March Residential Highlights
Market activity in March showed forward progress for month-to-month comparisons, but remains slow compared with the level of activity a year ago.
When comparing March to February 2008, closed sales were up 22.2% (1,691 v. 1,384) while pending sales also increased 5.5% (1,938 v. 1,837).
On the other hand, comparing March 2008 with March 2007, closed sales were down 39.1% and pending sales decreased 36.9%. New listings also dropped a slight 1.8%.
Also notable in March was a decrease in the level of inventory from February. At the March rate of sales, the 15,412 active residential properties would last 9.1 months.
First Quarter/Year-to-Date
Comparing market activity through March 2008 to the same period in 2007, the first quarter also shows slowing in the number of transactions. New listings grew 7.3% (14,695 v. 13,697).
However, closed sales dropped 32.6% (4,285 v. 6,359) and pending sales were down 35.6% (5,282 v. 8,204).
Appreciation
A comparison of the 12 months ending in March 2008 with the 12 prior shows that the average sale price appreciated 4.9% ($344,700 v. $328,700). Using the same formula, the median sale price appreciated 5.1% ($290,000 v. $276,000).
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*The information above is from the monthly market action report produced by RMLS and used by permission of RMLS. This information is copyrighted by RMLS, All Rights Reserved.
Wednesday, April 16, 2008
How to Improve Your Listings Appeal
1. Increase curb appeal. It's nothing new. HGTV has a whole show devoted to curb appeal. It is quite easy to over look the outside of the house but you can't forget that not only is it the first impression but you need people to want to come in. Perhaps try driving around and take note of what attracts you to other homes and try to include that in your own listing. Look at the landscaping, paint, roof, shutters, front door, knocker, windows, house number, and even how window treatments look from the outside. You need your listing to stand out from those around it.
2. Punch up color. Paint is the biggest bang for your buck when trying to alter a rooms atmosphere. People are moving away from the boring white and you should too. That doesn't mean suggesting to your sellers anything like fuchsia or bright turquoise but neutral based colors are very attractive. Recommend to them soft colors that say “welcome,” and flatter skin tones. Think soft yellows and pale greens. Ceilings should be a lighter shade to make the room feel open.
3. Upgrades in the kitchen and bathroom. These make-or-break rooms can spur a sale. But besides making each squeaky clean and clutter-free, update the pulls, sinks, and faucets. In a kitchen, add one cool appliance, such as an espresso maker. In the bathroom, hang a flat-screen TV to mimic a hotel. Room service, anyone?
4. Bring back the detail. Try some crown molding which is proportional to the room’s size, and architecturally compatible. Try keeping in mind the year the home was built if it is an older home. As long as it's visually interesting and not overwhelming, buyers are really coming back to architectural detail.
5. Touch up hardwood floors. Buyers favor wood over carpet, but refinishing is not always an option and also not necessary. Screening is a light sanding, not a full stripping of color or polyurethane, then a coat of finish. This simple effort can have a big impact.
6. Organize closets. Get sorting—organize your piles into “don’t need,” “haven’t worn,” and “keep.” Buyers are discouraged by closets that are stuffed full because they think it won't hold all their stuff either. You want the closet to be about half full for showings. This really helps buyers visualize.
7. New window treatments. Buyers don't want fancy-schmancy drapes that darken. You might use your window treatments to keep light out in order to sleep in or watch movies but buyers like light and bright. Consider energy-efficient shades and blinds or just some fabric that is more sheer and light diffusing instead of light blocking while showing the home.
8. Get a home inspection. Be proactive. Any buyer that isn't looking for a fixer-upper is going to want a move in ready situation. If you get the minor issues taken care of ahead of time and have the receipts to prove it, buyers should be impressed.
http://www.realtor.org/rmomag.NSF/pages/homeanddesignapr08?OpenDocument#8%20quick%20fixes
PLEASE CHECK OUT OUR NEW PODCAST ON THE HOMEPAGE OF OUR WEBSITE http//:www.TonyandLibby.comThursday, April 10, 2008
Floor Plan Trends
Builders now-a-days are trying their hardest to appeal to what they believe truly attracts today's buyer. There are different ideas of what people want which gives the consumer a nice variety of home types that fit their personal needs. Here are four builders and a look at each of their strategies.
Arbor Custom Homes. Arbor's latest and greatest creation is the bungalow style that has been interpreted rather broadly that appeals to first-time buyers and borrows from multiple architectural styles. Although they have a variety of floor plans to choose from, there are some common elements that Arbor feels are key. First they have their master bedroom on the main floor, either that or a den on the main that could be a bedroom. This is very popular right now because buyers either like the convenience for themselves or elderly members of their family. The den option is also important because of the number of people who work out of their homes today. Computers have become a part of everyday life and every member of the family uses one so Arbor includes at least three areas in every floor plan that is suitable for a computer setup.
Centex Homes. It used to be that every room had its specific function and they were all closed off from each other. It is now desirable for everyone to be able to hang out together, even if they are not all doing the same thing. That is why Centex focus is on open floor plans and traffic flow. Also included are formal dining rooms which, like formal living rooms, had been falling out of favor for quite sometime.
Renaissance Homes. The favorite of all the Renaissance floor plans has become Belissimo. What makes Belissimo so special is what they call a "brain space". This is a little pocket or miniature office on the stairway landing which is open and available to all family members, makes it easy to keep an eye on kids while the parent is on the computer and makes it easy to keep an eye on kids while they are on the computer. This home also features a master suite with an adorable seating area and separate sink areas in the master bathroom.
Pacific Lifestyle Homes. Master suite, or any bedroom on the main floor seems to be a huge draw for buyers today. Pacific Lifestyle Homes has their Rainier floor plan which includes just that and it sold like crazy. It was so popular that they introduced four more plans with main floor bedrooms. Some of the other plans might not have a "bedroom" on the main but will have a bonus room or den that are large enough to be a bedroom and have an adjacent half-bath. These plans offer a full bath conversion is the purchaser knows it is going to be used as a bedroom.
The big idea here is that what the buyer wants, the buyer gets!
New Home Monthly (a special publication of the advertising department of the Oregonian) - Saturday Feburary 16th, 2008 - Volume 6, Issue 12, Page 6
Thursday, March 27, 2008
How We Will Know The Market Is Moving Back Up
Some say a recession is coming, depending on who you ask, it is already upon us. Some day the economy will improve again and it will be time to act accordingly, but how will we know when that is? Here are some key indicators from the housing market.
New Jobs vs. New Housing. In the past there was about one new home owner for every two new job openings. If your market has builders scaling back, like we do, but new jobs are still being created then at some point the builders will have to pick it back up to meet the new demand. That is a good sign that we are on our way back.
Fewer Builder Concessions. Times like these it is easy to get all kinds of free stuff and offers from home builders just trying to get rid of their abundance of inventory. Concessions like free mortgage payments and toasters are taken off the table once the economy picks up because people are going to buy anyway.
Months' Supply. A normal housing inventory in months is usually around six. This means that it takes about 6 months to sell all the houses that are currently on the market. At the end of '07 the nation was at 10 months and some areas of the country were much higher than that. When the inventory in your area starts coming down to more normal levels, good things are on the horizon.
Visitors Per Listing. It's Spring time and showings for home listings are naturally on the rise, but for this time of year it can still be considered pretty low on number of views. If showings, and length of showings, increase a noticeable amount we could be making a turn for the better. More showings means people are actually considering buying a new home, which usually indicates a general confidence in the economy.
Rising Apartment Rents. It is a great time to own an apartment building right now, or so I've been told. No one is buying and they seem to be able to charge anything they want for rent. Eventually it will go on too long or they will raise the rent too high and renters will start checking out some of those home listings.
Realtor Magazine - April 2008 - Page 21 - 5 Signs of a Housing Market Pickup
PLEASE CHECK OUT OUR NEW PODCAST ON THE HOMEPAGE OF OUR WEBSITE http//:www.TonyandLibby.comFriday, March 14, 2008
February Market Report
February Residential Highlights
Activity in the
Year-to-Date
When comparing market activity for January-February 2008 to the same time in 2007, statistics show that the number of new listings was up 10.4%. On the other hand, closed sales decreased 29.5%. Pending sales also fell 34.7%.
Appreciation
When comparing prices for the 12 months ending with February 2008 with the prices for the 12 months ending in February 2007, the average sale price appreciated 5.8% ($344,700 v. $325,800). Using the same formula, the median sale price in the
PLEASE CHECK OUT OUR NEW PODCAST ON THE HOMEPAGE OF OUR WEBSITE http//:www.TonyandLibby.com
Wednesday, March 12, 2008
Real Estate and Technology
Lead Capture Technology: First the Internet Now Cell Phones
The Internet and now mobile…Will the real estate industry adopt mobile marketing applications in the same sluggish way that internet eventually became the norm? It has only been 10 years since www.realtor.com became the starting place for anyone looking to buy, sell, rent, and list properties; in those years the same people began carrying a cell phone with them eighty-plus percent of the time. Now with text messaging growing faster than any other form of communication in the world, the opportunity to capitalize has presented itself.
XAP Realty, a Los Angeles based real estate marketing company has created a lead capture solution to utilize the fact that cell phones are now carried by all buyers. The concept is extremely simple, www.xaprealty.com provides real estate agents, individual sellers, and property management companies with interactive yard and rider signs. The signs allow prospects to request the listing information of a particular property by sending a text message. The prospect is immediately sent the listing details including: address, price, beds, baths, acreage, MLS#, agent’s contact information, and more. Simultaneously, the agent or property manager is sent an email that includes the prospects phone number and the listing that he/she is interested in viewing. The service acts like an on-site assistant, reporting full property details and taking down new lead information 24 hours a day 7 days per week.
XAP Realty benefits realtors by capturing more leads using the non-invasive communication medium of text messaging. XAP Realty saves realtors time and money by providing prospects with the relevant information they need, and reducing materials. Last of all XAP Realty simplifies the process by providing prospects with an effective means of saving the listing information they require, thus making the job easier the realtor.
The question of whether realtors will stay on the cutting edge of technology remains unknown, however, with regards to cell phones XAP Realty interactive signs are already being used in a city near you.
PLEASE CHECK OUT OUR NEW PODCAST ON THE HOMEPAGE OF OUR WEBSITE http//:www.TonyandLibby.comTuesday, February 26, 2008
Making a Comeback
A classic home style in the Portland area is enjoying a renaissance. Tudor-style homes can be anything from three-bedroom bungalows to huge mansions but builders haven't been going with the Tudor design since the 60's, that is until now.
They've previously been found in some of the older neighborhoods like Alameda and Grant Park and some of these have been renovated, but you can also find brand new construction with the same elements. Half-timbered stucco, diamond-pane windows, oak floors, French doors, wrought iron railings and dark wood built-ins are some of the details that help define a Tudor home, and the appeal seems to be a perfect blending of modern and classic.
The variety is wonderful too because there is truly something to be found for almost every need. You can find an 80 year old home that you can fix up yourself or has already been done for you. There are brand new detached homes with all the accents and even condos and town homes are getting in on the act. Take a look and you'll quickly find something to your liking.
The Sunday Oregonian - February 17, 2008 - Homes & Rentals H1-H2
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