On the devaluation of traffic – There’s a fairly intense conversation today about how much traffic certain web sites generate over others…. half of all consumers trust consumer-generated media and branded web sites…. In North America 66% say they trust user generated mediaThe United States of Subprime (permanent link) – The Journal’s findings reveal that the subprime aftermath is hurting a far broader array of Americans than many realize, cutting across differences in income, race and geography. From investors hoping to strike it rich by speculating on condominiums to the working poor chasing the homeownership dream, subprime loans burrowed into the heart of the American financial system — and now are bringing deepening woe.Saying that race is the only factor in these loans is short-sighted.I tell all of my clients that the three most pressing issues in our region are infrastructure and the accompanying politics, water and affordable/workforce housing.
Date Archives October 2007
Why print advertising doesn’t make sense
Following up on this week’s earlier post regarding print advertising’s demise …The only print ad I have done this year was in The HooK, for their Green issue.Blogging has a better ROI.Print is useful when it transcends advertising, when it’s not advertising…. The authors write about local properties every week with unbiased, un-varnished point of view.I’ve chosen to not advertise in the local real estate publication, the Real Estate Weekly, for at least two reasons…. Second, they now print in Georgia and drive it up to Charlottesville every week – this is incongruent with my evolving green philosophies (gotta ‘walk the walk’).If only Realtors would learn to advertise their Open Houses in the Charlottesville MLS, we might not need to advertise in the Sunday Daily Progress…. The results of a poll they ran a few weeks ago led me to give them a shot – * less than $10,000 6% of all votes * $10,000 to $24,999 13% of all votes * $25,000 to $49,999 47% of all votes * $50,000 to $74,999 16% of all votes * $75,000 to $99,999 10% of all votes * more than $100,000 i.e. lucky bastard 25% of all votesBuyers and sellers are looking online.
Agent bubble update
124 have had more than 10 sides. (9.5%)304 have had more than 5 sides…. (20%)179 have had one side. (14%)That leaves approximately 500 who have yet to have a transaction this year.
Belvedere roundup
In the “not all publicity is good publicity department”:Rarely have the words “shameful, ” “greedy,” “sad” and “health hazard” been used to describe a project positively, and this is another such case. Is clear-cutting and burning “green”?Good discussion at CvillenewsThe Daily Progress today notes the burningBut …… Other developers should take heed.Stonehaus donated the land to SOCA for its project because “we appreciated this European model where soccer would be … the center of a community…. These reports temper the excitement I, and surely my clients and buyers, feel, and perpetuate the “business as usual” opinion of developers.
September real estate market data for the Charlottesville region
When comparing 2004 and 2007, sales in Charlottesville/Albemarle are down about 30%.Between 2004 and 2007, sales are down, days on market are up, and the absorption rate is apparently nearly 3.5 times higher than it was in 2004 (this seems to be such a jump that it may be a data error)…. 2004 Sold – Charlottesville & Albemarle – Single Family homes, attached homes and condos2007 Sold – Charlottesville & Albemarle – Single Family homes, attached homes and condosInventory levels seem to be following a similar trend line as to that of years past, although greatly exaggerated…. 2004 Sold – Charlottesville & Albemarle – Single Family homes and attached homes (no condos)2007 Sold – Charlottesville & Albemarle – Single Family homes and attached homes (no condos)…. Sellers are motivated, and it really and truly is a great time to buy a house – so long as you do the appropriate due diligence, detach your emotions and negotiate well.Daniel has the 2006 versus 2007 statistics.Below the fold are the numbers for the Central Virginia region.
Quick market update for the Charlottesville region
Still working on the market statistics for the Central Virginia region. In the meantime, these are some quick numbers based on the recent availability of the “Continuous Days on Market” statistic provided by the Charlottesville area MLS:There are currently 2494 properties currently on the market in the Charlottesville MSA*1176 have been on the market for at least 120 days – nearly 50% of the properties currently for sale have been on the market for at least four months!716 have been on the market for 716 days.448 have been on the market for at least 448 days.195 have been on for at least one year. 29 of these properties’ asking prices are more than one million dollars.CDOM is a count of the total time an address or parcel ID has been on the market, as compared to DOM (Days on Market) which is a measure of how long a specific MLS number has been on the market.By looking at the “CDOM” we are able to see the true time a property has been on the market, mitigating the impact of trying to “game the MLS” by withdrawing a property and re-listing it to make it appear “fresh.”The impact of Days on market on a property’s market value has long been debated. Basically, the longer a property is on the market, the more motivated the seller is (usually) going to be.I plan to post full market data later today.*Charlottesville, Albemarle, Fluvanna, Greene, Nelson, and I am including Louisa for this story.
Putting real estate competition in perspective
Why not go after the health care industry, which has a far greater impact on more Americans?When I buy a house, I know how much the fees are going to be…. When I went to physical therapy and asked whether I could pay cash, the woman was flabbergasted; she stammered that they had “something called a ‘self-pay'” option, but nobody used it.Why not advocate for transparency and competition in health care?… Health care – not so much.Quick math:If there are 6 million home sales (which is mighty optimistic), and there are 303 million Americans – who is harmed more?Update 11 October 2007: Jay has good review of the site’s merits and some of its inherent shortcomings. Ardell at RCG weighs in as well.real/diaBlog has good commentary as well that makes me wonder – in light of the following numbers locally regarding the “agent bubble” – if 500 agents haven’t done a single transaction all year – isn’t part of competition that many will fail?