Georgia Real Estate | North Georgia Real Estate | Blue Ridge Mountains | Donna Yates, Realtor

Peak leaf season was last weekend (October 24/25) in the North Georgia Mountains and this weekend is time to set clocks back one hour on Saturday night (Fall back).

Lots of changes going on right now with transition from summer to fall, leaves turning and daylight savings time ending. So, are there any changes going on in the real estate market, let's take a look:

On the National Level
The National Association of Realtors (NAR) who employ many economists report existing sales bounced back in September mostly due to the first time homebuyers tax credit. This has been a welcomed change. The tax credit is due to expire but we expect it will be extended and will change to allow buyers who were not eligible in the current version to be eligible in the new expanded version. There was a 9.4% jump in sales nationwide. This was the highest sales level in two years, another welcomed change. However, the market is still underperforming, some homes are selling for less than what it would cost to build them now, but there are early signs of price stabilization.

The Average Mortgage rate for conventional, fixed is 5.06% as of October 30, 2009. This is the lowest rate in 30 years and is down 1 percentage point from one year ago. Distress properties (foreclosures or those properties about to go into foreclosure) continue to distort pricing.

On the Regional Level
In the South, home sales rose 9% in September. North Carolina reported 19 out of 1000 homes or 1.9% are in foreclosure with Georgia reporting a 3.4% foreclosure rate primarily due to the Atlanta Metro market. Also, Georgia is a non-judicial foreclosure state which means, it's easier for banks and lending institutions to foreclose and they tend to pull the trigger a bit faster. Average sales price is $153,000, down 7.6% from one year ago and consumer confidence inched down in September.

On the Local Level
We are seeing stability over the last several months. Tourism has picked up in our area and internet traffic has increased, so we are experiencing a gradual improvement.

We are seeing a change in the type of loan buyers are seeking. We haven't seen many FHA Loans in our market area in the past but there has been an uptick. FHA requires a lower down payment and a different type of appraisal. For the seller that means, the appraiser will look for potential maintenance issues in addition to the standard appraisal that is typically done.

Per Northeast Georgia Board of Realtors Multiple Listing Service which covers 6 counties and a few areas from outside of these counties - Gilmer, Fannin, Union, Towns, Clay, Cherokee NC, and a small part of Tennesee reports the following as of October 30, 2009:

Total properties currently for sale (includes residential, commercial and land) = 13,600, with 4,104 residential, 9,099 land and 387 foreclosures.

Month to date Closings: 113 residential; 50 land; 41 foreclosures
A very small percentage of residential properties sold and closed = 2.8%
Only one half of 1% of vacant land sold and closed (very low) and foreclosures that sold and closed made up 10%. This shows that sellers are still in competition with banks.

SOLD (Residential Sales by Price Point)

Under $100k = 20 sales / 17%

$100k to $200k = 62 sales / 55% - (Most active price point that is attracting the most buyers past 4 months)

$200k to $300k = 21 sales / 18%

$300k to $400k = 5 sales / 4%

$400k to $500k = 3 sales / 3%

Above $500k = 2 sales / 3%.

The average price on residential properties equals $182,899 or 79% of original list price; Land: $51,000 = 69.9% of list price and Foreclosures: $109,000 = 78% of list price (includes both homes and land). Foreclosures are selling on average 86 days which is 4 times better than any other segment of the market.

For sellers who do not have to sell, this is probably not the best time to be selling your home. We do not expect to see a recovery in prices anytime soon. Reduced, Reduced, Reduced ! How many sellers have reduced and feel they've gone as low as they can go, well, this is what banks are doing. They are reducing prices in order to "dump" properties and buyers who have been straddling the fence are first looking at foreclosures. Banks are scheduling automatic reductions at certain price points at certain intervals to move their inventory and even generate a bidding war in some cases. Traditional sellers are in competition with banks and sellers who really need to sell may need to consider the same strategy the bank has until they reach a price point that is attracting the most buyers. Overall, most of the changes we are seeing in the marketplace are positive and we are optimistically cautious.

Donna Yates, Georgia Realtor
Coldwell Banker High Country Realty
706-633-0644 cell 706-632-7311 office
www.move2northgeorgia.net
www.cbhighcountry.com/re/donnayates
donna@ellijay.com