Monday, January 28, 2008

January 28, 2008

Interest Rates rose to 5.5% for a 30 year fixed on January 28, 2007. Rates had a roller coaster ride last week, one lender told us that rates changed 4 times in one day last week. The Fed dropped interest rates .75% at an emergency meeting last week. This has actually resulted in mortgage rates creeping up a bit.


It is going to take us a few more days to learn all of the capabilities of the new MLS system and to provide you with the most comprehensive data available. Current listing inventory - 212 active listings in Owatonna as of today, that number has remained stable for several weeks now. The number of pending listings climbed a bit to 17 houses. There were 15 properties Closed so far in 2008.

The 2007 year end market absorption chart is available and has quite a bit of interesting data.

Give us a call, 507-390-2121 or email us, info@BartleyGroup.com

New Property Search Function is Active!!

We apologize for the delay, but our new property search function is now available. You are now able to search for properties from all cooperating brokers in the entire South East Minnesota area. You can view multiple photos, virtual tours, complete listing information, room sizes and for some homes, seller disclosures.

We are extremely excited about this new technology. In addition, dynamic map searching is coming in February.

Please drop us an e-mail if there is additional technology you would like to see us provide for home buyers & sellers, info@BartleyGroup.com

Tuesday, January 15, 2008

New Property Search Function!!

It's Official!! Starting Monday the 21st of January we will have new search capability for our blog as well as for our main site http://www.bartleygroup.com/ . You will be able to search for homes listed by any participating REALTOR in all of Southeast Minnesota. You will be able to search by property type, community, price, bedrooms & bathrooms. All data will be current & live, you will be able to view & print full detailed information: including descriptions, photos, room sizes and directions.

In addition coming in early February we will be adding the ability to search for a home from interactive maps.

We strive to provide the latest real estate technology available to our clients and visitors of our blog and our website. If there is something you would like to see us add please post a comment here or drop us an e-mail info@BartleyGroup.com

Thank You

The Bartley Group

January 15, 2007

Interest Rates have fallen to 5.25% for a 30 year fixed and 4.75% for a 15 year fixed on January 15, 2007. Rates haven't been this low since around 2003.

Buyers if you have been fence sitting waiting for the market & interest rates to bottom out, it sure seems like we are just about there. There is a nice selection of homes, prices are reasonable and interest rates are incredibly low. All in all, a great time to purchase a home.

Current listing inventory - 212 active listings in Owatonna as of today, that number has remained stable for several weeks now. Average days on the market has slid slightly to 173 days. The number of pending listings fell a bit to 16 houses. Average days on the market for pendings is 142 days. There were 7 properties Closed so far in 2008, with an average days on market time of 108 days.

The new market absorption chart for the end of year 2007 is done and has quite a bit of interesting data.

Give us a call, 507-390-2121 or email us, info@BartleyGroup.com

Friday, January 11, 2008

A Look at the Real Estate Market in Minnesota

Not optimism, not pessimism, but REALISM….
January, 2008
By Glenn S. Dorfman, Minnesota Association of REALTORS®

There is good news for homebuyers and sellers and it is not b.s.: Not optimism, not pessimism, but REALISM (facts seasoned with a heavy dose of common sense ---realistic thinking).

Salespeople, business people, politicians do not create trust by “blowing smoke,” in the form of uniformed, self-benefiting opinions at the public. The public wants and deserves the most accurate assessment of current economic and housing market conditions as possible coated with a heavy dose of common sense. To suggest, that this housing economy is terrific and that, were it not for the media’s negative sentiment all would be well, is just plain wrong and has no basis in fact. We cannot expect the public to see REALTORS® as professionals with integrity, if during market weakness, we tell them untruths. If REALTORS® care about their status in the eyes of the consumer, if we are in this business for the long haul, facts and language matter in our marketing, in today’s market, more than ever.

How we arrived at this place and time in the housing market (a brief and necessary understanding of the facts).

We have arrived at this housing market as a result of three principal factors coming together between 1999 and 2005. They are discussed in order of importance. First, compliments of the stock market debacle and 9/11, we benefited from the Federal Reserve “cheap money”--- lowest interest rates in forty-five years policy. Low carry costs, inflated home values to unsustainable levels. Second, in order to participate in the low interest rate borrowing and re-financing frenzy, Wall Street helped to create an array of CDO’s (collateralized debt obligations) that expanded the number of mortgage products that consumers could choose from (though few understood how they worked). Third, were two intersecting demographic trends---huge immigration to the U.S. as a result of the strong job creating economy and the baby boomers reaching their peak earning years. These factors helped Minnesota REALTORS® raise the homeownership rate in this state from 68 to 78% by mid-2005.

Realism (Facts + Common Sense) in the current housing market

Despite all the serious negative news that almost always follows the deflating of an “asset bubble”, there are several pieces of very positive news that only a few of the smartest, generally wealthiest people, understand about an economic downturn. These need to be carefully and completely explained to potential buyers individually and through advertising.

Economic downturns provide significant opportunities for making money.

While unsophisticated sellers tend to focus on their competent REALTORS® suggestion to reduce price, forgetting that they too will be “buying” in a declining house price market. Further, they also forget that most sellers, who are not house flippers, saw their house values rise 50-85% from 1999-mid-2005! So, considering that Minnesota home values have averaged approximately 4% a year increase for the past 60 years, a modest cut of 10-20% in a 50-85% 6 year increase is still a great deal by historical standards. If sellers do not want to listen to the sage advice of competent REALTORS® in today’s market to sell with a nice profit, they may end up losing much more than they bargained for---after all, the point of putting a house on the market is to what is necessary to sell it, not to list it and waste a competent REALTORS® time and resources. For those who borrowed against equity, refinanced or just plain bought at the top, there is little that can be done for them. More importantly to the seller, may be the microeconomic truth that inventories are bound to rise this spring (as they have historically) and together with the foreclosures from the 2008 mortgage resets of 2005/06 adjustable rate mortgages, will push supply higher the longer they hold off price reductions. Without some fantastical and unrealistic massive wave of buyers, additional inventory in 2008 must suppress price more the longer a unit sits on the market. Also, the seller incentives of recent years have done nothing except obfuscate the actual reductions and kept values higher than they would have been without them. This means that many buyers may be paying higher property taxes on a phantom value into perpetuity. Not exactly the ethical high ground!

For buyers, well it is a strong market with great selection and lots of negotiating room on price and terms. However, no one knows when the turn will come and some buyers may find themselves wishing they had decided to make that offer. I do not say this as a REALTOR® advocate but rather as a seasoned investor who invests in good companies when their price is “falling” and sells them when their price has risen 10% or so. While Minnesota housing may have some more room to fall, buying today allows for fabulous choice at good fixed rates for homebuyers looking to buy and live in their home for 5 or so years. Things will improve and looking for the bottom is like selling at the top, it rarely works. Greedy people generally get their due. Capitalist markets are great levelers and cannot be predicted with any level of certainty.

The best investors in the world buy on weakness, hold and sell when they have made a reasonable profit. And homes have the added advantage that you can live in them, fix them up to suit your tastes, enjoy them, deduct their mortgage interest and property taxes (if, of course, you itemize your taxes ---30% of Minnesotans) and, best of all, you get the keep the capital gains free from taxation.

Finally, residential homes are long term investments in the same way that stocks are…flipping, greed, and making fast money is mostly myth and professional REALTORS® deplore the practice.

Comments to: gsdorfman@mnrealtor.com

Glenn S. Dorfman
Chief Operating Officer, Minnesota Association of REALTORS®
direct cell: 612-719-6541
direct office: 952-912-2662
email: gsdorfman@mnrealtor.com

Wednesday, January 9, 2008

January 9, 2008

Interest Rates have fallen to 5.375% on January 8, 2007. This is more of a reduction than we expected. It seems like rates may drop just a bit more, but all of the lenders we've spoken with aren't sure how much and for how long rates will stay down.

Current listing inventory - 208 active listings in Owatonna as of today, that number has remained stable for several weeks now. Average days on the market has remained steady at 176 days. The number of pending listings climbed slightly to 19 houses. It is good to see this number begin to rebound slightly. It will still be something to keep an eye on as we move forward into the new year. Average days on the market for pendings is 146 days. There were 7 properties Closed so far in 2008, with an average days on market time of 65 days. We realize that there have only been 7 homes closed so far, but my goodness, 65 DAYS ON THE MARKET IS UP A LITTLE BIT THIS WEEK BUT IS STILL AN AWESOME AVERAGE.

The new market absorption chart for the end of year 2007 is done and has interesting data.

Give us a call, 507-390-2121 or email us, info@BartleyGroup.com

Monday, January 7, 2008

January 7, 2008

Interest Rates have fallen to 5.50% on January 4, 2007. This is what we expected to happen in January, it just happened a little earlier in the month than usual. Lenders typically reduce interest rates in January to stimulate business. These rate decreases usually last several weeks and then the rates pop up again.

Current listing inventory - 208 active listings in Owatonna as of today, that number has remained stable since last week. Average days on the market has risen a bit to 176 days. The number of pending listings dropped to 17 houses. We would have like to have seen the pendings begin to rebound more quickly not continue to fall. In will be something to keep an eye on as we move forward into the new year. Average days on the market for pendings is 136 days. There were 397 properties Closed so far in 2008, with an average days on market time of 56 days. We realize that there have only been 5 homes closed so far, but my goodness, 56 DAYS ON THE MARKET AVERAGE IS AWESOME. We have seen a big increase in the number of showing appointments scheduled during the last week. That is a very positive sign.

We will follow up in a few days with a new market absorption chart as well as comparisions of 2006 vs 2007.

Give us a call, 507-390-2121 or email us, info@BartleyGroup.com

Friday, January 4, 2008

Interest Rates have fallen today to 5.50% on January 4, 2007. These last two rate decreases are FANTASTIC. This is as low as rates have been in over a year. Buyers, this is the opportunity you have been waiting for. Low rates, great selection, tremendous opportunities. These rate decreases usually last for a week or two and then then they pop up again.

Call us and let us show you why now is a good time to purchase a home.
507-390-2121<>

Thursday, January 3, 2008

January 3, 2008

Ok here come the first of the statistics comparing 2007 to 2006. First of a bunch of statistics we hope to have posted here in the next week or so.

2007 - Closed - 401 Properties
2006 - Closed - 439 Properties
Down 38 Properties or 8.7% (not as bad as the media would have you believe)

2007 - Days on Market - 115
2006 - Days on Market - 94
Up 21 days or 22% (certainly not good, but not horrible either)

Highest price property sold in 2007 - $556,646
Highest price property sold in 2006 - $417,000
A big gain here

Lowest price property sold in 2007 - $23,578
Lowest price property sold in 2006 - $37,000
Down a bit here

Average Sale Price 2007 - $169,524
Average Sale Price 2006 - $172,628
Down a bit here last year and down from 2005 (but even here we are not down horribly far)

We will be going into much more depth on these statistics and will be posting them here as we calculate the numbers.

If you have any questions about the numbers or where we get the data from, please leave us a comment here or drop us an e-mail at info@BartleyGroup.com

Thanks

January 3, 2008

We would like to apologize, we noticed a link that we had posted on the 21st of December about why 2008 may be a very good time to purchase a home. We have just been made aware that the link is not working correctly and we have removed it until we can get it fixed.

Wednesday, January 2, 2008

January 2, 2008

WOW, feels weird to be typing 2008. We are looking forward to some fabulous things for 2008.

Well here we go with the first market update of the new year.

Interest Rates have fallen today to 5.625% on January 2, 2007. This is what we expected to happen in January, it just happened a little earlier in the month than usual. Lenders typically reduce interest rates in January to stimulate business. These rate decreases usually last several weeks and then the rates pop up again.

Current listing inventory - 208 active listings in Owatonna as of today, that number has remained stable since last week. We didn't make the goal we were hoping for of 200 or less listings by the end of 2007 but we have remained fairly soild where we are. Average days on the market has dropped slightly to 170 days. The number of pending listings dropped to 22 houses this was to be expected as many homes closed during the last few days of the year. Average days on the market for pendings is 148 days. There were 397 properties Closed during 2007, with an average days on market time of 114 days. A telling number to look at is the difference between average days on market for the closed properties and the active properties. There is a 56 day (almost 2 months) difference between the homes that buyers have found value in and the homes that buyers are rejecting at their current listed price.

Buyers, I know we have posted this before, but if you have been sitting on the fence waiting, we are seeing so awesome deals available right now

We will follow up in a few days with a new market absorption chart as well as comparisions of 2006 vs 2007.

Give us a call, 507-390-2121 or email us, info@BartleyGroup.com