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Archive of Monthly Market Reports |
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![]() Are you curious about the housing trends of yesteryear? Explore my monthly market reports back through 2009 via DropBox.... Click here to access my archive of Monthly Market Reports on the Harrisonburg and Rockingham County Real Estate Market. | |
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Median Sales Prices Finally (finally!?!!) hit $180K |
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![]() For most of the last three years, the 12-month median sales price has been floating between $173K and $176K. Over the past six months it has started to slowly rise..... Finally -- it has hit $180,000. Read quite a bit more about our local market in my entire February 2015 real estate market report online, or by downloading the PDF. | |
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February 2015 Monthly Housing Market Report |
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![]() Before we get to my monthly report the Harrisonburg and Rockingham County real estate market, I encourage you to check out WalkThroughThisHome.com - which highlights the fantastic new technology I am now using to market properties in this area. OK, now, back to the housing market report. As usual, you can jump to the full online market report, or download the PDF, or read on for highlights.... ![]() As shown above, home sales declined 10% in January 2015 as compared to last January, though the 47 home sales seen in Harrisonburg and Rockingham County during January 2015 was the same number we saw in January 2013 -- and more than in January 2012. The slightly slower start in January was accompanied by HUGE increases in the median and average sales price in January 2015 - which is exciting....until we look back at January 2013 and it becomes clear that the January 2014 median and average sales price figures were abnormally low. ![]() As shown above, the 47 home sales we saw in January 2015 fit in well with previous January sales trends. We are likely to see 50 to 60 sales in February and March before things really start to take off in April. ![]() As shown above, inventory levels have fallen over the past year -- so early sellers (listing now or soon) may still have the benefit of exposing their property to the current pool of buyers when those buyers do not have many other options of homes to purchase. Inventory levels will likely stay relative low for the next 30 to 60 days. ![]() As usual, quite a few (37%) homes that sell are doing so in 90 days or less. This, again, emphasizes the importance of pricing your home appropriately for the market, preparing it well to sell, and marketing it thoroughly and professionally. If you are buying or selling now, or will be soon, I encourage you to become a student of the housing market. Learn what has been happening recently, what is happening now, and what is likely to happen next. Being informed will allow you to make better real estate decisions. You can continue your studies by reading the entire February 2015 market report online, or by downloading 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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Buying a townhouse in Harrisonburg or Rockingham County |
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![]() If you are considering the purchase of a townhouse in Harrisonburg or Rockingham County, you'll likely want to know about all of the townhouse communities that might be of interest, as well as knowing recent sales prices in those communities, current availability, etc. Find all of that information, and more, at HarrisonburgTownhouses.com. | |
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EXPLORE MORE Community Education Center, a true multi purpose space in the heart of downtown Harrisonburg |
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![]() click here (PDF) to learn more about the EXPLORE MORE Community Education Center Explore More Discovery Museum moved to its current location in downtown Harrisonburg in 2010. Expansion has always been part of the long-term plan and vision. With two upper floors available and ready for build-out, the time has come to start the climb. The future 2nd floor Arts & Innovation area will offer eight new, interactive exhibit galleries! Climb in the quarry, fly the airplane, create movies, music and art! With a successful campaign, our kids will finally be able to enjoy their tree house... yes, it's time to climb!! The 3rd Floor Community Education Center will provide greatly needed multi-purpose space for educational programs and special events. Two new classrooms and a kitchen facility will offer unique opportunities to expand enrichment offerings. A generous donor has offered to match all contributions up to $250,000 if received by February 14, 2015. Show how much you love your community museum and consider a contribution today by clicking here. | |
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Preparing to sell your home that has trees in front of it? Let's take a photo now! |
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![]() Significantly less of this house would be visible after the leaves come out. If you're thinking of selling this Spring or Summer, and you have trees (especially large house-obscuring trees) we should discuss taking some exterior photos NOW rather than waiting until later when we can't see your house at all. | |
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Distractions and Objections |
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![]() (don't worry -- this is not really one of my client's homes) Preparing your home to go on the market can be challenging (and tiring), and often sellers-to-be need a second (or third) set of eyes to provide suggestions about where to focus their time and energy. There are many different theories about how to best prepare your home to be on the market and viewed by buyers --- and ways of expressing those theories.
Distractions are the things that keep a prospective buyer from focusing on your house. That might be knick knacks, or family photos, or refrigerator magnets, or an overflowing pantry, or fascinating artwork, or an abundance of indoor plants, or a strange odor, or brightly colored wall hangings. Whatever it is --- if a buyer is focusing on one (or more) of these items, they're not focusing on your house. They're reading all of the Far Side comics on the fridge instead of marveling at the granite countertops, tile backsplash, recessed lighting, and stainless steel appliances. They're amazed at how you fit 234 board games into the coat closet instead of taking in the quality workmanship of the trim detail in the foyer, and the mountain views out the picture window in the family room. As you prepare your home to go on the market, close your eyes for a few moments when standing at the entrance to each main living area. Then, open your eyes, and take note of where your eyes are immediately drawn. Or, walk slowly through the space (or ask a friend to help) seeing where your eyes (and your mind) linger. Objections are those correctable physical characteristics of your home that give a buyer a reason to mark your home off their list, or to move it down a notch in their preferences. Perhaps it is that the vinyl siding needs to be power washed, or that three bi-fold closet doors need to be adjusted, or that there is poor lighting in the kitchen, or that the deck needs staining. There are oftentimes small home maintenance items that should be attended to before putting your home on the market. There are two potential dangers of having these items unresolved --- first, a buyer might become too overwhelmed by the work that they need to do to the home once they move in, and second, a buyer might extrapolate from what they can see to imagine what they cannot. A classic example of this is the dirty furnace filter that makes a buyer assume that the HVAC system has never been serviced, is in a terrible state of disrepair, and will need to be replaced immediately. As you're preparing your house to go on the market, I'm happy to provide you with another set of eyes and to give you some new perspectives on how to best prepare your home to be shown to buyers. When you're ready, just give me a call (540-578-0102) or send me an e-mail (scott@HarrisonburgHousingToday.com). Also, don't fret about having your home in perfect "show condition" before you call me --- I'm happy to give you some guidance and feedback while you're still in the process of preparing your home to go on the market. | |
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What did buyers buy in January 2015? |
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![]() How did buyer activity and seller activity compare in January 2015?
And focusing in on those buyers, what exactly did they buy last month? | |
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Home Sales Preview: January 2015 |
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![]() Looking back at sales in recent months we find that....
The current month, however, has thus far not been as exciting. We'll need to see quite a few more sales recorded in the MLS over the next few days (that closed in January) in order to come up on par with last January. Stay tuned for my monthly market report, or feel free to catch up by reviewing last month's report. | |
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Monthly housing costs on the rise |
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![]() It had to happen eventually. The analysis above shows the monthly cost of financing 80% of the purchase price for a median priced home over the past ten years. A few observations....
The increases in monthly housing costs over the past two years are not surprising, because....
As a buyer, you still have a great opportunity to lock in some relatively low monthly costs of homeownership -- and there is some value in acting sooner rather than later, as these costs are likely to continue to increase over the next few years. Here's the data behind the graph.... A few notes....
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Home Sales Back In Line With Population? |
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![]() The Weldon Cooper Center just released their 2014 Population Estimates and Harrisonburg and Rockingham County are growing, as usual. 2014 Population Estimates:
If we take 2000 home sales as a baseline portion of the population to be buying in any given year, and then we project forward based on actual population growth, we can conclude that....
Based on the data presented above, I believe the new "normal" number of people to be buying per year may be around 1,050 - 1,100 home sales. Read today's Daily News Record article for more commentary on these new population estimates. | |
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What are the odds that a contract will result in a closing? |
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![]() On average, six out of every seven contracts results in a closing. In some ways, that is great -- 87% seems like a pretty proportion of contracts to successfully close. However, it flipping it around, it isn't the most exciting news in the world to realize that one out of every seven contracts fails. Common reasons for a contract to fall apart include:
Whether you are buying or selling, we need to discuss and anticipate these possibilities ahead of time, and make sure we are structuring contract contingencies to best protect your interests. Of note, this analysis is not 100% precise. Technically, some of the 2014 closings are based on 2013 contracts, some of the 2013 closings are based on 2012 contracts, etc. That said, these differences usually balance themselves out from year to year. | |
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Finding the Best Deals in Harrisonburg |
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![]() I recently created HarrisonburgAssessments.com, which analyzes the relationship between sales prices and assessed values. And then it hit me -- what if we compared list prices to assessed values -- might we find the best buying opportunities in and around Harrisonburg? Introducing . . . . BestDealsInHarrisonburg.com! Are the 30 properties on this new website REALLY the best deals in Harrisonburg? Possibly. The properties featured on BestDealsInHarrisonburg.com are being offered at a low list price compared to their assessed value. This is likely to mean that they are a "good deal" -- though if their assessed value happens to be high (relative to their market value) then the deal won't be as sweet. As always, consult a Realtor (such as myself) for expert advice on whether any particular property really is a great deal. BestDealsInHarrisonburg.com is simply shuffling some good prospects to the top of the pile for your consideration. What are you waiting for? Go check it out at BestDealsInHarrisonburg.com. | |
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Finding the Assessed Value of Your Home |
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![]() How, you might ask, do you find the assessed value of your home?
You can now search for your home's assessed value on HarrisonburgAssessements.com. Before you go search, however, please remember that....
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Homes that sell do so relatively speedily |
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![]() As shown above, 37% of homes that sold in 2014 closed within 90 days of being listed for sale. Homes that are prepared well for the market (repairs, improvements, staging), and priced well (know thy market) and are marketed well, will often sell relatively quickly. All that said, don't forget that there are some factors outside of your control as a seller. | |
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Walk Through 655 White Oak Circle |
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![]() Take a few minutes to walk through this updated duplex on a cul-de-sac, located in a private, wooded, highly convenient location in close proximity to Sentara RMH Medical Center, James Madison University as well as dining, shopping and much more. Enjoy an open floor plan on the first level with a large living room, kitchen with dining area, office/sunroom and a bedroom with attached full bathroom. Upstairs you will find an additional large bedroom with full bathroom as well as a walk in unfinished attic space for additional storage. Don't miss the two back decks, gas fireplace, stainless steel appliances (gas range!), hardwood floors, fresh paint, updated light fixtures, blinds on all windows, two bay windows, ceiling fans, storage area on the back deck and hardwood treads on the stairs. Click here to walk through this home now, on your computer, phone or tablet. Or, visit this home's property website. Or, view lots of pretty photos of this home by clicking the collage below.... ![]() | |
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How to buy a foreclosure in Harrisonburg |
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![]() As shown above, we are starting to see fewer foreclosures in Harrisonburg and Rockingham County. With some regularity, I am asked by potential purchasers how they would go about buying a foreclosure. First, here is a list of upcoming foreclosure sales, but more importantly, below is a description of a few ways to buy what you might be thinking of as a foreclosure. If you are in the market to buy a home, some of the properties you might be considering are foreclosures – but there are some distinctions to be aware of at different stages of the foreclosure process. It is possible to buy a home from the owner before they are foreclosed on even if they cannot pay off their mortgage – this is called a short sale. Or, you might buy a property at the courthouse steps when it is being auctioned – this is called a trustee sale. Finally, if a property does not sell at the auction, you can buy the property from the lender after they have taken ownership of the property – this is called a bank owned property or REO property. SHORT SALES: Some homeowners must sell their home, but market conditions won't allow them to sell it at a high enough price to be able to pay off their mortgage(s). In this example, a homeowner might have a $250,000 mortgage balance but can only sell the property for $230,000. As a prospective buyer, it is sometimes possible to purchase this type of a property through a process called a "short sale." In such an arrangement, the homeowner petitions their lender to accept less than the full payoff of the mortgage and in return to still release the deed of trust so that ownership of the property can be transferred over to you, the new owner. This can benefit the lender, as they skip the time delays and cost of the foreclosure process. This can also benefit the homeowner, as a short sale will have a slightly lesser negative impact on their credit as compared to a foreclosure. As a buyer, however, you must know that there are challenges to buying a property as a short sale. The biggest challenges of late seem to be the uncertainty of the purchase and the time table. Even if you and the homeowner agree to a price of $230,000, the homeowner's lender must still agree to accept that price – since it won't allow the homeowner to pay off their $250,000 mortgage balance in full. This process of waiting to hear back from a lender, and then complying with all of their various terms can sometimes take 60 to 120 days – or longer! Visit HarrisonburgShortSales.com for a list of potential short sale properties currently on the market. TRUSTEE SALES: If a short sale does not take place, and a homeowner is behind on their payments (or not making them at all), eventually the property will be sold by the lender on the courthouse steps. Buying a property at a "trustee sale" can be exciting, and can be a great opportunity – but there are challenges as well. If a property to be sold at a trustee sale is also listed for sale with a Realtor, you can usually view the property ahead of time by calling your Realtor. Otherwise, you will likely not have the opportunity to see inside the property before the trustee sale, and thus you will not know too many details about the condition of the property. Furthermore, your purchase of the property at the trustee sale cannot be contingent upon viewing the property, or inspecting the property. In this instance, you are purchasing the property in "as is" condition, regardless of what you then find out about the property. It is also important to note that many times the lender will have an opening bid at the trustee sale that is close to (or sometimes higher than) the amount that they are still owed on the mortgage. Thus, in the example above, they might make an opening bid of $250,000. As a result of this opening bid process, many (or most) properties available for purchase at a trustee sale are not great opportunities. Occasionally, a property will be foreclosed upon that has had a mortgage in place for many years, whereby the balance of the mortgage is much lower than current market value – these are great opportunities for a buyer. Visit HarrisonburgForeclosures.com for a list of upcoming trustee sales. BANK OWNED PROPERTIES: If you don't buy the property before the auction (as a short sale), and don't buy it at the trustee sale, you'll have a third opportunity to buy it once the bank owns it. These properties are called "bank owned properties" or REO properties ("real estate owned"). Oftentimes, the prices on these properties are quite realistic, if not under market value. It would not be atypical for a house such as the one mentioned above to come on the market after the trustee sale at a price of $210,000. In such an instance, you should expect to be buying the property in "as is" condition, and you will also be buying with a slightly different contract document. Most lenders have a long standard contract or contract addendum that spell out a variety of additional contract terms designed to protect them from any future liability – and rarely will a lender agree to have these contract documents changed in any way. As you can see above, oftentimes buying the property as an REO property is where the best opportunity lies. Visit HarrisonburgREO.com for a list of bank owned properties currently on the market for sale. When a home goes into foreclosure it is often for very sad and unfortunate reasons – such as the loss of a job – and I do not wish such circumstances on any homeowner. However, if you are a buyer in today's market it is important to be familiar with different methods for buying a property when it will be, is being, or has been foreclosed upon. | |
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How do Assessed Values compare to Market Values? |
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![]() How do Assessed Values compare to Market Values? Wonder no longer! You can now find out via HarrisonburgAssessments.com. You'll want to visit this new site for full details, but here is a quick snapshot.... ![]() Find out more about the relationship between market values and assessed values at HarrisonburgAssessments.com. | |
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Mortgage Interest Rates Get Lower, and Lower, and Lower |
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![]() Here's my monthly updates on long-term mortgage interest rates and they (AGAIN!) have dropped over the past month. The average rate is now 3.66%. It is a great time to lock in your interest rate if you are buying a home! | |
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Sales of Building Lots Finally (Slowly) Improving |
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![]() After a huge spike in sales (408 lot sales in 2004) and in median prices ($99,900 in 2006), the sales of building lots cooled quite a bit between 2004 and 2009. The last few years, have shown slow but steady growth in this segment of our market -- 60 . . . 61 . . . 79 . . . 83 sales over the past four years. This has also resulted in stability in the median sales price, which has been right around $55,000 for the past five years. The next question is -- where (and when) will we see the next new development of single family home residential lots.... | |
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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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