The last Quarter of 2011 is upon us. What might we expect in the real estate market? I’m seeing a lot of price reductions as home sellers hope to get their home in contract this month. I’ve seen homes priced in the $200′s reduce their price by $20- 30K. The decreases are even heftier for higher priced homes. With interest rates hovering around 4%, if you’re ready to buy, now may be the time to act. Doing so will mean you can be in your new home by the holidays.
I pulled the numbers from the Columbus Board of Realtors® MLS system for seasonal sales for just the Olentangy school district area of southern Delaware County. I suspect other areas might be similar.
This first chart shows the average price of the homes sold Jan-Sep (green bars) vs Oct-Dec (orange bars) since 2006. It really illustrates the severity the downturn in the housing market had on prices. 2010 was propped up somewhat by the Gov’t Tax Credits which may have allowed buyers to afford slightly higher priced homes. Of course, 2011 has been a crazy year, so it appears buyers became a little more conservative with their spending.
Click graph to enlarge
Same type of info but the chart below illustrates the NUMBER of homes sold. The small percentage of homes sold in the 4th Qtr is the reason I’m seeing so many price reductions now as home sellers hope to get their home in-contract during October, knowing there is less chance of that happening during the holiday months of Nov-Dec or the snow months of Jan-Feb.
Click graph to enlarge
As for the number of homes currently for sale in the Olentangy area, there are 601 homes with an average price of $429,153. (Houston, we have a $100K problem!) Of those homes that are currently in-contract today, there are 135 with an average price of $348,618, which is closer to the average price of the homes sold so far this year. Historically, around 200 homes have been sold in the fall period so it’s likely there will be some disappointed sellers. Perhaps it’s time to sharpen the pencil.
Copyright © 2011. Elaine Reese, Real Living HER. Reproduction of any portion of this blog post or the images is prohibited by the Digital Millennium Copyright Act. If this post is being viewed on any site other than www.ReesesPiecesOfRealEstate.com then the material has been stolen without permission. Violators will be reported.
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Why Are People So Angry?
Do you feel as though everyone is acting in the old movie Network? “I’m mad as hell and I’m not going to take it anymore!”
We only need to recall our Psych class from college to understand what’s taking place. Remember Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs? His theory was that we need to take care of the basic needs before we can move up the triangle to the next level.
Click to enlarge
The past three years, people have been struggling with meeting the bottom two levels of the Maslow triangle. People have lost their HOMES (shelter) for various reasons – some that were under their control and some that were not. People have lost their JOBS which affects shelter, financial security, health, safety net and can affect food and clothing. We’ve had to deal with TERRORISM THREATS, FLOODS, FIRES, HURRICANES, and TORNADOS which impacts our need for personal safety. We’ve lost our financial security/safety net by watching our 401k’s or retirement funds dwindle as the ECONOMY SOURS. MEDICAL COSTS and/or insurance costs have escalated so much that people are going uninsured or skipping medical care putting their health at risk.
We’ve been through a lot recently, so it’s no wonder we’re trying so hard to meet our basic needs. We’re afraid!
Who among us has any confidence that Washington DC knows how to get us out of the mess they created. Instead they bicker along party lines or blame those “other guys” rather than bucking up to work together to solve the problems. The only real job they are worried about is their own. But even if THEY lose their job in 2012, unlike regular citizens, they’ll still have THEIR medical benefits and pension for life even though they may have only served one term. How many regular citizens can work 4 years for a company and receive that kind of benefit package?
Whether it’s the conservative Tea Party or the liberal Occupy protests, both groups are essentially trying to fight for the two bottom rows of the triangle. It would be good if the politicians recognized these Maslow Needs of the citizens they are supposed to be working for, and worry less about generating millions of dollars in re-election campaign funds. Rather than giving yet another non-effective stimulus package to their cronies, put the money directly into the hands of taxpayers and let US spend it. Doing that will create demand which will create jobs which will allow people to keep their homes or buy new ones which creates jobs. See how it works!
Otherwise the citizens are apt to respond as Dr Huxtable (Bill Cosby) did to his TV son, Theo: “I brought you into this world … I can take you out! ”
Copyright © 2011. Elaine Reese, Real Living HER. Reproduction of any portion of this blog post or the images is prohibited by the Digital Millennium Copyright Act. If this post is being viewed on any site other than www.ReesesPiecesOfRealEstate.com then the material has been stolen without permission. Violators will be reported.
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ANY GOOGLE-TYPE ADS SHOWN ON THIS BLOG ARE NOT SUPPORTED BY THIS BLOG. DO NOT CLICK ON THEM.
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Posted in Central Ohio, Commentary, Homes, Homes for sale
Tagged I'm mad as hell, Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs, politicians vs middle America, Tea Party