Wasilla Real Estate News, Valley Market Real Estate

Note that the sold days on market is skewed this week because one property closed that has been on the market for more than 1,400 days. That is a little excessive I would say.

This representation is based in whole or in part on data supplied by, and to, the subscribers of Alaska Multiple Listing Service, Inc. (AK MLS, Inc.). AK MLS, Inc. does not guarantee nor is it in any way responsible for its accuracy. Data maintained by AK MLS, Inc. is for its own use and may not reflect all real estate activity in the market.

Written by Marty Van Diest Please leave a comment.

Monday Market Memo – January 22-28, 2013 February 2nd, 2013

Categories: Monday Market Memo

Well, I knew I shouldn’t have made a prediction last week. I said the inventory would increase and of course the opposite happened. We had an unusually high number of pendings this week which took a some inventory off the market.

There were only 13 closings which is unusually low but this should increase, (notice I said “should” not “will”).

There has been a noticable increase in activity this week. In addition to the pendings that show up on the chart there are a lot more buyers out there looking at houses. We have been extremely busy here at Valley Market showing houses to prospective buyers.

Below is the chart from the week of Jan 22-26

Last Monday Morning Market Memo: January 8-14

This rush does not translate into new closings and pendings because that depends on buyers. But sellers are making their move. Over the next few months we will see hundreds of new homes come on the market. Competition will increase for sellers, and buyers will have a lot more options than they do now.

If you are a seller, you might want to beat the rush and put your house on the market very soon. Buyers are out there right now. There will be more buyers in the spring, but you will be competing with many more sellers relative to buyers.
Below is the chart from the week of Jan 15-21

Last Monday Morning Market Memo: January 8-14.

For any buyers out there looking willing to live a little out of town we have a fantastic deal on a house at 20457 W Glenn Hwy. This is a 5 bedroom house on 6 acres only 15 miles from downtown Palmer for $199,000!

Notice that the total inventory is down. This number will continue to increase as we move into spring. If you want to get in early before the competition, now is the time.

Otherwise, the rest of the chart looks pretty normal.

Below is the chart from the week of Jan 8-14

Interest rates appear to be rising. If this continues the market will slow considerably. It would be best to hit the market sooner rather than later if you are a seller. And the same goes for buyers if you want to lock in a low rate.

Last Monday Morning Market Memo: December 4-10

Of those 696 listings only 6% are foreclosures. However foreclosures were 13% of the total sales in the last year. That is because foreclosures sell, many of the other listings do not sell.

13.5% of the 696 listings are new construction, but they were 20% of the total sales last year. There just are not very many new construction listings on the market this time of year. There will be a lot more by next June. I do know of some new construction listings so if you are looking for those drop me a line.

That leaves private sales as the remaining 80% of the market and they were only 67% of the total sales last year.

Why do foreclosures and new construction blow away the rest of the market? There is one reason and one reason only…

PRICE

Builders and bankers understand that they are in competition with every other house on the market. Buyers will look at all the competition and make their choice. While there are many other variables such as location, and condition, the one variable that you can absolutely control is the price. If the house doesn’t sell then you need to lower the price. It’s as simple as that. That is where the rubber meets the road. There are many reasons why people don’t lower their price but the bottom line is that they really don’t need to sell or owe so much that they cannot sell.

It’s important to have good marketing, good photos, a home video and a good internet presence but after those are in place if your house isn’t selling, it’s the price.

Drop me a line if you would like to get a market price of your home.

Last Monday Morning Market Memo: November 5-12.