I’ve tracked the housing vacancy rate for homes actively on the market in the Charlottesville MSA irregularly over the past several years; it’s an indicator as to the health of the housing market. More occupied…
Browsing Category Market statistics
1st Quarter 2012 Charlottesville Area Real Estate Market Report
As always, pay attention to the segment or segments that affect you. There is no “the market is up” or “the market is down.” Condos in the City of Charlottesville near the Downtown Mall are different than single family homes in Greene County – different trends, different factors affecting them, different economic engines and hubs, different schools, different property taxes … you get the picture.
I’ll be adding to this post this evening but wanted to get this out before my afternoon appointment. (priorities, you know?)
Nest Realty’s First Quarter 2012 market report (download the pdf)
There Is No Answer to “How’s the Real Estate Market in Charlottesville?”
I’ve said it before:
– When Evaluating the Charlottesville Real Estate Market, IGNORE National Data
– When Assessing the Charlottesville Real Estate Market, Read More than the Headlines
and here’s a taste of how conflicted my news feed and streams are –
Making Sense of Headlines – My Conflicted Inbox
I’ve been saying this to clients for the past couple of days; in light of today’s Case Shiller report I thought I’d share what I’m seeing:
Charlottesville Real Estate Market February Update
Contracts are up in the Charlottesville area – significantly. Prices are down, inventory is down, sales are up. There is some positivity in the market; multiple offers, while not “the norm” are definitely common.
As I’ve said to clients: properties that are priced well*, in great condition, and in great locations tend to be selling well.
I’m still trying to make time to run a few different numbers – breakdown of property type, etc. I’m doing these for my clients on property-specific instances frequently) but haven’t been able to do it for here …
* Priced well is part science, part art, part data analytics and part luck, sometimes not in equal proportions.
Interesting New Market Report – Some Positivity in the (Macro & Micro) Market
One of the best parts of this Housing Prospects 50 States Release March 12 2012
One of the things I said in the Newsplex story is that any market analysis that is broader than a street or neighborhood is too broad to make an informed and educated decision.
Excerpting from the report won’t do it justice; if you’re interested, download the pdf and read it.
The one quibble I would make is that depending on Zillow for local analysis with respect to the Charlottesville MSA is perhaps not the best idea; but from a macro perspective, they’re worthwhile.
Perhaps the best part of the report is this – William Lucy states the need for local analysis and local perspectives. The housing system may be broken, but the solution is not a one-size-fits-all
Contracts in Charlottesville and Albemarle are up (February 2012)
The NAR released their Pending Sales report this morning.
As we know, national data doesn’t matter so much.
So, I looked at the homes put under contract in Charlottesville and Albemarle for the past few months.
But … keep in mind that things are so very mixed. I’ve been showing homes in the $550k – $800k range for the past few days. Of the past five properties we’ve seen:
– One is a short sale
– One is a foreclosure
– Three are regular sales
* Data from the Charlottesville MLS
** “Right Now” is 27 February around 10:30. From Open Space. I’ll update the chart after February.
Updated on 3 March. Contracts in February 2012 in Charlottesville and Albemarle are up just over 68%.
Charlottesville People – Do you Care What the National Association of Realtors Say?
I know I’m a broken record. I get a tremendous amount of value from the National Association of Realtors – from their publications (On Common Ground is tremendous), to the lobbying they do to the information they share … but as far as home sales data and projections, I don’t understand why there is so much gnashing of teeth and complaining about the NAR’s projections and data. The NAR is a trade organization for Realtors. I’m not bashing the NAR, but I would like to see their analysis put in the appropriate context.
Understanding the Charlottesville area real estate market is a full-time job – representing buyers and sellers, analyzing the market, etc.; making sense of the nation’s housing market – I’d go so far as to say it’s impossible to do accurately or credibly.
For a brief summary of where we are in Charlottesville:
Nest’s January 2012 Real Estate Summary
And the “Market Statistics” category in RealCentralVA. Or, better yet, if you have a question about the market, start your research looking at the broader market statistics and then, ask me.
To see the responses to the title question from those on Twitter, read the rest of the story.