Ann Arbor Real Estate Talk

The second quarter data for Washtenaw County had both surprises and not some surprises. When you are out selling and working with buyers on a day to day basis, Realtors just instinctively know what is happening.

If a buyer wants a home in a certain neighborhood and a certain price point then the hunt is on. My last two listings both had offers within 2 weeks, a home in Saline and a condo in Ann Arbor.

Both of the sellers were aggressive in their pricing and both homes were in tip top shape.

In Ann Arbor there is currently a 6 month supply of homes on the market. Homes SW of Liberty to Main has the least amount of inventory with 5.5 months.

In comparison NW of US 23 to M 14 is showing the highest at 9.2 months.

Here are the charts, for residential homes in Ann Arbor, Chelsea, Dexter, Saline, Ypsilanti City, Milan, Ypsilanti Township, Van Buren, Whitmore Lake and Willow Run. If you have more questions or want me to email you a larger version just call me if you need more information. 734-821-0757.

Bottom line certain area’s are in better shape for sellers and certain areas are great opportunities for buyers.

Originally published on BlogAnnArbor, by Missy Caulk

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This is the July Market reports for all of Washtenaw County residential home sales. Sellers that are pricing their homes to sell are seeing success. No longer is acceptable to “test the market”. Those sellers that are doing that are sitting. Once again homes priced right and in excellent condition are moving.

My last two listings 8175 Dell Rd and 2554 Traver Blvd both had contracts within 2 weeks. Two totally different properties, one a single family home on 2 ac in Saline and one a condo in Ann Arbor.

The common denominator was the sellers priced right and they were in excellent condition. Both sold within 3% of asking price.

Here are the charts for residential homes, the first is a chart on the Residential List Price, the second one is the Residential Sale Price and the third one is a graph of the 3 year trend.

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Stonebridge in located on the South side of Ann Arbor and is divided into two school districts, Ann Arbor Public Schools and Saline Area Schools. It is a Planned Urban Development (PUD) with over 650 homes.

Stonebridge features executive homes, golf villas, condos, and single family residential homes. The Stonebridge Community is surrounded by the Stonebridge Golf Course, designed by Authur Hills. You can book T times on line and check out internet specials, or see a layout of the course all online.

There are currently 27 homes on the market in Stonebridge. Six of the 27 are under contract to purchase. Three in Saline side and three in the Ann Arbor side for schools. There are two homes currently for rent in Stonebridge for a rental price of $2850 and $3000.

All of Stonebridge is located in Pittsfield Township and all of Stonebridge has an Ann Arbor mailing address with a zip code of 48108.

The home under contract are:

5408 Pennacle Ct

2413 Moors Ct

2203 Stonebridge Dr

4484 Stonebridge Dr

2126 Stonebridge Dr

1764 Stonebridge Dr.

Prices are currently ranging in price from 314,000 to 1.2 M.

Last year between July 1st and December 31, 2007, 33 homes closed in Stonebridge. With the current inventory of 27 available, Stonebridge is homes have a low absorption rate. Which means the amount of homes available is equal to the amount that have sold.

There are 11 different associations in Stonebridge, each governed by their own homeowner associations. Their community web site is available for public viewing.

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Begin You Home Search Here

*** Click on the graph to see the entire graph***

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Let’s see if I dig really hard I can find some good news! Ok, the amount of homes and condos being listed is down, 42%.

That is good news and mostly attributed to Pfizer homes for the most part being gone.

The average sale price in March for Washtenaw County is down to $205,400. That is just unbelievable.

Rather than interpret the data here are the charts for your review. All data is from the Ann Arbor Board of Realtors, where I serve as a Director and compiled by Big House Data in Ann Arbor.

If you are a buyer this is A GREAT TIME TO BUY !!

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To those of us who live in Ann Arbor, we have always thought we were exempt from the rest of the state of Michigan when it came to the housing industry downturns. Not this time. A quick look at Foreclosurenet.net will give you a list of all the foreclosure homes in Washtenaw County. There are 298 homes listed on this site.

Most of foreclosed homes in Ann Arbor and in the State of Michigan are due to homeowners either loosing their jobs or being transferred and not being able to sell their homes for what they owe.

In the 90’s many homeowners were quick to refinance their homes, assuming the market would continue to rise at the historical 8% in Washtenaw County rate.  Opps, it didn’t happen and the refinance appraisals came in high.

As a Realtor when I visited homes and the homeowner told me they had an appraisal that was higher than what I determined the market value for selling to be, the homeowners were dismayed. Traditionally refinance appraisals are always high, as the banks would anticipate the homeowner was staying in their home and not selling. There is a difference in a refinance appraisal and a 90 sale appraisal.

So many, many homeowners refinance, pulled money out to buy a car, take vacations and pay off credit cards. Then the bubble burst and not only did homes stop appreciating but they declined in value. I am currently seeing home prices down to the 1998 prices in many of the areas in Washtenaw County.

If you area buyer this is a good time to take advantage of the market conditions in Ann Arbor and Washtenaw County.

Here is a cute video, I found on YouTube by Dave Girtsman that was linked to on Twitter.

Help is on the way……….

Legislation that allows the Michigan State Housing Development Authority (MSHDA) to create a loan program to assist homeowners facing adjustments in their interest rate passed both chambers and is awaiting the Governor’s signature.

The legislation would allow MSHDA to implement the “Save the Dream” refinancing program, which would be available through lenders and remain an option for individuals. The new program would aid those in danger of losing their homes by refinancing for more affordable payments. Every home spared from foreclosure not only helps the individual, but has a positive economic “domino effect” on communities, cities and the entire state.

If you need to contact a lender to find out about refinancing under the MSHDA program, give me call at 734–824–0757 or email me missy at missycaulk.com

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Below are the market reports with data from the Ann Arbor Area Board of Realtors and compiled my by my friend Todd Waller, of Big House Data.

A few things to point out from a historical perspective from 2005 to 2008:

Average list prices:              Average Sale Price       Average Days on Market   New Listings

2005 $286,800.                     $233,238.                      91                              628

2006 $274,919                      $226,707.                      93                              793

2007 $283,039.                     $247,108.                      99                              1373

2008 $ 255,827.                    $232,250.                     103                              727

Average List price is down 9.5% from February 2007 to February 2008.

Average Sales price is down 6% from February 2007 to February 2008.

Number of closed sales is down 9% compared to February 2007 to February 2008.

Results: For sellers you must be very competitive. Short sales and foreclosures are selling, so are homes priced “below market value” and in excellent condition.

For Buyers: No one knows when the market will bottom out. NOT ME ! No one, so don’t wait too long to take advantage of the best priced homes in Ann Arbor and Washtenaw County.

Begin your home search here.

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According to USA Today, Michigan, Florida, Arizona, California and Nevada were already in a recession at the start of 2008. I have heard us referred to as a “one state” recession on many news shows. (Oh well, nice to know we’re not really alone.)

These five states account for one-quarter of the nations total economic output. (Yikes… That is huge.)

Here is the link to go look at specific area’s in Michigan. You will be able to see Ann Arbor and the other large cities in Michigan. According to the map, Ann Arbor is considered already in a recession, but Grand Rapids and other parts of Michigan are “near recession”.

Well, it doesn’t “feel” like a recession in Ann Arbor to me. Homes are selling, and inventory is down from this time last year, when Pfizer announced it was moving. In many parts of Washtenaw County the market is very stable, and the opportunities for buyers now is better than it has been in years.

Economists George Fulton and Don Grimes predict that Washtenaw County will lose a net 1,000 jobs this year before gaining 2,000 jobs in 2009 and 3,000 in 2010. Last year, the county dropped 700 jobs after losing 1,000 in 2006.

George and Don also predict that by 2010 we will have more jobs available in Washtenaw County than the people to fill them. (Oh, Happy Day!)

So Ann Arbor, what say you?

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Despite the cold and snow melting and then more snow and more cold, January started off being a good month for home sales in Ann Arbor and Washtenaw County. Sellers always want to know, “Should we list now or wait until Spring?”

The answer is, “it depends”. There are more buyers in the Spring market, but the ones out looking in the snow and cold are serious. They are usually not out kicking tires, or shall we say taking boots off and on from house to house?

Closings were up in January by 10% compared to January 2007 and the good news is the listings were down by 13%. Now, those two facts alone should make sellers in Ann Arbor and Washtenaw County happy, happy.

Now the not so good news, the average list price was down to $276.422 and that is 18% lower than last January. The average sale price for homes throughout Washtenaw County was $228,512. and that is down nearly 13% compared to last year.

If your home is not selling, there is one thing you can control and that is price and condition. You can’t change the floor plan, you can’t change the location but you can control the price and the condition. There is nothing less expensive to make a house shine than to take down wall-paper and add fresh paint. Buyers don’t want your wall paper. Ann Arbor buyers are looking for value in a home and those homes in the best condition, priced to sell and with the buyers perceived best value are selling.

If your home is not getting any showings, chances are it is 10% over-priced, and if it is getting showings and no offer then it is 5% over-priced.

January data compiled by Big House Data and gathered from the Ann Arbor Board of Realtors.

For more graphs to be emailed to you, leave a comment with your request or call my direct line at 734–821–0757.

You can search all listings at Search Ann Arbor Houses.

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Even with the media, in an uproar, Ann Arbor and the Washtenaw County still had a year where houses got bought and sold. In 2007,Property in Washtenaw County sold for 89% of asking price, with the average days on the market being 86 days.

There was an increase in listings, as they were up by 18% and a drop in closings of only 8%. However, that means that one in every 5 houses did sell. Some is this can be attributed to the relocation of Pfizer. The homes that sold were those priced the most competitively and were in the best condition. Pfizer homes were priced to sell.

In a buyers market, inventory is high, the market is more competitive and buyers have their choice of homes to purchase so they are what I like to say, “very unforgiving”.

Year the date the average list price was down 4.5% compared to 2006.

The average sale price was down 6.5%  compared to 2006.

Now for the good news:

1) There were 231 closings in December and that is up from December 2006 by 11.5%

2) 30% less homes were listed in December of 2007 than December 2006. That is great news,  even though new listings over the entire year was up 17.5%.

Take a look at the following chart to see historically what is happening in the Washtenaw County area.

Homes will continue to sell in 2008, just make sure your home is priced right. List with a realtor that will tell you the truth about the market conditions and the inventory in your township absorption rate in your community. Ann Arbor is doing much better than other townships in Washtenaw.

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