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The Mt Baker Rim 2009 in Review

By
Commercial Real Estate Agent with Pacific Continental Realty, LLC

The Mt Baker Rim 2009 in Review

Mt Baker Rim SignThe vacation cabin market in the Mt Baker Rim held up fairly strong during 2009. For the most part, second home markets tanked across the nation during the rescission of 2008 - 2009. However, there are a couple of reasons why I feel the Mt Baker vacation market has survived. 1) Vacation cabins near Mt Baker are relatively affordable. The average cabin in the Mt Baker Rim sold for $239,313 this year. 2) Mt Baker is a great ski/snowboarding mountain and people love the fact that there isn’t a resort located at the ski area.

A closer look at the numbers for 2009

There were 8 cabins that sold in the Mt Baker Rim over 2009. The average selling price was $239,313 with an average days on market of 183. In addition to the 8 cabins, there were also a couple of manufactured/mobile homes that sold. (I don’t like to use these in my statistics as I feel that they skew the true prices of the cabins. The Mt Baker Rim used to allow manufactured and mobile homes, but do not allow them any more)

Moving to the present time, there are currently 12 cabins for sale in the Mt Baker Rim. The average price for these cabins is $336,608 with an average day on market of 152. What I find most staggering about these statistics is that the average listing price of cabins currently on the market is almost $100,000 more than the average sold price for the year. In fact, even the least expensive cabin listed for sale is $10,000 more than the average price of sold cabins for the year. This tells me that a lot of the sellers are asking far too much money for their cabins.

My advice to sellers

I hate to say it, but you might need to strongly consider a new strategy to sell your cabin. I personally sold over 20% of the cabins in Snowline and the Mt Baker Rim during 2009 and I have good feel for the market and what buyers are looking for. The buyers are not looking to spend over $300,000 for a cabin unless it is absolutely spectacular. Buyers are buying cabins in the $250,000 to $275,000 range.

My Advice to buyers

The average cabin that has sold this year was $239,313. We can work together and get you great cabin at a fair price. The market in the Mt Baker Rim is not weak, however the seller’s expectations are too high. There are not short sales or foreclosures affecting this market. You should expect to pay between $250,000 to $275,000 for a decent vacation get-a-way in this market. Begin your search for a Mt Baker Rim Cabin now.

 

Ryan Martin – Windermere Real Estate/Whatcom, Inc.

Direct Line: 360-296-7366

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