Market Report: Lake Country MLS trends for 2011 - covering Madison, Lake Oconee, Lake Sinclair
How's the market?
This is the number one question people ask when they find out I sell real estate.
With a word of caution from my late Dad, who was fond of saying "figures lie and liars figure" - let us bravely wade into the world of statistics courtesy of the Lake Country MLS.
Residential sales are 
2011 sold through Sept - 350 homes
2010 sold through Sept - 314 homes
2009 sold through Sept - 315 homes
still not close to the 2007 rate of 580 homes sold in the same period, but moving in the right direction.
With 935 homes on the market - there are still plenty to choose from. But in the lower price points, inventory is getting scarce.
The average sale price year to date is $281,000 - trending flat with 2009 and 2010 - and well below the market top of 2005-7 when average prices were in the $390,000 range. The drop in average prices comes from a combination of comparable homes dropping in value, and fewer high end sales in the mix.
The average price of homes currently on the market is $512,000 - a result of sluggish demand at the higher end.
How much discount should I expect from asking price? 
is another question buyers often ask. The only answer that is useful to a buyer is one that comes from assessing the value of a particular home - some of the best deals I've put together were at or above asking price. But the market stats do show an important change - during market peak, homes were selling at an average of 95% of asking price - now that number is closer to 90% for the overall market.
The average days on market has stayed pretty constant in the 180-190 days range, BUT the expired listings have soared to more than 50%. This means that sellers are letting one listing expire after the original listing period (usually 180 days) and then re-listing it to make it appear as a fresh property. At market peak, the expireds were only about 20% of the market - so I think that the average days on market has actually increased substantally.
If you have questions about what's happening in your local market - just ask a local expert. We're happy to help.
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