American wealth hits all-time record as housing rebounds
According to figures released this week by the Federal Reserve, the net worth of American households and non-profit organizations increased by $1.5 trillion to a new record $81.8 trillion in the first quarter of 2014.
The good news is that roughly half the increase came from higher residential real estate values, while homeowners’ equity in their real estate increased 2% to 53.6% in the quarter.
Another positive sign is that household borrowing rose at a 2% annualized rate, indicating that we are becoming more comfortable about borrowing again, while that debt represents only 108% of disposable income,compared with 135% in 2007.
Overall these numbers, together with improving Consumer Confidence, suggest that the real estate recovery has a solid basis.
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
http://online.wsj.com/articles/americans-wealth-hits-new-record-in-1st-quarter-1401985427?mod=trending_now_2
Salem Power Plant finally closes: cruise ships scheduled for October
The final transmission to the New England power grid is scheduled for 1 second before midnight tonight. The message, according to the Salem News article What next for Salem Power Plant?, will be, in effect: “closed for business.”
According to the Salem News, this is what we can expect to happen in the coming months:
– for about six weeks, the grounds will be made safe – draining oil from machines, disconnecting electricity – for the demolition contractor
– around mid-July sound-proofing fencing will be erected near Derby Street and the demolition of the plant, starting with the oil tanks, will start
– the smokestack that once served units 1-3 will come down, followed by the taller one
– the demolition crew will work roughly south to north along the harbor, and the main plant building will be one of the last things to be demolished
According to Kathy Winn of the Salem Planning department, the deep-water coal dock will be revamped to accommodate cruise ships, the first of which is scheduled to arrive in mid-October. (more…)
Are you following these trends in luxury homes?
On a(nother) dreary Saturday morning, let’s take ourselves away and look at trends in luxury home sale listings. This table shows the changes in terms used in listings of luxury homes (those listed at 4 or more times the median price for their area) from 2012 to 2013 according to Trulia.
Overall, the trend shows increased emphasis on “expansive windows, great views and fitness amenities” and away from “indoor cooking and eating.” (more…)
Here come the sellers – are you ready, buyers?
Each week in Marblehead – and in some other surrounding towns – there is a Broker Tour of new houses coming to the market. This is when selling brokers have the opportunity to show their listings to other agents so that they can recommend the property to their buyers.
It is also a gauge of how much new supply there is. As the spring selling season gears up one would expect the number of listings to increase. It has. And this week there were 18 new Single Family (SFH) and 5 new condo listings on the Tour.It was a hectic morning dashing round to see as many as possible! (more…)
Which property would you buy for $5 million and change?
With the news that a newly listed 3,000 sq ft Boston condo found a buyer in 8 days , I found myself wondering what one could buy in Essex County for that money.
Here are a few current listings: which one would you buy? (more…)
Luxury Home Sales Soar
The National Association of Realtors (NAR) published a report this week stating that Luxury Home Sales Soar Above Historical Average.
In a number of posts over the last year I have suggested that with the stock market at an all time high it made sense for wealthy investors to turn their attention to real estate. And that now seems to be happening. (more…)
Is the housing market recovery really slowing down?
There have been a number of headlines this week highlighting the drop in mortgage applications and new home sales. What, if anything, does that mean for us here in Marblehead and Essex County? While national trends can have significance in framing market sentiment, it is important not to get confused by data from specific areas. We are not Las Vegas, and as the saying goes, “what happens in Vegas should stay in Vegas.” (more…)
Harborside joins the Sotheby’s International network
Some weeks I have to give quite a lot of thought as to the subject matter for my posts. This is not one of them.
“After five years of continued success, we are excited to announce our affiliation with Sotheby’s International Realty. We now offer all the advantages of a locally owned real estate brokerage combined with the vision, power and focus of Sotheby’s International Realty.”
As an Englishman I am very familiar with Sotheby’s and the huge impact they have had on real estate sales worldwide. As the owner of a waterfront property for sale I am very excited about the increased visibility I will get from Sotheby’s national and international marketing through 700 offices in 52 countries.
If you have a property which you believe would benefit from active marketing to a wider audience please contact me.
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
More signs of buyers at top end in Marblehead
A couple of weeks after I reported a sale over $4 million on Bartlett Street, a house on Ocean Avenue, listed at $4.5 million, has received an accepted offer just 5 days after coming back on the market. This house was on the market last year for 6 months at the same price.
Over the last year I have reported that the higher end was slower in Marblehead and throughout Essex County than it was closer in to Boston, and I speculated that this might be a timing issue. Like the ripple from a pebble thrown into a pond, it takes time for increased demand to move outwards from the epicentre of Boston.
But there is increasing evidence that it is now happening. The table below shows sales (and pending sales) by price range:
Source: MLS, Oliver Reports
Note the sale on Bartlett Street was a private sale and is not included in the above table.
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
Housing market: buyers moving up the price chain
In addition to looking at total sales and median prices I like to look at the breakdown of sales at different price levels. At this stage in the housing market recovery one would expect to see buyers trading up and increasing demand for prices at higher levels.
Although the first quarter in Massachusetts typically sees low sales, the breakdown of them does suggest a trend that I will be watching carefully as we move into the spring and summer.
First, sales in Marblehead. Note the drop in sales under $500,000 and the big jump in sales over $1 million.
Source: MLS, Oliver Reports
Beware first quarter housing market reports
Another one for the “Lies, Damned Lies and Statistics” file. (And I hope another reason to read my blog regularly to avoid being mislead.)
You may well see a report saying that the median price in Marblehead increased 19% from last year, which is the MLS figure including all sales. My numbers, which always exclude distressed sales, show a 17% increase. But it is important to know that quarterly numbers vary greatly.
Look at these numbers for Marblehead since 2010. They clearly show that Q1 2013 was well below the rest of the year. I am not saying that the Q1 number is not significant (see Buyers moving up the price chain). Just beware that Q1 a year ago was generally a low quarter.
Source: MLS, Oliver Reports
Housing inventory remains tight heading into Spring
With Spring rumoured to be coming soon (please!) here’s a look at the inventory awaiting buyers.
First Single Family Homes (SFHs). Although supply is a little higher than a year ago in actual numbers, it is slightly lower in terms of months of supply because the rate of sales increased over the last year. For the whole of Essex County supply is just under 3 months, or half the level regarded as a market in equilibrium between buyers and sellers.
The cold winter not only kept buyers indoors but also made it more difficult for sellers to get their houses ready for sale. The economy is improving, albeit still slowly, economic confidence seems to be improving, the stock market is at a high, and the likelihood is that mortgage rates will increase. Coupled with growing awareness that home prices are improving, I believe that 2014 could be a strong year for home prices on the North Shore. (more…)
Two free Marblehead concerts: Sergey Schepkin and Brahms Requiem
For my 200th blog post, I would like to draw your attention to two extraordinary musical offerings coming up shortly. Both will take place at Old North Church, 35 Washington Street , on Saturday, April 5 and Sunday, April 13.
Saturday, April 5 at 8:00 p:m: International pianist Sergey Schepkin will perform works by Bach, Schumann, Debussy and others in a concert to celebrate the restoration of Old North’s Steinway B piano. 
Read Restoration of a Steinway in Marblehead from the Marblehead Reporter.
And on Palm Sunday, April 13 at 7 p.m., the Old North Festival Chorus will perform the rarely heard Brahms Requiem. Written by Brahms after his mother’s death, this Requiem is not the traditional Latin liturgy celebrating the dead, but a full-bodied and full-blooded German celebration of the living. It is a work of epic proportions and this is an incredible musical offering, also free to the public. 
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 781.631.1223 or [email protected]. Andrew Oliver is a Realtor with Harborside Realty in Marblehead
Million Dollar home sales also picking up in Essex County
Two weeks ago I wrote about Million Dollar Home Sales picking up in Marblehead.
My thesis has been that the slowness of sales hitherto at the higher end in Essex County was in part at least the usual delay in activity and price increases rippling out from the centre, starting in Boston, moving to the nearer areas such as Brookline and Newton, and then reaching further out.
This week I have been looking at million dollar plus sales throughout Essex County to see if the same trend I spotted in Marblehead is happening more widely. It is.
Here’s the chart and table for 2000 to 2013.
Sources: MLS, Oliver Reports
The number of sales above $3 million has been pretty constant, while in the $1-2 million range there was a sharp drop before a recovery last year. Sales in the $2-3 million range, however, remain well down on the numbers of 2004-06 (but see below.)
Now let’s look at 2014. So far there are 43 sales and pending sales in the $1-2 million, range, 6 in the $2-3 million range, and 1 above $3 million.
And in Marblehead, since my last report, two $1 million plus properties have had offers accepted after being on the market for less than two weeks.
This activity at the higher end despite the brutally cold weather augurs well for sales – and maybe pricing – in 2014.
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 781.631.1223 or [email protected].
Andrew Oliver is a Realtor with Harborside Realty in Marblehead
Housing inventory: spring is coming, right?
Two years ago the month of February saw just one day when the temperature was below freezing. This year….well you know what’s it been like, hibernation for most of the month. Statistics for sales at this time of year are, therefore, largely meaningless.
Instead, I have been looking at the supply of houses and condos for sale and comparing numbers with a year ago, which was also a cold month if not quite as brutal as this year.
We are assured that it will warm up one day, if not soon. With signs that the economy continues to improve, if slowly, it seems quite likely that spring, if and when it comes, will find buyers chasing limited inventory, again, and that prices, certainly at the lower end, will continue the improvement of 2013.
Here is the inventory by price for Marblehead, Beverly, Salem, Swamspcott and Essex County overall. (more…)
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