Marty Millner
Archive for the 'Upper Makefield Township' Category
Upper Makefield, Washington Crossing and Bucks County Market Statistics for June 2010
For today’s post, lets look at what has happened through June, in Upper Makefield Township & Washington Crossing , Bucks County real estate.
Upper Makefield Township is interesting, because it represents one of the more expensive real estate communities in Bucks County, and also, in general has the fewest number of transactions. As a result, sometimes the numbers can be skewed.
Upper Makefield Real Estate update, June 30, 2010
Inventory of homes for sale, as of the end of June, 2010 was 138
Inventory of homes for sale, as of the end of May, 2010 was 141
Inventory of homes for sale, as of the end of June, 2009 was 132.
Inventory is fairly stable, both month to month, as well as compared with the same time last year.
Average price of a home for sale at the end of June, 2010 was 1.24 million.
Average price of a home for sale at the end of June, 2009 was 1.32 million.
List price in inventory is down by 5.5%. However, this is where the numbers can get a bit skewed by the number of houses that are for sale above 1.3 million.
Sales data:
47 Homes have sold, through June, 2010 at 90% of original asking price.
30 Homes sold through the end of June, 2009 at 87% of original asking price.
This really represents a large increase in the activity level, for Upper Makefield Township real estate. Sales volume is up by more than 56% from last year, at the same time.
Additional observations: At the current sale pace, there still remains an 18.6 month supply of homes in inventory. This compares with 22 months a year ago, so factors have improved, although we still remain in a strong, buyers market in Upper Township and Washington Crossing.
The other interesting observation is that during 2009, most (82%) of the homes sold in Upper Makefield Township, sold for less than a million. Currently, 49% of the homes (68 of 138) on the market are priced above 1 million. This represents a 38 month supply at current sales pace for homes priced above a million. As bad as that sounds, it actually represents a significant improvement for more expensive homes in Upper Makefield.
As always, it is critical to price your home realistically, if you want to sell.
I can offer a very detailed report, that will show you homes that are active, pending and sold, within about a 5 mile radius of your home, in any area I serve. It is an extremely detailed report. If you would like to receive the report, please email me. Marty@martinmillner.com
A detailed look at the Real Estate market in Yardley, Newtown, and all of Bucks County
It’s time to take a detailed look at how the real estate market is performing, in Yardley, Newtown, and all other Bucks County areas, that I cover.
It is interesting to look at the Bucks County real estate update, and realize that we now have information for the first half of 2010.
Some observations, Bucks County wide real estate, first.
- Through June, sold/closed units is positive, compared with last year, in 7 of 8 of our principal markets, as well as for all of Bucks County.
- County wide the increase was 22.9%
- Real estate prices were actually up by 5.2%, through the first half of the year, for the entire County. Refer to the chart, to see how each municipality did.
- For all of Bucks County, the pricing momentum actually declined from May. It went from a 6.8% increase in May to June’s 5.2%
- The best forward looking indicator we have, is pending sales. Probably due to the expiring tax credit this June, pending sales for Bucks County, was down 32%, compared with June of last year. Surprisingly, it was 4 % higher than at the end of May.
- Inventory of homes, is higher now, than it was at the end of May, County wide. However, compared with June, last year, inventory levels are down, County wide.
- Bucks County wide, there remains a 10.5 month supply of homes on the market, which is better than it was last year, at the same time, but still indicating a strong, buyers market.
- Average days on the market, remains higher in most markets, than last year.
- Average list price of homes in inventory, at the end of June, for the County, was down just slightly from last year. (-0.8%)
- Discounts off of the asking price, are actually showing an improving trend. Overall, buyers are achieving approximately a 7% discount from the opening list price of the current listing contract.
Each of the real estate markets that I cover, performs differently. Lets look at real estate in Lower Makefield & Yardley, for now. I will review Upper Makefield Township, Newtown, Northampton, and others, in furture posts.
Lower Makefield Township, Yardley real estate observations.
- Inventory of homes for sale in June 2010 was 238
- Inventory of homes for sale in May 2010 was 223
- Inventory of homes for sale in June, 2009 was 253.
- Average price of a home for sale in June 2010 was $514,000.
- Average price of a home for sale in June 2009 was $526,000.
- 163 Homes sold through June of 2010, at 93% of the asking price.
- 97 Homes sold through June of 2009, at 91% of the asking price.
There remains an 8.9 month supply of homes on the market, in Lower Makefield Township. Since we consider a balanced market to exist, when there is about a 6 month supply of houses, conditions still favor buyers.
Average days on the market are now 79 compared with 70 last year at this time. Competition remains a challenge to sellers. Now, more than ever, it is critical to price homes correctly and market aggressively, if you are to sell.
As always, I welcome your thoughts and comments, and I will post additional details on other communities, in future posts.
Look at the real estate market update, for Bucks County & Yardley, through April
Although a dry subject, I do like to take a continuous look at market statistics, for our real estate market, in the Bucks County areas I primarily cover. We get our market statistical update, around the 12th or so, of every month.
Lets see where things stand, from a real estate perspective, after the first third of the year, for Bucks County. We will also review the Lower Makefield Township/Yardley area in this post.
- For most of the markets in Bucks County, (12 of 18 markets I track) volume of sold units was positive compared with last year, at this time.
- The county-wide growth rate increased by 21%, which is pretty impressive.
- Pricing was positive in most of the principal markets we monitor regularly, and there was positive appreciation for Bucks County. In fact, average sold pricing for the entire county, was up by 7.1%.
- Total unit sales in Bucks County through April, was 21% higher than last year.
- Probably the best forwarding looking indicator we have in real estate is the pending sale. Those are homes where the seller has accepted an offer, but that have not yet gone to closing.
- Most of our markets, as well as for Bucks County as a whole, saw higher levels of pending sales, than last year at the same time. Bucks County wide, shows a very strong increase of pending sales of 43.5%, over last year at the same time. In some of our markets the pending sale increase is huge, when compared with last year. For exampley, Buckingham Township is up by 113$, Upper Makefield is 100% higher, Lower Makefield is up 70%, Northampton is up 69%, Solebury is up by 63%, and Doylestown is up by 25%. These are actually impressive numbers.
- Inventory levels are higher than they were at the end of March, whish is to be expected, in most markets. However, when compared with the end of April, last year, inventory levels are down County-wide, and in most markets. With somewhat improving inventory levels, the number of months of inventory, has declined. Most markets are still above 6 months, which means conditions still favor buyers, but the trend has shown improvement.
- Average list pricing is down a bit, from last year.
- Sold/list ratios in most markets, have shown some improvement. We need to keep our eye on this statistic as we go through the spring market.
Lower Makefield Township Real Estate update
Here are some observations, through the end of April, for real estate, in Lower Makefield Township, and Yardley.
- Iventory of homes for sale at the end of April, 2010 was 236
- Inventory of homes for sale at the end of March, 2010 was 220.
- Inventory of homes for sale at the end of April, 2009 was 231.
- Unit inventory was up slightly, from last year, in Lower Makefield, and up by 7% from March.
- Average price of a home for sale at the end of April, 2010 was $500,000.
- Average price of a home for sale at the end of April, 2009 was $543,000.
- List price was down by 8%.
- 77 houses closed through the end of April, 2010.
- 48 houses closed through the end of April, 2009.
- This was a really impressive increase of 60.4% from last year. Unit sales for 2009, were up by 1.6% oover the previous year.
- Buyers are still achieving approximately 8% off the original asking price.
Charts
Summary
For your reference, there was 6.5% unit growth in 2007, 33.5% decline in 2008, and an increase in 2009 of 1.6%. So far, 2010, has shown an increase of more than 60%. Lets see how the rest of the year plays out.
Inventory is still at 10 months. Inventory is said to be balanced, when it is 6 months, so conditions in Lower Makefield, still favor the buyers.
Thus far, sale pricing is down by 2.4%. Please refer to the pricing appreciation chart, to see how things have changed in many parts of Bucks County, and in Lower Makefield Township, in particular.
Average days on the market, is actually higher this year, than last. I suspect that this is because there are still many overpriced homes on the market. I have been involved in many recent transactions, where homes have sold extremely quickly. It is more important than ever, to price a home correctly.
Please feel free to contact me with any questions about any of the charts or statistics.
I will review additional specific markets, in upcoming posts.
Yardley, Newtown, Bucks County real estate review
We read all the time, statistics about real estate from all over the country.
Real estate is, and always has been, local. It is local, sometimes even down to neighborhood by neighborhood.
I always track statistical information about real estate in Yardley, Newtown, Lower Makefield Township, Upper Makefield Township, and many of the communities that I serve.
People ask me every single day, how is the market? I can answer that question, based on how carefully I track statistics, as well as from my own personal experiences in representing buyers and sellers.
So, here is a brief look at a couple of interesting real estate charts, for Yardley and Newtown.
If you look at the charts, you will see that after falling a bit, during the 90 day review period, inventory levels are increasing in both Yardley and Newtown. As you would expect, with more houses on the market, it is taking longer to sell. Average days on the market is also increasing.
Houses can and do sell. It is all about the price. These charts make a compelling case for wanting to be sure that if you are interested in selling, you must price your house correctly.
If you have questions, please feel free to contact me.
Top 5 things that devalue your house, when selling real estate in Bucks County
I have written a number of posts in the past, about various ways to improve the value of your house, if you are considering selling real estate in Yardley, Newtown or anywhere in Bucks County.
In this post, I am going to take the opposite approach, and suggest 5 things that decrease a home’s value, when compred with other properties.
Clearly, there are a lot of factors that go into trying to decide what a house is worth, in a given area and market. Things like location, overall condition, size, ammenities, etc, help to determine how one house compares with another. Lets look at 5 things that will devalue your house:
1. Location
This would seem obvious, but if you have a house that is in a weak position in a neighborhood, it can significantly decrease the value. For example, a few years ago, I sold a house for a seller, that back to railroad tracks. The house sold for approximately 15% less than it would have, had it been on the opposite side of the street.
The same can occur is a house is on a main road.
The other issue, in terms of the neighborhood, is how are the surrounding homes maintained? If you are trying to sell a house, and it is next to a property that is an eyesore, it will afect a properties value.
2. Curb Appeal
Again, this may seem obvious, but when I am showing real estate in Yardley or Newtown, I can often tell how a house will show inside, by what the exterior looks like. If the gardens are full of weeds, and the exterior needs painting or other upkeep, it will absolutely affect how much the house is worth. If your house makes a poor first impression, it will impact how much a prospective buyer is willing to pay.
3. Paint
This sort of goes along with the observation above, which is that first impressions, are critically important. If a buyer walks into a house, and finds peeling wall paper, or rooms that need to be painted, it often sends a signal of distress, that can translate into lower values. The same can be true, if your house is painted with garish color schemes. The lesson is, make sure that your house is freshly painted, if you want to maximize its value, and if you do need to paint, pick soft, neutral and warm colors, that will appeal to the widest audience.
4. Kitchen
Once potential buyers get inside your home, the kitchen represents one of, if not the most critical space in the house. Sinks, contertops and cabinets, are extremely worthwhile investments, when getting houses ready for sale. If the kitchen is cluttered and disorganized, it will negatively effect the value of the house.
If your counters and/or backsplash are stained, it will impact the perception of value that the buyer has.
Even minor kitchen improvements, can make a big difference in the value of a house. You really want your kitchen to sparkle, when you are selling a house.
5. Baths
As with kitchens, old and tired bathrooms, will detract from the value of a house. It is well documented, that the best investment that one can make in a house, is in kitchens and baths. These are important spaces, and when a buyer looks at bathrooms with chipped or old tile, or sees areas in need of new grout, etc, they will lower their sense of what a house is worth. Again, these things send a message of distress, which reduces a homes value.
These suggestions were taken from a wonderful website called, “How Stuff Works“. Check it out for lots of other good ideas.
As always, I welcome your thoughts or comments.
Real Estate Inventory trends, Yardley, Newtown, Bucks County, Pa.
I am working with a lot of buyers who want to find a home, and take advantage of the tax credit, before it expires. As I have posted, previously, in order to qualify, you must be under contract by April 30th, and close by June 30th, 2010.
What’s intersting right now, is that it appears as though the buyers are looking earlier than usual, for a spring market, but the sellers have not quite caught on. Check the chart below, which clearly shows that for both Yardley (19067) and Newtown (18940), inventory has very clearly, trended lower, over the past 90 days.
Yardley (19067) Newtown (18940) Single family homes inventory
As always, the real estate market in Yardley, Newtown, and all over Bucks County, is basically a function of suppy and demand. As we know, over the past several years, there have been many more people who want to sell, than those who want to buy. The result is a buyers market. Lots of inventory, all competing for a smaller buyer pool.
As we approach the spring market, the question really becomes, are we still going to see a market where there are a lot more sellers than buyers. The shift in inventory, at least offers the possibility that the dynamics in the market are shifting a bit, to a more balance market condition. We saw clear evidence, late last year, that the tax credit did stimulate transactions. From a units perspective, November 2009, was surprisingly busy.
It remains to be seen what the spring will bring. It is clear, that inventory levels have trended lower. Interest rates are incredibly low, and the tax credit is a wonderful incentive for those considering buying. How the relationship between numbers of buyers and sellers plays out , in each local market, will determine whether the market becomes more balanced in the spring.
If you would like to know what your house is worth, in the current market, please feel free to contact me.
Upper Makefield Township, Bucks County, 2009 real estate year in review
On my last post, I took a detailed look at what happend in 2009 in Lower Makefield Township real estate market.
Today, we are going to check out the results from 2009, in Upper Makefield Township real estate market.
Here is what the real estate market looked like, as we finished 2009, in Upper Makefield Township.
Inventory in Upper Makefield Township
There were 101 homes for sale, as of the end of 2009, in Upper Makefield. This compared with an inventory of 134, as of the end of 2008. There were 113 homes for sale, at the end of November, 2009. This represents a decline in inventory of 24.6%, from the end of last year. Normally, that is a good sign for sellers.
Pricing Trends in Upper Makefield
The average price of a home for sale in Upper Makefield, at the end of 2009, was 1.43 million. At the end of 2008, the average price of a home for sale, was 1.59 million. This represents a decline of 9.8% in list pricing.
There were 72 homes that sold in 2009, and they sold at an average of 88% of the asking price. 71 homes sold in 2008, and they sold at an average of 91% of the asking price.
Summary;
Inventory levels are down and unit sales are modestly, up. Probably the most telling statistic is that at the current sales pace, there is a 16.8 momnth supply of homes in inventory. We consider a balanced market when there is approximately a 6 month supply. You can clearly see that there is a strong, buyers market in Upper Makefield Township, at the current time.
Average days on the market for all price levels, is 111 days. For homes priced between 1-3 million, the average days on market are considerably longer, and the supply is measured in years! 82% of the 72 homes that sold this year, were priced below 1 million! 55% of the current inventory, is priced above 1 million. Specifically, based on the current rate of sales for homes over a million, there is a 4.3 year supply! 13 homes sold over 1 million in 2009, which represents 1.08 per month.
It is particularly telling that the average sale price in 2009, was 762,000 yet the average price for the current inventory, is 1.43 million!
It is evident that there is a lot of competition in Upper Makefield, especially at the higher price levels. It is critically important, that you price your house correctly, if you intend to sell.
As always, I welcome your thoughts and comments on any of this information. I will review additional communities, in future posts.
Bucks County, Pa 2009 Real Estate market recap
Now that 2009 has ended, we can beging to examine what happened to the real estate market, in the various communities that I serve, in Bucks County, Pa. For my first post, examining market trends, entering 2010, I thought it could be helpful, to take a look at a chart that shows per year price appreciation (or depreciation) in markets that I serve, as well as throughout the county.
The table below, tracks very specific year to year appreciation, along with units sold, in various municipalities in Bucks County. It is interesting to see, that the markets all are different. For example, looking at Lower Makefield Township, prices declined by 6.7% in 2009, while in Newtown Township, prices dropped by 3.7% in 2009.
For all of Bucks County, prices dropped by 6.8% in 2009.
These statistics are based on houses that sold, and they include all homes other than condominiums.
In future posts, I will be taking an in depth look, at market statistics, in the Yardley, Newtown, Upper Makefield, Buckingham, and Solebury areas.
If you have any questions, or would like any clarification of this information, please contact me.
So you have an underground oil tank in Yardley, Lower Makefield Township, Newtown, Upper Makefield Township, Bucks County, Pa.
I represented a seller on a house that closed in Lower Makefield Township, recently, that was heated with oil, and had a tank burried in the ground. Real estate statistics in Yardley, Newtown, Upper Makefield Township, Lower Makefield Township & Bucks County
I have not done this in a number of posts, but I wanted to take a very detailed look at market statistics, through the end of November, in some of the markets that I serve.
In virtually all of the markets in which I work in Bucks County, the pace of 2009 year to date units has continued to improve. For example, in all of Bucks County, the number of single family homes this November, was 79% higher than November of 2008.
Network With Us
Submit your information to get your market status report.
