Ignore the National Media and Get Local Data Instead.
March 7th, 2008 Categories: Maryland Real Estate News
Recently this article was forwarded to me from a local lender who was kindly trying to provide some market information in order to build a relationship
Housing: Best Time to Buy in Four Years
After reading the article I was left wondering: “Now What?”Since I spent the time reading it, I thought I would use it to pass on some quick advice.
Ignore the national media when it comes to Real Estate. What matters to you is strictly local.
Here are some Local Facts to illustrate my point:
Howard County Year End Median Sales Price was .58% more than 2006:
So, for Howard County, prices have generally held up. Even though the number of homes sold went down, and the days on market went up there is good news to gleam from looking at a local report. Specific cities within Howard County may have faired better than others, and so valuable information only comes from a local perspective.
Pick Ellicott City (zip 21043) and compare January 2008 to January 2007..
And you will see that average prices are up .22%. More interestingly though we see that the days on market actually has a favorable trend of -19%. That means homes started to sell more quickly.
If we take a look at Elkridge or Columbia..
we would get different numbers. Ask about Sykesville and the story changes again. You get the idea.
Even more, I could break statistics down for you that included similar home styles to provide even better detail. These numbers impact you in different ways depending on if you are a buyer or a seller. Square Foootage, schools, local economy, and amenities all come into play when determining value in real estate.
My final point is that if you really want to track your local real estate market there are two things you can do:
- Contact me or any other professional Realtor. With no charge or obligation I can give you an idea of what similar homes are selling for in your area you are interested in. I am not here to serve you when you are ready, I am here to serve you until you are ready.
- Sign up for a free Market Snapshot. on the right hand side column. This is a great way to keep an eye on your neighborhood Real Estate market. Both buyers and sellers can use this tool to keep a pulse on the local trends such as Days on Market, Currently Active Homes, Sold Homes, Average Prices etc. It also provides community information that comes in handy.
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