Residential Real Estate Market Analysis: Willistown Township

by Rich Schiffer, Weichert Realtors 

A recent review of residential sales in Willistown Township, Chester County, Pennsylvania revealed some interesting trends.

2005:

294 Units Listed
$198,425,253 Listed Volume
$674,915 Listed Average (County-wide average = $421,581)
182 Units Sold
$96,158,975 Sold Volume
$528,346 Sold Average (County-wide average = $358,553)
56 Average DOM (County-wide Average = 45)

2006:

368 Units Listed
$252,065,438 Listed Volume
$684,960 Listed Average (County-wide average = $445,783)
165 Units Sold
$85,569,898 Sold Volume
$518,605 Sold Average (County-wide average = $376,077)
50 Average DOM (County-wide Average = 56)

Several things jump out at me when I look at these numbers:

Willistown list prices rose, but sold prices declined:
List prices rose about 1.488%
Sale prices declined 1.844%

Willistown homes sell for considerably more than the county average:
2005: Willistown sales 47% higher than County-wide average
2006: Willistown sales 38% higher than County-wide average

Pricing in Willistown is not as "tight" as the county average:
2005: AvgSale$ / AvgList$ = 78.3% (County-wide = 85.0%)
2006: AvgSale$ / AvgList$ = 75.7% (County-wide = 84.4%)

Willistown homes DOM compares closely to County-wide average:
2005: 9 additional average days on market
2006: 6 fewer average days on market

Willistown homes underperformend county-wide average sale price increase:
Willistown change in average sales, 2006/2005 = -1.844%
County-wide change in average sales, 2006/2005 = +1.048%

What does all this mean for you?

If you are a Seller in Willistown, you may feel slightly discouraged, because of the recent slide in resale value.  However, if you look at a broader picture, the 4 years starting 1/1/2003 and ending 12/31/2006, we actually see an effective annual appreciation of 6.89%.  This slight decrease this past year was coupled with strong growth in the previous years, balancing out to a nice overall gain.  You know you have a very nice neighborhood, but the buyers apparently don't see the same value, which is reflected in the sold price being nearly 25% lower than the asking price.  With an average time on the market being less than 2 months, you stand a good chance of selling your home in a reasonable time.  If you price your home appropriately, you are always more likely to sell quickly.

If you are a Buyer looking to buy a home in Willistown, you should feel fairly good about these numbers.  There is a decent selection of homes to look at, and the fact that homes sale prices were nearly 25% off asking prices, you may have an opportunity to negotiate a nice deal.  Keep in mind, however, that many sellers are well aware of these market trends, and have already lowered their asking prices accordingly.  Don't presume to offer 25% less than the asking price just because of these statistics.  Have your REALTOR do an indepth analysis of the comparable homes and recent sales in the specific neighborhood.  Also keep in mind that the average days on market is less than 2 months.  If you fall in love with a home, make an offer.  Someone else might be falling in love with it too.  Too many people loose the home they really want because they "waited to see" what the market would do...and what it did was sell the home they wanted to someone else.  Don't let that happen to you.

If you are interested in Buying or Selling a home in Willistown Township, Chester County, PA, please contact me at the West Chester office of Weichert, Realtors.  I will be happy to provide you an analysis of your home's place in today's market, or arrange for a private showing of available homes in this beautiful area.