Archive for September 2014
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New Townhouses in the City of Harrisonburg |
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 There aren't many new townhouses going up in Harrisonburg -- but The Townes at Bluestone is one example of a new townhouse development that is proving to be very popular with buyers. These townhouses feature plenty of upscale features including:
The next set of townhouses with garages (Lots 98-101) is being released this week. A few price points to consider at The Townes include....
Find out more about The Townes at Bluestone.... | |
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Monitor progress on the new City Hall for Harrisonburg |
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 You can monitor progress on Harrisonburg's New City Hall (rendering above) online -- including viewing up to date construction photos. Click here to view the project updates. This project is scheduled to be complete in Fall 2015. An update as of September 16th follows....
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Jobs coming to Harrisonburg, Rockingham County |
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 The Harrisonburg and Rockingham County area should see plenty of new jobs over the next few years, according to a presentation by Brian Shull (Harrisonburg's Economic Development Director) and Dennis Burnett (Executive Director of the Shenandoah Valley Partnership). Read all about it in this Daily News Record article that was a follow up to Brian and Dennis' presentation to earlier this week. An excerpt follows.... The health care and social assistance sector is poised to add about 700 jobs through 2016, Brian Shull, the city's economic development director, told members of the Rotary Club of Harrisonburg at their Monday meeting. | |
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With 676 homes for sale, will I have 676 great properties to choose from? |
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 As shown above, many homes currently listed for sale have already been on the market for some time, picked over by all of the current buyers in the market. That said, it's possible that one of these homes is the PERFECT house for you, and that seller has been patiently waiting nine months for YOU, the perfect buyer for the house. As we start your home search, we'll first look through the homes currently for sale (realizing that they won't all be great and exciting options) and then we'll start to monitor new listings as they come on the market. | |
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The Seasonality of Home Sales . . . Selling in the Fall |
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 Even if you missed the hot Spring and Summer real estate markets, you will still have a good chance of selling this Fall. As shown above, there were still quite a few home sales in the Fall. And given the number of contracts that have been coming together over the past 60 days, it seems likely that this trend will continue in 2014. If you are planning to sell your home this Fall, let's try to go ahead and take some photos now to show green grass and full trees.... | |
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No Grocery Store? Yes, Conference Center? Ruff Ruff! |
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 PROPOSED GROCERY STORE ON HOLD Per today's Daily News Record, the grocery store proposed to be built on the corner of North Main Street and Mt Clinton Pike may not be built after all -- or at least, the rezoning request has been put on hold. Read more in today's Daily News Record. DOWNTOWN HOTEL & CONFERENCE CENTER DISCUSSED AGAIN Plans for a Hotel and Conference Center intended to be built for downtown Harrisonburg as a partnership between a private developer, JMU, and the City of Harrisonburg may be coming back to life. The matter will be discussed anew at Tuesday's City Council meeting. Here's the history of this topic, including an article from last Friday....
CITY DOG PARK OPENS Stop by Smithland Road to visit the new City Dog Park, or read all about it in last week's Daily News Record article. | |
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Where do JMU college students live in Harrisonburg? |
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 click here for a larger version of the map or here for a PDF Enjoy this updated map showing where JMU college students live, in a few categories of housing....
If you are interested in purchasing an investment property in Harrisonburg -- for college students, or not -- feel free to drop me an email (scott@HarrisonburgHousingToday.com) and we can discuss the best opportunities for you. | |
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Data Center on North Main Street Sold for $59MM |
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 A large data center on North Main Street in Harrisonburg has been sold for 59 million dollars. Read the Daily News Record article for some context for the sale. Here is a summary of the recent history of this property....
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Mortgage rates hold relatively steady just above 4 percent |
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 Average mortgage interest rates (for a 30 year fixed rate mortgage) are hovering around 4.1% -- the lowest we have seen this year.  And looking back even further, we can be even more grateful for this low cost of mortgage money. | |
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Showings remain strong as we roll into Fall |
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 Showing activity remains strong in through August and September -- a promising leading indicator for market activity we may see later on this Fall. * September 2014 data is extrapolated from 9/1/2014 - 9/16/2014 data. | |
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Restaurant, Apartments, Wine Tasting Room (?) Coming to Downtown Harrisonburg |
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 Per the Harrisonburg Downtown Renaissance facebook page, the enormous hole in the ground at the corner of East Market Street and Mason Street (beside Urban Exchange, Rocktown Bicycles and an abandoned gas station) will soon be a much more exciting destination, including....
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Sometimes the best deals are those with recent price reductions |
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 Click on the image above, or visit RecentlyReducedInHarrisonburg.com to explore the homes that have most recently been reduced in price. Let me know if you have any questions about these properties, or if you would like help setting up Property Alerts to receive notifications of price reductions specific to your search criteria. | |
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Fewer Affordable Homes Available For Sale |
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 The biggest shift in homes available for sale has been in the lowest price range in our market, under $200K homes. There are now 30% fewer homes for sale in this price range as compared to three years ago. This shift in the lowest price range is the most significant shift as compared to the other three price ranges shown above. The only price range in which we are seeing increased inventory levels is in the $400K + price range. | |
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Despite the overall decline in sales, the market is not totally lackluster |
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 As shown above, despite a decline in the number of home sales in this area, and a tiny decline in median sales price, we may actually be seeing an increase in home values as explored through changes in price per square foot. Read the entire Daily News Record article about our local housing market for further commentary and perspective. Hot July Housing Market Cooled In August Daily News Record, September 9, 2014 | |
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Fluctuating Inventory Levels by Property Type |
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 click here for a larger version of this graph As shown above, the number of homes for sale fluctuates greatly through the year --- but the degree of fluctuations differs between single family homes and attached dwellings (duplexes, townhouses, condos). Single Family Homes 36% increase in homes for sales between Dec 2013 and Jun 2014. Duplexes / Townhouses / Condos 13% increase in homes for sales between Dec 2013 and Jun 2014. Thus, we are likely to see inventory declines over the next few months --- but the majority of those declines will be in single family homes. | |
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Median Sales Prices Stable Despite 5% YTD Decline in Home Sales |
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 Featured Property: 3273 Barrington Drive, Harrisonburg, VA I just published my monthly report on the Harrisonburg and Rockingham County real estate market. Jump to the full online market report, or download the PDF, or read on for highlights....  If you can sort through all of the lines and arrows above, you'll note that August 2014 home sales (101) fell short as compared to August 2013 (112). After three great months in a row (May, Jun, Jul) it seemed that August was going to push us over the top and catch us up in 2014 to last year's pace of home sales. Not so. Maybe in September??  There is, in fact, some cause for optimism. As shown above, there was a 19% increase in contracts between August 2013 and August 2014 --- and the annual pace of contract signing (1,169) is ever so slightly above where it was a year ago.  Amidst slightly slower home sales, and slightly higher contract numbers, inventory levels (as shown above) are holding steady. We will likely start to see these inventory levels starting to decline as we continue through the Fall.  Despite sales declining (5% YTD) sales prices are staying relatively steady, as shown above. This graph is measuring a "rolling 12 month" value for both the number of and median price of home sales in our area. Care to read about all of the exciting details of this month's market report? You can read it online or download the PDF. Also, as always, if you're interested in talking to me about buying a home in Harrisonburg or Rockingham County.....or if you are interested in selling your current home.....just drop me a line by email (scott@HarrisonburgHousingToday.com) or call me at 540-578-0102. | |
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Up with People, a powerful music and dance show with an international cast is coming to Harrisonburg |
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 Don't miss this amazing show, taking place on September 18 - 20.
PLUS...you have the opportunity to Bring the World into Your Home! Host a member of the cast to connect with other countries and cultures, share your community and local traditions, and receive two complimentary tickets to the show. As a host family, you are simply asked to provide a bed, breakfast and dinner and limited local transportation. If you are interested in hosting a cast member (Sept 15 - 22) please contact Jennifer Carson at 712-541-9880 or jcarlson@upwithpeople.org. | |
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High end home sales lagging slightly behind in 2014 |
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Looking at high end home sales ($500K or higher) it would appear that the pace of sales in 2014 won't necessarily match that of 2013....  As shown above, home sales over $500K bounced back considerably in 2013. Perhaps some of that was pent up demand from previous years? It seems unlikely that we'll end up with 20 sales over $500K in 2014.  As shown above, home sales over $600K also are not faring as well this year as compared to last year.  The graph above would certainly lead us to believe that home sales over $700K will definitely take a hit in 2014. However, it's not all bad news, as there are currently four homes priced over $700K that are under contract....  | |
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What did buyers buy in August 2014? |
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I'm finding 118 properties in the MLS that went under contract in August 2014 that are either still under contract, or have closed. Here is what those 118 buyers decided to buy last month....  | |
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Top 5 Articles in August 2014 |
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 Here are the articles from the past month that your peers enjoyed (read) most.... 1. Starbucks Truck Coming to JMU Campus 2. Bank Owned Properties in Harrisonburg and Rockingham County 3. Two out of five homes that sell do so within three months 4. How long might it take to sell a home priced over $400K? 5. Local Home Sales Surge to 82 Month High in July 2014 Stay tuned for more fun in September 2014, and if you have ideas or hot tips, feel free to email me at scott@HarrisonburgHousingToday.com. | |
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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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