I've taken some flak from my real estate colleagues here in Sullivan County for the, well, downer tone of my October Current Market Conditions report. I wrote that monthly column during the 1st week of October which was not the brightest week in the economic calendar, and used phrases like "screeching halt" and "economic Armageddon." The Armageddon reference might have been a bit, well, dramatic — although pretty apt descriptors for the first couple of weeks of October.
Yes, business is slow, but its not dead. The Sullivan MLS shows 99 single family homes "pending" or "in contract", and from calls I've made in the last week about the status of various listings for potential clients, there are another couple of dozen in active negotiation. A preliminary peek at October's closed sales figures indicate that they'll be up slightly from September. Buyers are going through with every deal I have underway, and other agents I talk to are indicating that most buyers are sticking.
What they're sticking with, though, is somewhat different than a year ago. Caution, moderation and good value are the watch words. Of the 99 single family homes listed as "pending" or "in contract" in the MLS, only 4 have asking prices above $400,000. The upper end continues to be pretty soft, but that's where savvy buyers looking for something really special may find some great values. For example, 2 large renovated farmhouses on substantial acreage (one with 85 and one with 172 acres) and ponds have recently come back on the market at $699,000 and $799,000. We haven't seen prices like that for this quality and acreage in a number of years. (Click here to see the 2 listings.) A 107 acre property with stunning waterfalls, listed at $699,000, just went into contract. A dramatic custom contemporary on 14 acres with a spectacular view of the Delaware River valley just dropped in price from $895,000 to $695,000. True, none of these houses are in the $200K range where we're seeing the most action, but they're very interesting opportunities. (I also wish I had a dozen cute little houses on a couple of acres to sell around $200K!)