On Saturday, June 14th, 2008, I opened my local regional newspaper and the headline on the front page of the newspaper was the title of this blog.
As I read the article, apparently the economists at NAR made an error during their review of our MLS sales data, and originally posted a press release that we were up 4% over last year, when questioned further, it was discovered there was an error in a formula nad the numbers really reflected a decrease in home sales by 30% over same time frame last year.
For those of us in the real estate business, it again looked a little gloomy, but when I actually looked at the statistics in my area ( Ocean and Monmouth Counties, NJ) it wasn't as bad as it seems.
THere is much good that can come out of a housing decline - as you can see from historical records. We as an industry have peaks and valleys in this business - it is cyclical and usually cycles ever 10 years or so. In our area, we saw a steady increase for almost 15 years, with no decline in prices the entire time frame.
What we have been experiencing in our area is a simple market stabilization or correction, and it is not doom and gloom, but rather a great time for buyers and people who have wanted to trade up. What everyone, including the media, needs to understand is that if there were never a correction or a "slow down" in this industry, all homes would be priced so high they wouldn't be affordable to anyone!
Prices have come dowm between 20 and 30 percent in my market area, at least the prices of the homes now selling, there are still home sellers out there who think they can still demand the prices from 2006 and early 2007. But, for those people who are selling and looking to move laterally or trade up, this is a great time to sell and buy! What you lose in your sale price you will make up in the purchase of the new home - that is also down in price by 20 to 30 percent! And for all of you who were thinking of selling but are waiting for the prices to come back up - you will be waiting for awhile. As I said before, Real Estate is cyclical, and it will slowly start to appreciate and slowly over the next ten years or so the prices will creep back up - until the next correction.
The best thing that came out of the article that appeared in the paper this past weekend is that the sellers out there who are "holding out" for their price may have some serious thinking to do - do you really want to sell or are you just "on the market"?
If you have any questions regarding Real Estate, please fell free to contact me anytime at Bonnie@ERAByrneRealty.com. I am based in central New Jersey, and would be more than happy to discuss your real estate needs or problems. Happy Reading!
Bonnie Fitzgerald, CRS, CRB,
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