2011 Real Estate Recap – Lower Cape Cod, MA

January 21st, 2012
Real estate on Cape Cod fluctuated greatly in 2011, varying from town to town and from one month to the next.  It started out with a bang, but by the end of the year sales were down in many areas. Here is a sales summary for the Lower Cape towns: 

Brewster -  Brewster saw 141 single family homes sold in 2011 at an average sale price of $369,000, compared to 139 SFH sold in 2010 at $365,000.  Condo sales were down, with 47 units sold in 2011 at an average of $192,000, versus 63 units sold in 2010 for $210,000.  The sales outlook for 2012 appears much stronger however, and the market is already picking up. To date in Brewster, 6 single family homes and 2 condos sold during the first 3 weeks of January.  Additionally, 20 SFH and 5 condos are under agreement.

Chatham - The twelve months of 2011 saw single family homes in Chatham close at an average sale price of $639,000, up from $590,000 in 2010.  Less of them sold though, just 151 versus 170 sold in 2010.  Condo sales in 2011 reflect an average sale price of $350,000 and 14 units sold, up from $277,500 and 12 units sold  in 2010.  Looking ahead, 4 single family homes have closed in Chatham since January 1, 2012, with an additional 22 SFH and 7 condos under agreement.  

Harwich -  216 single family homes and 31 condos sold in Harwich in 2011, down from 249 SFH and 40 condos sold in 2010. The average sale price was down as well; $347,500 for SFH and $168,000 for condos, compared to $355,000 and $197,000 in 2010.  The Harwich preview for 2012 is extremely encouraging; since January 1 this year 2 condos have sold and 10 more are  under agreement; 14 SFH have sold in the past 3 weeks and 32 more are under agreement! 

Orleans - 93 single family homes sold in Orleans in 2011 at the median price of $539,000, compared with 100 SFH at $560,000 in 2010. In the condo market, 28 units sold at an average of $221,250 in 2011, versus 35 units at $225,000 in 2010.  There are currently 10 single family homes and 1 condo under agreement in Orleans, and 3 SFH have sold since January 1, 2012.

I have been showing houses straight through from Thanksgiving to New Year’s. There really wasn’t the normal winter slow down; and the Spring market appears to have started already. I believe we are on track for a huge year in Cape Cod real estate for 2012!

(Statistics from The Warren Group and the Cape Cod & Islands MLS)

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Is now the right time to buy a home???

November 18th, 2011

There is a lot of debate on this subject. As I have said before, ‘real estate is local’. In some areas of the country (and the state) you’ll find that housing prices are still dropping, while in others, they are rebounding. I always provide the stats to help you decide, because ‘numbers don’t lie’.  Here are also a couple of articles that offer the point of view that it IS the right time to buy.

Jeff Reeves of Marketwatch.com thinks ‘Now might be the best time ever to buy a home’.  Here’s the link:

http://www.marketwatch.com/story/now-might-be-the-best-time-ever-to-buy-a-home-2011-10-03?siteid=nwhreal

From  Jack Hough, a columnist at SmartMoney.com, his recent article from the Wall Street Journal:

 http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970204774604576629443313035736.html?KEYWORDS=its+time+to+buy+that+house+

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Great Article for Vacation Home Buyers

January 24th, 2011

This article was recently in the Wall Street Journal and is worth a read. The vacation home market is on the rise, that’s a positive sign that consumer confidence is returning.

http://online.wsj.com/article_email/SB10001424052748704482704576071984006994652-lMyQjAxMTAxMDEwMDExNDAyWj.html

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2010 Overview of Lower Cape Cod Home and Condo Sales

January 20th, 2011

It seems bad news keeps coming from newspapers, online media, and TV regarding the slump in home sales across MA and the nation.  Here’s some GOOD NEWS though! On Lower Cape Cod (Chatham, Orleans, Brewster and Harwich) the 2010 average sale price and number of units sold was UP versus 2009 sales.  Here’s an overview of January through December 2010 sales of single family homes (SFH), from The Warren Group, publisher of Banker and Tradesman: 

Chatham had 170 SFH sold (vs. 150 in 2009) and a median sale price INCREASE of 13.46 percent ($590,000).  Orleans had 101 SFH sold (vs. 74 in 2009), with a median sale price INCREASE of 6.22 percent ($555,000).  Brewster saw 140 homes sold (vs 133 in 2009), and a 5.26 percent INCREASE in the median sale price ($363,500).  Harwich had 246 SFH sold (vs. 215 in 2009) and a median sale price INCREASE of 7.40 percent ($355,500).  In most of these towns, we are now at 2003/2004 pricing (Chatham is at 2004/2005 levels). So even though we appear to be on the rebound, there is still a HUGE buying opportunity to be had.

The median sale price of a condo was pretty dismal across the board.  I personally feel the reason for this is that SFH were more affordable than they have been in a long while, and someone could purchase a SFH for the same price as a condo. Financing for condos has also been more difficult for Buyers to obtain.  Compared to 2009, the average sale price for a condo fell 44.5 percent in Chatham, 8.81 percent in Orleans, 6.67 percent in Brewster, and 14.99 percent in Harwich.

We are heading into the Spring market in the next few weeks, I’m already noticing a lot more activity.  Please let me know if I can be of any assistance!

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Remodeling your Home and Need to Choose a Builder?

November 28th, 2010
Have you always wanted to make some changes in your home but didn’t know where to start?
Most people don’t realize how much really is possible in the area of building and renovating, and would be amazed at what a good Builder can do! Whether it’s creating your dream master suite, upgrading your kitchen with granite counters and new appliances, or adding a room over your garage. Maybe you have always wanted a gorgeous stone fireplace. How about a new deck, or a four-season sun room for extra living space? Perhaps you are buying an older home that will need to be renovated. Or you may be thinking of selling your home and wonder if it’s worth putting money into it in order to achieve a higher sales price. (I am a firm believer of “you have to spend money to make money!”) In any event, nearly anything is possible these days in the area of renovating a home.

Your biggest decision is your first one: find a reputable, experienced Builder to assist you from start to finish. Ask for references, and check them out. Talk to people who worked with that Builder five, ten, fifteen years ago. Do they still have a good relationship? Do they still recommend that Builder?  Visit properties that the Builder has completed.  There are many Builders with slick advertising and fancy marketing materials, but that doesn’t mean they know what they are doing! In my opinion, the best Builders around are the ones who don’t advertise, who don’t have web sites, and don’t have a fancy fleet of trucks. They are HANDS-ON, and are on YOUR job every day, not assigning it to a “Project Manager!” 

Make sure your Contractor has the proper insurance, and hires professional sub-contractors who all have insurance themselves. The Government has gotten VERY tough and most of these guys have to face TWO audits annually (a miserable experience if you’ve ever known a Builder.) The Government is forcing them to pay huge insurance premiums just to stay in business. Please do not support those who employ illegals! It is just not fair to the others who are doing it the right way. You may be saving a few bucks, but I can guarantee that the quality of work will be sub-par, and you are hurting Cape Cod small businesses in the process. The bottom line is this: you get what you pay for. In life, and especially in the trades! If you’d like a recommendation for one of the finest Builders on Cape Cod, I’m happy to provide contact info; just drop me an email. 

You don’t have to wait any longer to make those changes to your home that you’ve always dreamed about!

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Beware of Craig’s List Rental Scam!

March 13th, 2010

About a year ago, I started getting strange calls and emails – and became aware of a HUGE scam.  These calls & emails were from prospective renters looking for year-round rentals in my town, and had found a home advertised on Craig’s List.  However, the rental just seemed too good to be true, and the prospective renter was wise enough to try and check it out first. It always involved unusually low rent for the area, with the supposed property owner being away in Africa doing missionary work and just needing someone to “take good care of the house” for her while she was away.  (In my experience, it’s always been a woman who is the homeowner.)  Anyway, these renters happened to discover that the properties in question were also listed ‘for sale’  - and they tracked me down as the listing broker to confirm that the rental was legit. Of course it wasn’t, and the would-be renters were relieved that they didn’t wire the deposit to the Western Union account as instructed.

I tried to go after the Perpetrator of the scam, but after spending hours online  looking for where to report the person on Attorney General and Government websites and getting nowhere, I gave up.

It’s still happening though, and now the Perps are getting really clever. They are looking at the online tax records of the properties to come up with the REAL owner name. Then they create an E-mail account in the Owner’s name (yahoo or other) so that any correspondence with potential renters will appear legit if the renter checks it out. This appears to be happening all across the US.

I routinely put out ‘Scam Alert’ warnings to potential renters on Craig’s List, one was seen by a local newspaper reporter who just ran a story about it in today’s Cape Cod Times.  I’m linking the story here as well. http://www.capecodonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20100313/NEWS/3130310

If you’re looking for a year-round rental anywhere, be alert to this scam!

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Massachusetts Home Sales up 3% in 2009

January 30th, 2010

Home sales in Massachusetts crept up 3 percent in 2009 from 2008, according to new data from The Warren Group, publisher of Banker & Tradesman.  http://www.bankerandtradesman.com/news136585.html

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Tax Credit for Home Buyers Extended

January 29th, 2010

The Home Buyer Tax Credit of up to $8,000 was recently extended by Congress until April 30, 2010. (more)

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Dec 22, 2009 – Mass Home Sales Up 63 Percent in November

January 29th, 2010

 The Massachusetts Association of REALTORS® (MAR) reported today that single-family home sales were up a record 63.1 percent compared to Nov 08. Condominium sales also hit record levels going up 76.2 percent compared to the year before. (more)

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