Posted by Carol Shepherd on Thu, Nov 08, 2012 @ 08:45 AM
After the economic crisis that the country has experienced over the last several years, and the
subsequent decline of the real estate market, 2012 is proving to be a record-breaking year on multiple fronts, giving us some of the highest numbers we've seen since 2006. Over the first six months of 2012, an encouraging trend emerged as far as New Hampshire real estate residential sales are concerned, with six consecutive months of double-digit percentage increases in residential unit sales compared to 2011.
You can take a look back at New Hampshire Real Estate 2nd Quarter Market Data. But here’s a look at the third quarter market data for New Hampshire real estate provided by the New Hampshire Association of REALTORS® (NHAR), and we think you’ll be pleased with the results.
July 2012 New Hampshire Market Data:
July followed the emerging trend this year with a 20% increase in residential unit sales in the state compared to the same month last year, which brought a consistent 20% increase to the year-to-date sales over January-July of 2011.
Moreover, the median price of residential sales was within $1,000, just 0.5%, of the median price in July of last year, “‘further evidence, according to NHAR, that values are stabilizing,’” reported David Cummings in the NHAR July 2012 Data Press Release.
For the local market, Sullivan County showed a 17% increase in unit sales compared to July 2011, while Grafton County dipped down 8% July 2012 compared to July of the previous year.
Although residential sales in Grafton County were down this month compared to July of 2011, its year-to-date sales showed an increase of 22%. Sullivan County displayed a 17% increase in both the month of July, compared to July 2011, and its year-to-date sales.
Grafton County experienced an 18% increase in condominium sales this July compared to the same month last year, making its year-to-date sales total 4% more than this time last year. While Sullivan County’s July condominium sales were down from July 2011, its year-to-date condominium sales remained 46% higher than 2011.
All 10 New Hampshire counties showed positive double-digit percentage increases in year-to-date residential unit sales for the first seven months of 2012.
August 2012 New Hampshire Market Data:
The market continued its upward climb in August 2012 with statewide residential home unit sales showing a 22% increase compared to August 2011. That was the eighth consecutive month of New Hampshire’s residential unit sales being at least 15% more than the corresponding months in 2011, which now brings the year-to-date total to 21% greater than January-August 2011.
For the first time this year, the month’s median sale price for New Hampshire residential sales was even with that of the same month last year. “‘...[I]t is fair to say that this improved median price trend is not surprising, considering the sales numbers we’ve been witnessing this year,’ said NHAR President John Rice” in the NHAR August 2012 Data Press Release.
All 10 New Hampshire counties saw unit sales increases in August 2012 compared to August 2011.
Residential sales in Sullivan County were up 41% this August from last August, and Grafton County residential sales were up 9% from last August. Year-to-date sales remained positive for both Grafton and Sullivan Counties, 20% and 21% respectively. In addition, year-to-date condominium sales showed an increase of 12% in Grafton County and 25% in Sullivan County.
September 2012 New Hampshire Market Data:
In September 2012, although the percentage of statewide year-to-date residential unit sales remained increased by double digits compared to 2011, the month’s residential unit sales was increased by a single digit 8% compared to September 2011. Although that is the smallest percentage increase over one month that New Hampshire has seen this year, an overall 19% increase in year-to-date sales for 2012 is still promising. View NHAR September 2012 Market Data.
Sullivan County residential unit sales dropped 11% in September 2012 compared to September 2011, while Grafton County experienced an 11% increase. All 10 New Hampshire counties showed positive year-to-date residential unit sales for the first nine months of 2012 compared to 2011, ranging from 15% in Rockingham County to 26% in Cheshire County.
Furthermore, while the year-to-date median sale price for New Hampshire remained down compared to 2011, September 2012 marked the first month this year in which the state’s median sale price for the month was greater than that of the same month last year. This brought the year-to-date median sale price margin up from -4% to -2% in just one month.
Our Local Real Estate Market
Let's take a closer look at our local market data. These are the year-to-date (January through September) residential home and condo unit sales numbers for three local New Hampshire towns, showing that from the state, to its counties, to local towns, we are seeing positive increases in sales this year:
Residential Home & Condo Sales Jan-Sept
| Town |
2011 |
2012 |
| Grantham |
40 |
53 |
| Lebanon |
106 |
110 |
| Hanover |
76 |
86 |
(NNEREN MLS data, 7 Nov, 2012)
As summed up by Peter Francese in his article on October 25, 2012 entitled NH housing market recovery is gradual but firmly upward, “Based on the first nine months, New Hampshire REALTORS are on track to sell 2,000 more homes in 2012 than they did in 2011. That will mean $500 million more sales volume this year compared to last year, just in residential sales.”
If you are encouraged by these statistics and are ready to buy or sell your New Hampshire real estate, find a qualified REALTOR® at CG Shepherd Realty, LLC to guide you through the process.
CG Shepherd Realty, LLC: Serving the Dartmouth-Lake Sunapee and Upper Valley Regions, Eastman, & Vermont Real Estate Buying & Selling Needs for Over 24 Years.
Posted by Carol Shepherd on Fri, Aug 31, 2012 @ 01:32 PM
Through the first quarter of 2012, we saw consistency in the real estate sales data for the state of New Hampshire. Each month, the state has experience double-digit percent gains in unit sales compared to the same months of the preceding year. As we’ll see here in the second quarter, June has been the sixth consecutive month of this trend. Let’s take a look back at the 2nd quarter data provided by the New Hampshire Association of Realtors®(NHAR):
New Hampshire home sales in April 2012 were the highest since 2006 with a 21% increase from April of last year. Median price, however, was down by 5% in April 2012 compared to April 2011. April-only sales increased in Grafton County by 44%. Although median price for the month decreased in Grafton County, Sullivan County experienced a 17% increase.
"For those of us looking for sustained improvement, this truly feels like a time for optimism," said NHAR President John Rice in the NHAR April Press Release.
May 2012 concluded with the even greater increase in New Hampshire residential home sales of 28% compared to May 2011 and a 21% increase in year to date sales from the first five months of last year. May-only sales increased in all 10 New Hampshire counties including 26% in Grafton County and 6% in Sullivan County. Both Grafton (7%) and Sullivan (10%) counties saw an increase in median price for the month of May as well.
'Where in the past we’ve been merely hopeful that things would start to turn, now we appear to have substance to justify that hope,” said John Rice in the NHAR May Press Release. “These are very, very solid numbers in the context of where we’ve been in recent years."
The state’s home sales showed yet another double-digit increase in June 2012 by 18% compared to June 2011. Again in June, median price increased in both Sullivan County (15%) and in Grafton County (5%) compared to June of last year.
Year to date residential sales for the entire state showed an increase of 20% compared to the first six months of 2011. From January through June, each month has reported an increase in home sales resulting in 5,775 total home sales this year in New Hampshire.
Grafton County has experienced a 32% increase in year to date residential sales but a median price decline of 3%, whereas Sullivan County has seen an increase in both sales (17%) and median price (2%) year to date in 2012. Home sales are not the only type of property sales showing improvement either. Sullivan County has also experienced a whopping 75% increase in condominium sales from January through June of this year compared to the same months of 2011.
According to residential home and condo sales data recorded by the Northern New England Real Estate Network (NNEREN) Multiple Listing System (MLS), these are the January 2012 through June 2012 sales numbers for some local towns:
Residential Home & Condo Sales
| Town |
2011 |
2012 |
| Grantham |
26 |
31 |
| Lebanon |
63 |
85 |
| Hanover |
41 |
55 |
(NNEREN MLS data, 29 Aug, 2012)
As supply and demand continues its natural course, the numbers show that the market is gradually working it’s way back from being the predominate buyers’ market of the last five years to a balance.
"We are continuing to see more and more examples of multiple offers on properties," Rice noted in the NHAR June Press Release. "Sellers are beginning to regain some of the leverage that buyers have enjoyed for the last five or six years."
We at CG Shepherd Realty, LLC are excited for this trend and look forward to what is to come in the next quarter. If you are encouraged by these statistics and are ready to buy or sell real estate, find a qualified Realtor® to work with at CG Shepherd Realty, LLC.
CG Shepherd Realty, LLC: Serving the Dartmouth-Lake Sunapee and Upper Valley Regions, Eastman & Vermont Real Estate Buying & Selling Needs for over 20 years.
Posted by Carol Shepherd on Wed, May 02, 2012 @ 01:35 PM
New Hampshire real estate market data for the 1st quarter was recently released by both the New Hampshire Association of Realtors® (NHAR), as well as national market data from the National Association of Realtors® (NAR). Despite small decreases in March sales, overall the real estate market, both locally and nationally, continue to improve and the conditions remaining ripe for buyers.
NAR recently released statistics that existing-home sales (completed transactions that include single-family homes, townhomes, condominiums and co-ops) in the Northeast dipped 1.7% in March compared to the previous month, but those sales numbers are still 5.5% higher than they were in March 2011. (NAR News)
This was reiterated by NHAR, who released that first quarter residential home sales for NH were 17% above that of 2011 and, with record-breaking months in January and February of this year, the highest 1st quarter numbers they have seen since 2007. (NHAR eNews)
Home sales increased by double digits in nine of New Hampshire's 10 counties, with Merrimack rising 6%. However, the median home selling price declined in every county except for Merrimack and Coos. (NHAR eNews)
Some newer statistics available reveal that "out-of-state buyers purchased 22% of New Hampshire's home sales." (NHAR eNews) Carroll County saw 44% out-of-state buyers, Grafton saw 36%, and Rockingham 25%. Additionally, more than 22% of New Hampshire's home sales were second homes.
Whether in-state or out-of-state buyers, or first or second homes, the overall New Hampshire home sales projections for 2012 are looking very promising.
Contact CG Shepherd Realty, LLC to find out more specific market statistics for your community.
CG Shepherd Realty, LLC: Serving New Hampshire's Dartmouth-Lake Sunapee & Upper Valley Regions, Eastman, and Vermont's Real Estate Buying & Selling Needs for Over 20 Years.
Posted by Carol Shepherd on Fri, Oct 07, 2011 @ 03:43 PM
The number of foreclosures have had a large impact on the housing market, especially since the
economic downturn, but the good news is that New Hampshire saw a decrease in the number of foreclosures in July of this year, according to the New Hampshire Housing Finance Authority. About 238 foreclosure deeds were recorded in July 2011; not only is that 31% fewer foreclosures than in July 2010, but it is also about 30% fewer than those during the month of June 2011 (Callahan, K., N.H. foreclosures fall in July. New Hampshire Business Review. 23 Sept 2011-6 Oct 2011, p 39). There has also been a drop in foreclosure auction notices, which occur when households are severely behind on mortgage payments, from 621 in July 2011 to 539 in June 2011, which is a good sign. However, there are a couple of situations that could significantly slow this upward trend in the housing market. One is the potential of further economic setbacks, such as an unemployment increase. Another is the issue of lenders extending the period of delinquency before foreclosure. This is partially because of delays in document processing(Callahan). The authority noted that New Hampshire’s improvement in the number of foreclosures ‘“could mean that we’re beginning to trend toward recovery in the housing market”’, or ‘could also possibly be a result of delays in document processing’ (Callahan). As is often the case with market trends, we’ll just have to wait and see how it pans out. View the entire article at nhbr.com and Contact CG Shepherd Realty, LLC to learn more.CG Shepherd Realty, LLC serving the Upper Valley, Dartmouth-Lake Sunapee Region buying and selling needs.
Posted by Carol Shepherd on Fri, Jun 24, 2011 @ 12:24 PM
Shepherd Realty offers virtual tours for all of our office listings! Virtual tours are a wonderful feature allowing you to view more of the amenities and characteristics of a home before seeing it in person. Typically, virtual tours display photos of both the interior and exterior of a home, along with some basic property information. But with Shepherd Realty, all of our virtual tours on our website also offer a chance to see areas of interest around the community of the subject property.
The left-hand panel of our virtual tours allows you to zoom in and out of a map of the property's location. Then you can click on the camera icons to see photos of the surrounding area. Meanwhile, the right-hand panel cycles through photos of the home and photos of the community.
So do more than just search our listings. Explore Shepherd Realty's virtual tours, and enjoy becoming acquainted with your dream home, inside and out, and your community too!
Visit Shepherd Realty's website and check out our featured properties to explore our virtual tours. Contact Shepherd Realty for your New Hampshire and Vermont buying and selling needs.
Posted by Carol Shepherd on Thu, Jun 02, 2011 @ 10:43 AM
809 New Hampshire homes were sold in April 2011 at a median price of $199,900. Both of these numbers are down from April of 2010; however, April 2010 was a unique month because of the $8,000 tax credit available to first-time homebuyers. Contracts needed to be signed by April 20, 2010, which resulted in a "temporary sellers' market" (Cummings, Dave. Director of NHAR Communications.20 May, 2011.Press Release). Both unit sales and median prices spiked considerably during this month compared to April 2009.
So, although the numbers are down this month from last year's, we are actually seeing "the April market normalize" (Cummings, Dave. Director of NHAR Communications.20 May, 2011.Press Release). Only Cheshire County saw improvement in sales numbers this month compared to April 2010. Median prices, however, improved in Merrimack, Cheshire, and Grafton County and stayed the same in Belknap County (Cummings, Dave. Director of NHAR Communications.20 May, 2011.Press Release).
New Hampshire Association of Realtors® (NHAR) President Tom Riley noted that home sales have risen from January to April of this year: "from 543 (January) to 578 (February) to 764 (March) to 809 (April). In addition, he pointed out that April 2011 are up 9% from those in April 2009" (Cummings, Dave. Director of NHAR Communications.20 May, 2011.Press Release).
Riley reiterated that this buyers' market continues to provide an opportunity for increased market activity in the months to come. '"…[I] n the big picture I believe it's fair to say we're in a period of stabilization"' (Cummings, Dave. Director of NHAR Communications.20 May, 2011.Press Release).
For more information on market trends in New Hampshire, take a look at this NHAR article: Income, Employment Rising in NH; Will Home Prices Follow?
Posted by Carol Shepherd on Thu, Apr 28, 2011 @ 01:14 PM
The New Hampshire Association of Realtors® (NHAR) recently released its March 2011 housing market data for New Hampshire homes. "Home sales activity and median price in New Hampshire dipped in March, compared to March 2010 leaving first quarter unit sales practically even with the first quarter of last year, while median price for the first quarter dropped nearly 5 percent from the same period 2010” (Cummings, Dave. Director of NHAR Communications.21 April, 2011.Press Release).
This small decrease for March was not consistent with January and February data. Tom Riley, NHAR President, noted that “the March sales decrease followed 2 consecutive months of increases…the data is still reflective of a particularly difficult winter selling season in New Hampshire" (Cummings, Dave. Director of NHAR Communications.21 April, 2011.Press Release).
Some of this quarter’s numbers did show positive increases. "Six of the state's 10 counties saw unit sales increases in the first quarter compared to the same period a year ago"(Cummings, Dave. Director of NHAR Communications.21 April, 2011.Press Release). Sullivan County was one of 2 counties that showed median price increases for this quarter.
To view long-term year-end statewide and county data compiled by NHAR, open the following pdf documents: Grafton County and Sullivan County.
Tom Riley emphasized that "the unprecedented buyers' market – low interest rates, low prices and high inventory – remains ripe for increased activity in the coming months"(Cummings, Dave. NHAR Director of Communications. 21 April, 2011. Press Release). NHAR is still looking for definitive market trends, but in the meantime, Tom Riley is positive with the statement: ‘”The bright spot in this challenging economic picture is the chance for those who in the past have been priced out of the market to now get in,” he said. “I don’t remember a better opportunity for buyers”’ (Cummings, Dave. NHAR Director of Communications.21 April, 2011.Press Release).
Contact Shepherd Realty for more information on NHAR data. You can also visit NHAR's website at http://www.nhar.org/ to view other press releases.
Posted by Carol Shepherd on Mon, Mar 28, 2011 @ 09:18 AM
If you've been on the fence about buying New Hampshire real estate, then you'll definitely be interested in this recent data. The New Hampshire Association of Realtors® (NHAR) released its housing market data for February 2011. I think you may be surprised at the findings. New Hampshire home sales increased this February by 7.4% from February 2010. However, the median sale price for the month decreased by 7.8% statewide compared to February of last year. NHAR President Tom Riley said that he wouldn't exactly call this a trend, but that the housing market appears to be stabilizing (Cummings, Dave. Director of NHAR Communications. 21 March, 2011. Press Release).
For more information on New Hampshire market trends, visit: http://www.nhar.org/real-estate-news/real-estate-market-trends/francese-indicators-point-to-more-robust-sales-in-2011/.
Local market data showed some positive increases as well. Seven of the 10 counties in New Hampshire, including Sullivan County, saw unit sales increase in February of this year compared to one year ago, while four of the 10 counties, including Grafton County, saw median price increase compared to last February. "With inventory still relatively high, interests rates low and prices competitive, Riley says the market remains ripe for strong sales activity" (Cummings, Dave. Director of NHAR Communications. 21 March, 2011. Press Release).
That tells me there are great opportunities for buyers right now. So, if you've been considering buying New Hampshire real estate, perhaps this data will be helpful as you make your decision. Talk to your New Hampshire real estate agent for more information on NHAR data.
For more information and to view the full press release, visit NHAR's website at http://www.nhar.org/.
Posted by Carol Shepherd on Sat, Jan 29, 2011 @ 08:38 AM
In today's real estate market, it is more important than ever to make your home as appealing as possible to potential buyers. Whether they are viewing photos or personally walking through your home for a showing or open house, buyers are looking at your home with a critical eye, comparing it to dozens of others on the market. To get your home sold, you must prepare your home to undergo this critique and come out on top.
We like to call the process "staging". For most homes, it only requires some small cosmetic changes that you can easily do yourself. For more information about what staging is and how it can be accomplished, visit: http://www.homebuyinginstitute.com/staging/.
There are many resources available to help you stage your home. Some people watch TV programs such as "Designed to Sell". Others search the Web to find articles such as these: http://realtytimes.com/rtpages/20090109_clutterfree.htm. Either way, there are plenty of ideas and tips for staging available. Some can be expensive, while others just take a little time and effort.
My one quick tip for staging that won't cost you a penny is to "get rid of the eyes". In other words, remove some of your personal items from view, such as family photos. Then buyers can walk into the house envisioning how their own personal touches could make this their home instead of yours.
I encourage you to take a little time to research home staging strategies that will work for you and your home, and discuss them with your real estate professional.
Posted by Carol Shepherd on Tue, Jan 11, 2011 @ 02:33 PM
5 Tips for Selling Your Home During the Winter Season
1. Decorate simply without clutter.
When a buyer is viewing a home, they are not looking at your home, but instead at their possible future home. With less clutter and personal décor, buyers are able to see the potential a home has.
2. Don’t take your home off the market for the season!
It may seem like the market is slowing and others are removing their listings, but the market is still alive! During the winter season, there are more buyers motivated to close within 60 days. Some of the benefits include low interest rates, so the buyers who are looking are serious and pose great opportunities. Don’t miss out on the sale just because the market looks slow.
3. Sensory staging can be enticing.
Light, fresh fragrances are universally comforting. With the dreary winter weather, a warm, well-lit home with inviting aromas can really lift spirits.
4. Provide small, unknown warnings.
Simple kindness such as a “Watch Your Step” sign on the steep basement stairs will seem thoughtful to a buyer. Even signs such as “Please Remove Your Shoes” will give an idea of cleanliness without you having to make such requests.
5. Keep walkways and driveways clear.
The winter weather can bring ice and snow, so make sure any outdoor paths or driveways where buyers will be walking remain clear and safe.