Archive for December 2008
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Offering to buy, or offering for sale, which comes first!? |
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 So you want or need to buy a new house, but you must sell your current house before you can close on the new one. Do you wait to try to sell your house until you have a contract on a new house, or do you wait to make an offer on a new house until you have a contract on your current house? This is a bit of a puzzling question in the current market, and two of my clients are currently wrestling with this enigma. Option 1 - offer to buy first
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Warm yourself (and others) up this winter with coffee from Lucas Roasting Company |
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 Whether you're warming back up after a long, exciting night at the JMU football game this Friday, or you're relaxing with friends or family on wintry (snowy???) evening, consider doing so while enjoying some delicious, freshly roasted coffee from Lucas Roasting Company! You'll not only be keeping yourself warm, but helping those who can't afford the luxury of warmth. Here are the details from the fine folks at Lucas Roasting Company (in Broadway)... We at Lucas Roasting Company know that if you are reading this, you are probably doing so from the comfort of a warm home. While many of us enjoy the luxury of warmth, there are some for which the cost is unaffordable. Please know that by supporting our company this winter, you will also be supporting families all around the Shenandoah Valley in Virginia as we give a portion of our proceeds from EVERY sale, wholesale and retail, towards keeping families warm during this cold season. Our company desire to help others runs deep, and we hope you will help us with our efforts while enjoying your very own cup of hot, delicious coffee from Lucas Roasting Company. Don't delay, order coffee today! :) | |
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Jump out there and make the offer! |
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 Home sales are slow which means that buyers will likely be able to negotiate on the price of the home they hope to purchase. All of my clients that have ears know this, and thus I often find myself answering the question of "how much do you think we could negotiate on the price?" I always have some thoughts on how much we may be able to negotiate, often influenced by:
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What sold in November 2008? |
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 As my November 2008 monthly market report shows, November 2008 was a rather slow month for real estate sales --- only 40 properties sold (closed) in Harrisonburg and Rockingham County, which is the lowest sales level we've seen in (at least) six years. With so few houses selling, let's see if we can come to any conclusions about what did actually sell, but first, two side notes:
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Who is getting involved in the conversations about local news and issues? |
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 One of the local blogs I read is hburgnews.com -- if you're not already reading it, you definitely should! One phenomenon that has been great to observe is seeing local government employees engaging in online conversations. One recent example is on a post about Delayed Green Arrows around Harrisonburg, where a several Harrisonburg staff people explain some recent improvements in traffic engineering. In the ensuing discussion concerns are brought forward and are then addressed by the city employees. Then, Brad Reed (Traffic Analyst with Harrisonburg Public Works) goes on to say... I'm excited to say that we will be finished with the new Traffic Engineering Division website in the near future. The site will go over the basics of how the city's signals are timed and coordinated and will give everyone a look at the components used to operate a signalized intersection. We would love to hear everyone's comments and suggestions, which is why the new site will also include a comment form dedicated to signal-related concerns. I encourage everyone to use the new form when it is released. In the meantime, if you would like to follow up or have any questions, please feel free to call the Public Works Department at (540) 434-5928. Another great example of engagement by the local government is outgoing City Councilman Charlie Chenault's willingness to jump in to provide the facts or clear up misperceptions. I appreciate you, my blog readers, who often comment and provide your feedback here --- and I recommend you also read hburgnews, and jump into the conversations happening in that forum. It's a great way to not only know about the latest news in Harrisonburg, but also to be a part of conversations that will shape our area's future. Here's to open, transparent, responsive local goverment! | |
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November 2008 Home Sales Report for Harrisonburg & Rockingham County |
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The November 2008 Harrisonburg & Rockingham County Real Estate Market Report is now available. Click here for a printable PDF of this report.  November 2008 sales (40) show a drastic drop (-63%) compared to a (higher than normal) month of sales in November 2007 (108). However, even with a slower sales pace, year to date average sales prices and median sales prices are holding relatively steady.  The pace of home sales has steadily declined since August 2008. November 2008 sales (40) were especially low compared to a surprisingly strong November 2007 (108 sales). A decline at this time of year is not atypical, but a 40-sale month is the lowest sales figure we have seen in six years. December has showed an increase over November in four of the past five years, so we may yet see an influx in buyers this year.  This graph shows a normalized trend of home sales by charting the ongoing sum of the preceding 12 months' sales. Despite an increase in sales pace for October 2008, this month we again see a continued decrease in this long-term sales trend.  Inventory levels have dropped to February 2008 levels, which will likely help the health of our local market. We have seen an oversupply of properties for sale for many months, and a decrease in supply (even amidst a decrease in sales pace) is a good sign.  Supply levels across most price ranges have stayed steady this month, except in the $400k+ price range. Six months of supply is often seen as a healthy balance between a seller's and buyer's market, so we still have some adjustments before we reach such a balance. | |
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The value (or cost) of pre-inspecting your home |
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 I am currently representing the buyers of a house that was pre-inspected before it came on the market. That is to say that the homeowners engaged a home inspector to inspect their own home before they put their house on the market. Then, going a step further, the homeowners made almost all of the repairs that the inspector suggested. Good for the owner, good for the buyer... Going through the inspection process and making repairs before any buyers even look at the house can be very helpful. You can discover and address significant issues that might otherwise derail a transaction when a buyer conducts the home inspection. In fact, my clients were quite relieved to see how many repairs the homeowners had made on the house they are purchasing. Bad for the owner... If you, as a homeowner, are not willing to make repairs as a result of the inspection, you might not want to pre-inspect your home. Having the information, you would then need to disclose the adverse issues to buyers -- which would just focus their attention on what had previously been unknown to everyone. It is likely the buyers would have conducted their own inspection anyhow, and thus would have discovered the items, but why bring up these adverse facts at the beginning of the process if you aren't willing to fix them. Bad for the buyer... If a homeowner pre-inspects their home, it is often the case that they will be reluctant to make any further repairs at the requst of a buyer. Most homeowners in this situation decide that they have made all of the repairs which are reasonable for a buyer to request --- so if a buyer starts requesting other repairs... Given the good and the bad... I strongly recommend that sellers pre-inspect their home if they suspect there may be some needed repairs and if they are willing to spend the time and/or money to make the repairs. | |
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Mandatory water conservation for Harrisonburg? |
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 A week or so ago I noticed an announcement on the City of Harrisonburg's web site stating that voluntary water conservation was in effect. I was a bit intrigued, but I couldn't find too many details explaining our current water situation. However, WHSV ran a story yesterday indicating that mandatory water conservation might soon be in effect. Apparently, Switzer Reservoir currently has 568 million gallons of water, and if the reservoir drops below 510 million gallons, it would trigger mandatory water conservation. From WHSV . . . "In mandatory conservation, you can't use more than three gallons of water to wash your car or water your lawn. You can't use a decorative fountain in your garden. Restaurants also aren't supposed to serve you water at a restaurant unless you ask." Thankfully most of us probably aren't planning to wash our car, water our lawn or fill our garden fountains anytime soon! | |
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Money is cheap! Interest rates keep heading down! |
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 Interest rates keep going down --- the Daily News Record reports today that they're down to around 5.375% for a conventional 30-year fixed rate mortgage. If you're considering a home purchase in the next month or two, it might be worthwhile to consider getting the ball rolling now, while interest rates are so favorable! Of note --- one statistic in the article is way off base... "In addition to lower mortgage rates, home prices also have reached extreme lows. Prices of single-family homes plunged a record 17.4 percent in September from a year earlier, according to the Standard & Poor's/Case-Shiller Home Price Indices." That may be the case nationally, but locally, we have seen home sales prices remain stable. | |
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Banks eager for short sales!? |
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 A short sale is one where the sales price was insufficient to pay the total of all liens and costs of sale; and where the seller did not bring sufficient liquid assets to the closing to cure all deficiencies. In other words, the seller had to sell at a price where they needed to bring money to closing, but they couldn't. A short sale almost always results in an incomplete payoff of one or more mortgage debts, so a lender has to agree to a short sale. Lenders are apt (in the current market) to consider a short sale because they are likely to recoup more of the money owed to them than if they are forced to foreclose on the property. I am listing a property this week that will almost certainly be a short sale, and I was surprised to learn from the owner that the bank had encouraged the short sale and was quite willing to go along with a short sale. This was somewhat of a surprise to me because over the last years I have heard countless stories of lenders who are hesitant to consider a short sale, and instead pursued foreclosure. If you are considering buying a property that will be a short sale, it will likely take a little bit longer for the transaction to take place, as the bank must approve of the deal that is worked out between buyer and seller --- but a short sale can be a great opportunity to buy at a good value. | |
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Good News & Bad News: Downtown property values are on the rise |
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 From the Daily News Record we learn that with the latest City assessment, the 173 parcels in the downtown business district had a median 25.22 percent increase in assessed value. That's great news for downtown property owners, as the value of their properties have increased --- but not so great news for those same owners from a property tax perspective. And from a larger perspective, I think it's terrific news, as it shows that downtown Harrisonburg is continuing to be a great place to live, work, eat, shop, play and more. | |
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Web Site Enhancement - mortgage calculator |
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 I'm working on several exciting improvements to my web site, and this is the first. It's been a long time coming, as many of you have asked if there is any way to integrate an easy to use mortgage calculator along side the property listings. At last, the calculator is in place --- allowing you to quickly determine the principle and interest of your monthly mortgage payment. Enjoy, and let me know if you have any difficulties using it. | |
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Moving On UP at Urban Exchange! |
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 The framing is continuing at a rapid pace at Urban Exchange in downtown Harrisonburg, future home of 196 condos, and 12,000 s.f. of retail space. View more construction photos on the Urban Exchange web site. | |
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Scott Rogers
Funkhouser Real
Estate Group
540-578-0102
scott@funkhousergroup.com
Licensed in the
Commonwealth of Virginia
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