Archive for the 'Condos' Category
West Hartford Real Estate Market Report- 06.07.08
Market report time! All data is pulled from the Multiple Listing Service as of today and is deemed reliable, but not guaranteed.
There are currently 233 single family homes for sale in West Hartford. Here’s a graph of how the inventory breaks down.
There are also 168 homes currently under contract, waiting to close. Those homes are not included in the graph above because they are no longer considered “available.”
As you can see, if you’re a seller in the $200K-$250K range, there had better be something special about your house or your agent better be doing some aggressive marketing to make it stand out from the competition. Because you have a lot of competition.
If you have a house in the $351K-$400K range, will you please call me so we can put it on the market? There are a lot of buyers in this range, but they don’t have a heck of a lot to choose from. As a seller, you’d be in a good position to negotiate and get a good price for your home. Thank you. 
Comparing single family home sales for May 2008 to May 2007, the number of sales was down 38% (47 in 2008 vs. 76 in 2007). The median price dropped by 2% ($307,500 in 2008 vs. $313,700 in 2007). Days on market actually improved, 45 days for May 2008 vs. 50 days in May 2007.
My take on all of this? The market is bifurcating into quick deals and more exhaustive searches.
There are still multiple offer situations in price ranges with low inventory, with houses that show extremely well, and with specific neighborhoods and streets. I was involved in one this week and continue to hear from other agents in my office that they are too.
On the other hand, buyers with many options are taking much longer to find a home because they are looking at all properties available. They feel there is no rush because often there is more than one option that meets their needs, they are just looking for a good deal.
On to Condos…Currently there are 88 condos listed for sale in West Hartford.
There are also 30 condos currently under contract, waiting to close. Those homes are not included in the graph above because they are no longer considered “available.”
Because there is so much new condo construction going on in West Hartford, it tends to skew the data as far as days on market and median price. However, the number of sales is still relevant. Comparing May 2008 to May 2007, condo sales were down 50% (10 sales in 2008 vs. 20 sales in 2007).
If you’re looking to buy a condo in West Hartford, make sure your agent does a through analysis of comparable sales when writing an offer. If you’re looking to sell your condo, make sure you understand all of the competition in your price range and price accordingly.
The data presented in today’s market report raised some new questions for me. Be on the lookout next week for a more in-depth analysis on certain price ranges and buyer and seller behaviors.
West Hartford Real Estate Market Report
It’s time once again for the town real estate market updates. First up, West Hartford. All data is pulled from the Multiple Listing Service, deemed reliable, but not guaranteed.
Single Family Houses…
There are 224 single family homes currently available for sale in West Hartford. If you’re a buyer in the $200K to $300K range, you have lots to choose from. The number of closings was down 22% in April of this year, compared to April 2007. The median price was down 2% when comparing April 2008 to April 2007. Average days on the market is 42, which is a nice positive.
Condos…
There are 80 condos currently available for sale in West Hartford. If you’re a seller in the $300K to $400K range, you don’t have much competition. The number of closings was exactly the same when comparing April of this year with April 2007, 9 closings. Average days on the market is 67, which is somewhat skewed upwards because of new construction units.
Farmington Valley data tomorrow…
Condo Association Meetings: The Good, the Bad & the Ugly (Part 2)
Yesterday we reviewed the good aspects of the annual homeowner’s meeting that I recently attended for the complex in which Amy and I own a unit. Today we’ll get into the Bad and the Ugly.
The Bad
1. This particular complex was built as apartments in the 1960s and converted to condos in 1979. If we assume that major maintenance was performed in anticipation of selling the units, then most of the improvements are approaching 30 years old - which is the useful life of lots of stuff. We spent a fair amount of time at the meeting talking about repairs to boilers and roofs. So despite the board’s planning, the Association is probably going to need to increase revenue in the next few years as more systems fail. This means either higher condo fees or dreaded special assessments. Boo! Hiss!
2. The meeting was run using Roberts Rules of Order, which most people don’t really understand (myself included). The formal procedure made it difficult for everyone to participate effectively since folks would not know when to speak or how to speak. I could imagine that after one person’s question received a curt, “You can’t say that now,” others were intimidated into silence.
3. One civic-minded resident is working very hard to address energy efficiency and preventative maintenance, but seems to have a contentious relationship with the Board. Which leads directly to…
The Ugly
The meeting turned ugly as our civic-minded activist grew frustrated with the Board’s responses to his concerns and their use of precedure to prevent him from speaking his peace. As the discussion became more acrimonious, we transitioned from calling people by first names to using surnames (Mr. Smith, Ms. Jones …) and citing condo association bylaws as threats. Ultimately personal issues were raised in an uncomfortable manner.
Conclusion
Now that I have a better sense of the cast of characters, I’ll be interested to see how the drama unfolds. Energy efficiency is an issue that everyone is concerned about in this day and age, and our activist had some good suggestions for how individual owners can make a difference. Whether he will have community-wide influence remains to be seen.
I certainly got my money’s worth in terms of entertainment, and also learned quite a bit about the complex. I was glad to hear that the community is in such good shape (despite Part 2’s observations). If you own a condo I would definitely recommend attending your next homeowner’s meeting. I bet you’ll see much of what I saw; different faces, but similar characters.