Which matters more – home sales numbers or price?
No, no, it’s not a trick question.
I am also intrigued when I hear or read of a report on commentary about the real estate market which leads with sales numbers. I suspect – usually correctly – that such a report comes from a Realtors’ association. I mean, how many houses does the average home buyer buy or sell in a month, or a quarter, or a year. Quite. (more…)
Why we don’t all move to San Francisco
After this winter we’re all planning to move to a warmer climate right? Like San Francisco.
But no, we will stay here, at least most of us will. Buy why? (more…)
Which broker should sell my house?
You’ve decided to sell your house. The big question is: which broker should you hire to sell it? And how do you make that decision? (more…)
$30 million to repair potholes
Both my Republican and Democrat friends think Charlie Baker is off to a good start as Governor. And it’s not just because there are no stories about the money spent on new curtains for his office.
Today the Baker Administration announced a $30 million WRAP (Winter Recovery Assistance Program) to patch up potholes and other repairs. (more…)
Housing inventory: how low can it go?
A recent Boston Globe article Snow delays spring market highlighted the lack of inventory in the, you know, “important” markets such as Cambridge and Somerville.
We know inventory is down from last year, when if you remember we had the polar vortex, but where do we stand, here in Essex County and indeed throughout Massachusetts, compared with the last several years? (more…)
Essex County Housing Inventory by town
Here is a town by town breakdown of inventory compared with a year ago.
Source: MLS, Oliver Reports
Essex County Housing Inventory at low levels
Low inventory has, rightly, been cited as a factor frustrating many would-be home buyers. But how low is inventory currently?
Here is the answer, comparing today’s supply with that a year ago, for Essex County, first for Single Family Homes (SFHs). To put these numbers into perspective, the total represents just over two months of sales based upon the last year. A market with six months of supply is generally regarded as one being in equilibrium between buyers and sellers.
Sales are, of course, lower in winter, but nevertheless these numbers suggest a severe shortage of homes for sale as we move towards spring. (more…)
Why home prices will go up in 2015
I have been asked more than once recently when the supply of homes for sale will increase and return to more normal levels.
My answer is that the improving economy, increased job security and higher incomes, unexpectedly low mortgage rates, and the realisation that real estate has not appreciated as much as other asset classes all combine to create a market with more buyers than sellers.
And we know what happens when demand exceeds supply – prices go up. And higher prices are what I think it will take to get more inventory onto the market.
If you – or somebody you know – are considering buying or selling a home and have questions about the market and/or current home prices, feel free to contact me on 617.834.8205 or [email protected].
Andrew Oliver is a Realtor with Harborside Sotheby’s International Realty Sotheby’s International Realty® is a registered trademark licensed to Sotheby’s International Realty Affiliates LLC. Each Office Is Independently Owned and Operated
You can REGISTER to receive email alerts of new posts on the right hand side of the home page at www.OliverReports.com.
@OliverReports
Farewell February: we shall not miss you
“Stay not upon the order of thy going but go” are, according to my memory, the words spoken by Lady Macbeth. But when I checked, I found the actual quotation is:”Stand not upon the order of your going, but go at once.” I don’t wish to criticise Shakespeare but I actually prefer my version.
And either is better than the “modern” text version:”Don’t bother exiting in the order of your rank, but just leave right away.”
How can anybody take the majesty of Shakespeare’s prose and turn it into such prosaic English is beyond me.
It reminds me of the story I heard of a young Rabbi explaining to a man in his new congregation that the rewriting of Psalm 23, in which “my cup runneth over” became “my cup overflows”, was to make the meaning clearer. Unconvinced, the man replied:”Rabbi, my cup runneth over, it’s my toilet which overflows.”
And what, if anything, does this have to do with real estate you may be asking?
Well, I suspect a lot of people are fearing that the snow will be on the ground well into – I won’t say spring, but let’s say April. People will stay indoors, home owners won’t be able to get their houses ready for sale, and the housing market will freeze (ho ho!) up.
How long the snow will remain on the ground is, therefore, a factor in the housing market. Earlier in the week I posted The snow may disappear earlier than you think quoting Dave Epstein (@growingwisdom). Epstein has now posted another excellent article Spring really is coming. Well, that’s not the actual title of the article, but again I like my version better than the author’s.
The article explain how the hours and intensity of sun shine will increase dramatically over the next three weeks. As Epstein says:”This increase in solar radiation will start to rapidly melt the snow and transform our barren landscape.” The transformation may also extend to the real estate market. Whether you are a buyer or seller, it is time to get ready to act.
I had an email recently from a frustrated buyer who has been looking for over a year for a house to buy. He asked what it will take to increase the very low inventory of houses for sale. Here is my answer: Why home prices will go up in 2015.
If you – or somebody you know – are considering buying or selling a home and have questions about the market and/or current home prices, feel free to contact me on 617.834.8205 or [email protected].
Andrew Oliver is a Realtor with Harborside Sotheby’s International Realty Sotheby’s International Realty® is a registered trademark licensed to Sotheby’s International Realty Affiliates LLC. Each Office Is Independently Owned and Operated
You can REGISTER to receive email alerts of new posts on the right hand side of the home page at www.OliverReports.com.
@OliverReports
The best and worst performing real estate markets
I have read a number of articles recently about the best and worst real estate markets but none of them mentioned Essex County. This article corrects that oversight.
The first table follows the pattern of many articles in looking at the extent of the recovery since 2009: (more…)
Marblehead housing market: “there’s nothing to buy”
If only the snow would shrink as quickly as Marblehead’s housing inventory.
Buyers are surprising active given the weather:
Source: MLS, Oliver Reports
While sellers appear to have hibernated: there are just 19 houses for sale currently under $1 million. (more…)
Marblehead sales history under $1 million
After I published my Record Million Dollar Sales post with numbers for the last 15 years I was asked to do the same for sales under $1 million. Here goes – in chart form!
First, the number of sales. Note that in 2000 there were 54 sales under $300,000. That number slumped to just 1 in 2005 as prices increased. Similarly, the number of sales from $300-499k more than halved in the strong market of the early 2000s, while sales from $500-749k doubled. The trends then reversed during the slump and changed again as the market recovered.
Source: MLS, Oliver Reports
Did you miss my post about property taxes
Judging by the number of post views it appears that many regular readers missed my post last Sunday, just before the Super Bowl started, explaining how property taxes are calculated.
The easiest way to make sure you do not miss posts is to register to receive email alerts of new posts. This ensures that you do not miss articles and allows you to read those which are of interest to you.
To register go to the home page at www.OliverReports.com and on the right hand side, below the page titles you will see this:
Enter your email address, hit Subscribe and click CONFIRM FOLLOW in the email you will receive instantly.
If you – or somebody you know – are considering buying or selling a home and have questions about the market and/or current home prices, feel free to contact me on 617.834.8205 or [email protected].
Andrew Oliver is a Realtor with Harborside Sotheby’s International Realty Sotheby’s International Realty® is a registered trademark licensed to Sotheby’s International Realty Affiliates LLC. Each Office Is Independently Owned and Operated
@OliverReports
Million Dollar sales jump in Essex County
Sales of Million Dollar homes in Essex County in 2014 jumped by 40% and are within 10% of peak levels of 2005/2006.
Of the 34 cities and towns in Essex County, 30 recorded at least one sale over $1 million in the last 15 years; 20 saw a sale over $2 million; and 18 notched up a sale above $3 million.
Source: MLS, Oliver Reports
For those wanting a town by town break down, here is a spreadsheet with all the details: Essex_County_Million_Sales_2000_14_town (more…)
Record Marblehead Million Dollar Sales
In line with my forecasts during the year, sales of Million Dollar houses in Marblehead reached a new record level in 2014.
Source:MLS, Oliver Reports
Over the last 2-3 years we have seen the normal trend in a recovering market. The improvement started at the lower end has since spread upwards, reaching the upper end in 2014.
At the highest level, however, there are substantial variations. On the one hand are modernized, well-protected houses that are selling at good prices. But houses that need substantial work or need completely redoing, or which have weather-related exposures which are better understood with all the publicity given to flood insurance in the last few years, are selling at what can appear to be bargain levels.
Truly at the top end, buyers need to be aware of what they are getting – and they seem to be. (more…)
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