Spring Nor'Easter on the Cape
This weekend's forecast of a nor'easter is a surprise to everyone. There is still lots happenning. Be sure to visit Chatham and view the filming of the movie "Chatham" starring David Carradine, Bruce Dern, Mariel Hemingway and a cast of hundreds of local stars! it is truly a community production! Based on a book by Joseph Lincoln, this is sure to open the eyes of many as to life on Old Cape Cod.
Cape Cod Real Estate Updates:
SALES & VOLUME BEGIN TO FLATTEN OUT!
Barnstable County Register of Deeds, John F. Meade, reports that the volume of real estate sales in March 2007 was down 1.1% from March 2006 volume and the total value of sales was down 1.25% from the previous year. The median individual property sale value was down 1.7% from the previous year. There was a 16.6% decrease in the volume of mortgage activity from March 2006 levels.
Year to Date: Volume of Sales is down 2%; Total Value of Sales is down 7%; Individual Sales Value is down 4.3%; Mortgage Volume is down 8.6%.
Register Meade reports that there were 541 deeds recorded at the Barnstable Registry of Deeds in March 2007 with stated sales values above $50,000.00 representing a stated value of $268,033,340.00 in county-wide real estate sales.
Based on all property sales valued above $50,000.00, the median sale price of property in Barnstable County in March was $348,800.00.
There were 1,760 mortgages recorded with values above $50,000.00 in March with a total value of $540,845,437.00. The median mortgage amount, commercial, residential or other, was $232,000.00.
By way of comparison, there were 547 deeds recorded at the Barnstable Registry of Deeds in March 2006 with stated sales values above $50,000.00 representing a stated value of $271,426,983.00 in county-wide real estate sales. Based on all property sales valued above $50,000.00, the median sale price of property in Barnstable County in March was $354,900.00.
There were 2,110 mortgages recorded with values above $50,000.00 in March with a total value of $740,210,509.00. The median mortgage amount, commercial, residential or other, was $225,000.00.
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REAL ESTATE ACTIVITY THROUGH MARCH 2007 AS COMPARED TO THE SAME PERIOD IN 2006.
All figures are based on sales or mortgages ABOVE $50,000.00.
2007 sales volume: 1,339
2006 sales volume: 1,366
2007 total sales value: $641,407,493.00
2006 total sales value: $688,763,226.00
2007 median sales price: $349,000.00
2006 median sales price: $364,500.00
2007 mortgage volume: 4,990
2006 mortgage volume: 5,460
2007 total mortgage value: $1,539,428,270.00
2006 total mortgage value: $1,933,458,252.00
2007 median mortgage amount: $231,100.00
2006 median mortgage amount: $219,950.00
TRAILING TWELVE MONTHS MEDIAN SALES VALUE:
(Sales values above $50,000.00)
M/Y Value % Differential/prior month
Mar 2006: $354,900.00 -4.1%
Apr 2006: $370,000.00 +4.3%
May 2006: $365,000.00 -1.4%
June 2006: $390,000.00 +6.9%
July 2006: $365,000.00 -6.4%
Aug 2006: $350,000.00 -4.1%
Sep 2006: $360,000.00 +2.9%
Oct 2006: $373,500.00 +3.8%
Nov 2006: $355,000.00 -4.8%
Dec 2006: $350,000.00 -1.4%
Jan 2007: $350,000.00 0%
Feb 2007: $338,750.00 -3.2%
Mar 2007: $349,000.00 +3%
— Realty Times Online
Click here to check for updates to Cape Cod Real Estate.
Friday, April 13, 2007
Thursday, April 12, 2007
How Much Earnest Money Is Right Amount?
How Much Earnest Money Is Right Amount?
How much earnest money is the right amount? There isn’t any legal answer. In general, the answer is whatever a seller is willing to accept. In some markets, the norm is to put down 1 percent of the total purchase price. For instance, for a $300,000 house, a buyer might be expected to put down $3,000.
But if a buyer is bidding on a hot property in a great neighborhood, it could make sense to boost the sum to increase the odds of sellers accepting the offer.
Meanwhile, in other areas of the country, binder amounts are shrinking, says Lori Byrum, an associate with RE/MAX Executive Realty in Charlotte, N.C. "Almost all (buyers) are doing 100 percent financing so who really worries about the binder? We're way more worried about the appraisal," Byrum says about her market.
— Allen Norwood (04/07/07)
Click here to check for updates to Cape Cod Real Estate.
How much earnest money is the right amount? There isn’t any legal answer. In general, the answer is whatever a seller is willing to accept. In some markets, the norm is to put down 1 percent of the total purchase price. For instance, for a $300,000 house, a buyer might be expected to put down $3,000.
But if a buyer is bidding on a hot property in a great neighborhood, it could make sense to boost the sum to increase the odds of sellers accepting the offer.
Meanwhile, in other areas of the country, binder amounts are shrinking, says Lori Byrum, an associate with RE/MAX Executive Realty in Charlotte, N.C. "Almost all (buyers) are doing 100 percent financing so who really worries about the binder? We're way more worried about the appraisal," Byrum says about her market.
— Allen Norwood (04/07/07)
Click here to check for updates to Cape Cod Real Estate.
Sunday, April 8, 2007
Homeowner Focus on Kitchens and Baths Not Deterred by Housing Slowdown
Happy Easter To All
Another perfect weekend on Cape Cod. A beautiful start to a beautiful season on the Cape.
Cape Cod Real Estate Updates:
Kitchens attracting additional activities
Almost a third of residential architects see separate kitchen facilities, or secondary food preparation or food storage areas, as generally increasing in homes, while more than half see them as stable. Almost 40 percent report that the size of kitchens is growing, although fewer than 10 percent see kitchens getting smaller. These results are very similar to those of the fourth quarter of 2005, the last time that kitchen and bath trends were surveyed.
A Closer Look
Kitchens remain popular because they house more activities. Upper-end appliances are becoming more popular, even for homes that are not at the upper-end of the price range. Pantry space is increasing, as are wine storage areas and recycling centers. The integration of kitchens with informal living space (great rooms) also remains a popular design. Island work areas, duplicate appliances, computer work areas, and warming drawers are also seen as growing in popularity, but by a smaller share of respondents.
Baths retain focus
Radiant heated floors top the list of bath features that are growing in popularity. Bathrooms designed for accessibility, containing features such as no-threshold showers, also continue to make significant inroads. Increased storage space and make-up areas in bathrooms also are reported to be seeing more interest.
A Closer Look
Many of the bath products that are generating the most interest by consumers are upscale shower features, or features that make showers more accessible. Multihead showers are seen to be growing in popularity by a majority of residential architects, while separate showers are seen to be increasingly present in homes by a smaller number of respondents. Doorless showers and handheld shower heads are popular features that can make a bath easier to use. Multiple vanity sinks, towel warming drawers or bars, and to a lesser extent steam showers and double-sink vanities are bath products that have generated interest by consumers.
— The American Institute of Architects
Click here to check for updates to Cape Cod Real Estate.
Another perfect weekend on Cape Cod. A beautiful start to a beautiful season on the Cape.
Cape Cod Real Estate Updates:
Kitchens attracting additional activities
Almost a third of residential architects see separate kitchen facilities, or secondary food preparation or food storage areas, as generally increasing in homes, while more than half see them as stable. Almost 40 percent report that the size of kitchens is growing, although fewer than 10 percent see kitchens getting smaller. These results are very similar to those of the fourth quarter of 2005, the last time that kitchen and bath trends were surveyed.
A Closer Look
Kitchens remain popular because they house more activities. Upper-end appliances are becoming more popular, even for homes that are not at the upper-end of the price range. Pantry space is increasing, as are wine storage areas and recycling centers. The integration of kitchens with informal living space (great rooms) also remains a popular design. Island work areas, duplicate appliances, computer work areas, and warming drawers are also seen as growing in popularity, but by a smaller share of respondents.
Baths retain focus
Radiant heated floors top the list of bath features that are growing in popularity. Bathrooms designed for accessibility, containing features such as no-threshold showers, also continue to make significant inroads. Increased storage space and make-up areas in bathrooms also are reported to be seeing more interest.
A Closer Look
Many of the bath products that are generating the most interest by consumers are upscale shower features, or features that make showers more accessible. Multihead showers are seen to be growing in popularity by a majority of residential architects, while separate showers are seen to be increasingly present in homes by a smaller number of respondents. Doorless showers and handheld shower heads are popular features that can make a bath easier to use. Multiple vanity sinks, towel warming drawers or bars, and to a lesser extent steam showers and double-sink vanities are bath products that have generated interest by consumers.
— The American Institute of Architects
Click here to check for updates to Cape Cod Real Estate.
Sunday, April 1, 2007
U.S. Prices Return to Normal
Spring is Blooming on the Cape
This weekend was officially the first perfect spring weekend on the Cape. The crocuses are popping, the daffodils are springing, and the birds are singing. Just a beautiful start to a beautiful season on the Cape.
Cape Cod Real Estate Updates:
U.S. and Cape Cod Real Estate Prices Return to Normal
“A market returning to normal” is the way Global Insight, a privately held global information company, describes the current housing market, based on the most recent U.S. Housing Valuation Analysis.
The Housing Valuation Analysis — a joint effort by Global Insight and National City Corp. — examines the top 317 U.S. real estate markets using data from the Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight. Taking into consideration differences in population density, household incomes, and interest rates, the analysis determines what home prices should be and how much current prices deviate from that norm.
A Closer Look
“Nearly all markets posted a decline in the level of overvaluation, which signals that the overall housing market is beginning to trend back to more normal price growth,” says Jeannine Cataldi, senior economist and manager of Global Insights Real Estate Service.
The number of markets identified as overvalued decreased to 57 from 60 metro markets in the fourth quarter of 2006. Texas had the highest concentration of undervalued markets with Dallas and College Station-Bryan tying for lowest in the nation.
Although the greatest incidence of overvaluation remains in pockets along the Atlantic and Pacific coasts, corrections are under way in some markets as prices and appreciation rates decline. Approximately 15 percent of the nation’s single-family housing stock experienced price declines in the fourth quarter.
The report finds that New England no longer appears to be “significantly overvalued,” while Orange County, Calif., Tucson, Ariz., Reno and Carson City, N.V., and Kingston, N.Y., fell below the “threshold denoting extreme overvaluation.” Even though these markets are still considered “significantly overvalued,” the report points out that slowing rates of appreciation reflect “a gradual movement toward historical price trends.”
Nationally, according to OFHEO data, prices advanced by 1.8 percent — metrics the report says are more upbeat than those reported by the Commerce Department, which showed an increase of 1.6 percent in median transaction prices. It's also more than the NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®, which showed a decrease in median prices of 2.8 percent. "Median transaction prices tend to overstate price strength during buoyant markets and understate price strength during soft markets,” according to the OFHEO.
— By Camilla McLaughlin for REALTOR® Magazine Online
Click here to check for updates to Cape Cod Real Estate.
This weekend was officially the first perfect spring weekend on the Cape. The crocuses are popping, the daffodils are springing, and the birds are singing. Just a beautiful start to a beautiful season on the Cape.
Cape Cod Real Estate Updates:
U.S. and Cape Cod Real Estate Prices Return to Normal
“A market returning to normal” is the way Global Insight, a privately held global information company, describes the current housing market, based on the most recent U.S. Housing Valuation Analysis.
The Housing Valuation Analysis — a joint effort by Global Insight and National City Corp. — examines the top 317 U.S. real estate markets using data from the Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight. Taking into consideration differences in population density, household incomes, and interest rates, the analysis determines what home prices should be and how much current prices deviate from that norm.
A Closer Look
“Nearly all markets posted a decline in the level of overvaluation, which signals that the overall housing market is beginning to trend back to more normal price growth,” says Jeannine Cataldi, senior economist and manager of Global Insights Real Estate Service.
The number of markets identified as overvalued decreased to 57 from 60 metro markets in the fourth quarter of 2006. Texas had the highest concentration of undervalued markets with Dallas and College Station-Bryan tying for lowest in the nation.
Although the greatest incidence of overvaluation remains in pockets along the Atlantic and Pacific coasts, corrections are under way in some markets as prices and appreciation rates decline. Approximately 15 percent of the nation’s single-family housing stock experienced price declines in the fourth quarter.
The report finds that New England no longer appears to be “significantly overvalued,” while Orange County, Calif., Tucson, Ariz., Reno and Carson City, N.V., and Kingston, N.Y., fell below the “threshold denoting extreme overvaluation.” Even though these markets are still considered “significantly overvalued,” the report points out that slowing rates of appreciation reflect “a gradual movement toward historical price trends.”
Nationally, according to OFHEO data, prices advanced by 1.8 percent — metrics the report says are more upbeat than those reported by the Commerce Department, which showed an increase of 1.6 percent in median transaction prices. It's also more than the NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®, which showed a decrease in median prices of 2.8 percent. "Median transaction prices tend to overstate price strength during buoyant markets and understate price strength during soft markets,” according to the OFHEO.
— By Camilla McLaughlin for REALTOR® Magazine Online
Click here to check for updates to Cape Cod Real Estate.
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