time, and the putrid 13 that sold during August of this year. The time to sell actually went up slightly from 99 days last year to 103 this year- a meaningless difference. Also, and notably, the median sold price actually slid pretty considerably from $319,000 to $275,000.

Probably factoring in the sales price reduction is the number of distressed sales that took place. There were 4 foreclosures and 3 short sales during the month in the 21078 zip for a total of 7 out of the overall 20 that transferred. That represents 35% of the overall sales in the market-a trend that we can expect to continue into next year. Although the federal Government is kicking around the idea of finding a way to rent out the foreclosures that are expected to hit the market, I have my doubts about this plan (feel free to contact me any time for my opinion about this at scott@scottmillerrealestate.com or by calling my cell at (443) 866-6728.

Another item of note is the type of financing used to purchase the homes that did sell. Surprisingly, 5 were purchased using cash, 9 were conventional loans, 4 were FHA, and 2 buyers utilized the VA program. The fact that so many homes used cash and conventional financing indicates that more experienced buyers were in the market, and that there is room left for more first time homebuyers in the Havre de Grace Area.

Havre de Grace Real Estate August 2011

It doesn’t seem like there has been much action in the 21078 this year. While sales have steadily declined as BRAC starts to wind to a halt, it has been extremely clear in the Havre de Grace Area.

The number of units that changed hands during the month was down an astonishing 50% from last year, dropping from 26 to 13 at a time where we all expected to be I a much better market. The average sales price did increase slightly from $294,734 to $303,805, and with that, it actually took an average of 13 less days to sell a home in the riverfront city.

This may be due to a couple of different factors. Government uncertainty led the way, since there have been numerous concerns surrounding a variety of programs. Also, inventory decreased by almost 20%, so there were just less homes to choose from. This might be attributed to the lack of foreclosed properties on the market as compared to a year ago. Finally, the new regulations for underwriting Government-backed loans have made buying prohibitive for some. While in the past couple of years we have seen first-time homebuyers leading the market as far as number of buyers, this was not the case in Havre de Grace during August. Of the measly 13 homes that sold, 7 used a conventional loan, which means that most people who bought had to have higher credit scores than normal, along with more cash to put down.

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Havre de Grace Real Estate July 2011

Real estate sales did increase slightly in July in Havre de Grace, MD, with 18 homes changing hands, up from 17 from last year. On the other hand, the time on market actually jumped from 140 days to a depressing 178 days, suggesting that homes are probably a bit overpriced. I also think that the number of short sales and foreclosures was a bit less in this zip code, since the average sales price for a home in Havre de Grace was a rather strong $232,194.

Another strong component was the number of listings, which, while still rather high, did decrease from 206 last July to a more stable 165 this past July. This represents a little more than 9 months of inventory- still more than 2 times the amount that would indicate a healthy real estate market in Havre de Grace.

So what if the Lock House Museum got listed for sale? Would that give the slumping market a boost? Would there be a bidding war for the historic, waterfront property? Probably not, since it’s a museum, and reserved for teaching history, but the point remains. When will the market start a more rapid acceleration? In my opinion, when home prices settle a little more, and the quality of inventory improves to the standard of the average buyer in the Havre de Grace real estate market.

Learn more about the Havre de Grace, MD real estate market by searchingwww.scottmillerrealestate.com.

Havre de Grace Real Estate June 2011

Saying that the real estate market in Havre de Grace was unremarkable in June 2011 might be a bit of an understatement. After seeing a drop in sales in May when compared to last year, another drop is being seen this June. This might be due to last year's stronger numbers resulting from the extension of the home buyer's tax credit, which required people to settle by June 30th, 2010. Still, after the tear that the Havre de Grace real estate market went on in the first quarter of this year, it is rather surprising that the market has cooled off as dramatically as it has.

Sales dipped by 17% when compared to last June in the Havre de Grace, MD real estate market, and the financing activity seemed to be split down the middle between FHA and VA financing. This would suggest that half were probably first time home buyers and that half were likely move-up buyers. The good thing is that the total days on market (DOM) decreased by 10.59%, and the number of active listings dropped by 14%. Could the decrease in sales be due to the decrease in inventory? It just might be….

Just how many homes are out there in the Havre de Grace real estate market? Well, currently, there are 178 homes for sale in Havre de Grace, compared to 207 from last year. That translates into 9 months of inventory on the market for Havre de Grace, MD’s real estate market, which is about twice as high as we’d like to see. Hopefully, with some of the improvements that are being attempted with regards to financial markets administration, we might see a more active market toward the end of the year.

Feel free to use the search tool at www.scottmillerrealestate.com to search real estate in the Havre de Grace market.