The positive momentum felt in the New Hampshire housing market during the second half of 2009 continued into January 2010, with the state’s residential home sales ahead of January 2009 by 16.5 percent. This time, there is additional good news on the price side as well, as the median price of residential homes increased by 7.5 percent over the same period last year – the first month-over-month median price increase in 26 months and the largest such jump in 52 months.
According to data released this week by the New Hampshire Association of REALTORS® (NHAR), 529 single family homes sold in January 2010, a substantial gain from the 454 home sales in January 2009. And the median price in that same period was $215,000 this year, compared to $200,000 of a year ago.
The last time home prices showed an increase for a single month over the same period from a year prior was November 2007, and the last time that increase was better than 7.5 percent was September 2005.
“We’re aware that one month cannot be defined a trend, but we’ve expected that the good news in terms of sales would ultimately translate to prices, and we’re hopeful that this is the start of that change,” said NHAR President Monika McGillicuddy, a 25-year veteran of the real estate industry and an agent with Prudential Verani in Londonderry. “This is excellent news all the way around.”
And condominium sales, which had lagged behind the residential numbers throughout much of 2009, were up in number and price as well – with a 41 percent gain in sales and 9.5 percent median price improvement.
McGillicuddy attributed the sales and price increases in part to the continued incentive of the homebuyer tax credit, and generally as a continuing signal that the residential real estate market is experiencing the early stages of the recovery process.
“There are many factors that have gone into
this shift, from the tax credit to excellent interest rates to competitive prices,” McGillicuddy said. “Ultimately, we’re talking about an increase in confidence that I believe is at the core of sustainable momentum in the real estate market.”
The good news filtered to the local markets as well, as a majority of New Hampshire’s 10 counties saw year-end increases in both sales and prices.
“We’ll continue to monitor these numbers closely,” McGillicuddy said, “but from what I see and from what I’m hearing from other Realtors around the state, we’re very encouraged.”
Source: NH Association of REALTORS Press Release 2/16/2010
...and enter a cardboard sled race…for only $13 a day for a combo (ski, tube, ride) all day ticket, or $10 for an under the lights night ticket? Arrowhead Recreation Center in Claremont offers a back to basics fun experience for young and old alike. On a recent family first visit there for some tubing, I talked with one of the folks at the lift. While affiliated with the Claremont Recreation Department, Arrowhead is run entirely by volunteers and every penny collected goes right back into the Center. It’s a wonderful place to have a ton of fun without breaking the bank. We’ll definitely go back again! Give it a try.
Arrowhead Recreation Area Main
See their brochure for additional details: http://www.arrowheadnh.com/files/2009_10_brochure.pdf
You can find this tag line on the NH Department of Resources and Economic Development’s web site at Welcome to New Hampshire. If you’re planning a visit to NH for a vacation or house-hunting, it’s the perfect place to start. You can make your reservations right on line. The site is designed around the current season and, there is an absolute wealth of information to be found. Some of the many subjects covered are Arts & Entertainment, Shopping and Antiquing, Family Attractions, What to do, Where to Eat…etc. For example, in the Arts & Entertainment section, you’ll find a brief description of NH’s music and arts scene, but there are also separate links to “Music”, “Galleries”, “Museums”, “Theatre”, “Film”, and “NH Made”. There’s even a NH Brewery Location Map! There are plenty of pictures and even some suggested itineraries suited for the season, and what could be more appropriate than “Yankee Dollar Stretchers”? You’ll find yourself going back many times. Come visit us in the New London-Lake Sunapee Area when you get here! The Best Team in Town | Coldwell Banker Milestone Real Estate
MKIM’s mission is to connect people of today with 20,000 years of ongoing Native American cultural expression. The Museum embraces cultural diversity and encourages responsible environmental action and seeks to challenge and inspire all of us to improve the quality of our lives and our world. With these goals in mind, the Museum galleries, grounds and gardens have been designed as teaching tools while also functioning as tranquility zones in which visitors can find respite from the hectic pace of modern life. The Museum is also a favorite site for educational school field trips and hosts over 5,000 children each year. Since its founding over 17 years ago, nearly 250,000 people have visited. There are docent led tours daily and families enjoy the “Quests”, including the Completing the Circle Quest and Medicine Woods Quest. The Museum is closed in the winter. Visit the website at: http://www.indianmuseum.org/index.html
[caption id="attachment_189" align="alignleft" width="148" caption="Donna Forest, ABR"]
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Selling? Within the first 15 SECONDS, a buyer has already developed an opinion of your home!! Here are a few things you can do to be sure that very first impression is a good one:
- Improve curb appeal. (Remove toys, paint front door, prune shrubs, keep walks and driveways clear of snow, etc)
- Paint walls which are dinged and scuffed and clean all dirty carpets. Keep all colors neutral.
- Get Rid of Clutter! Remove excess furniture, knick-knacks, extra wall decorations, etc.
- Have a home inspection done and then address the items which need to be repaired.
- Eliminate odors. Nothing turns a buyer off faster than a smelly house.
While it may seem like a hassle to do these things now, when you realize the best price for your property in the shortest period of time, you’ll be glad you made the effort!
Email or call me to receive a free booklet “Home Enhancement Guide.”
Donna Forest is Broker Associate with Coldwell Banker Milestone Real Estate.
“New Hampshire residential home sales experienced the largest single-month increase on record last month (November) as sales jumped 70% from November of 2008.” In 2008, November saw 673 sales; in 2009, there were 1,141. The NHAR (New Hampshire Association of Realtors which tracks real estate data for the State) attributed the jump in part to the home buyer tax credit incentive. The jump was also considered a signal that the NH real estate market is in the middle of the early stages of recovery which will head us back to a “normalized residential housing market”. The cumulative totals for 2009 are about 5% ahead of the same period last year. Also important about the increase in the number of sales is that it has helped to drive down the statewide inventory to a 9.1 month supply. For comparison, at the end of January, 2009, it was at a 22 month supply. Prices do continue to lag, however, which should continue to make buying a home very attractive to buyers. The median price of last November was at $215,000 and dropped 2.8% this November to $209,000. Source: NH Union Leader 12/16/2009
Some of the best hiking trails in our area are minded by a very dedicated group of volunteers. These trails cover 75 miles surrounding Lake Sunapee and going over Sunapee, Ragged and Kearsarge mountains.
The Sunapee-Ragged-Kearsarge Greenway Coalition was formed in the mid-eighties by, as their brochure says, “a group of creative environmentalists” who were associated with the Ausbon Sargent Land Preservation Trust, the Society for the Protection of NH Forests, the Lake Sunapee Protective Association and local conservationists. That early group has evolved into a non-profit corporation led by directors from those towns which have SRKGC trails in them: Andover, Danbury, Goshen, Newbury, New London, Springfield, Sunapee, Sutton, Warner & Wilmot. The brochure best states their mission: “…to create and maintain a forever-green great circle of trail corridors and protected lands providing walkers with access to the mountains, lakes, vistas and historical sites of the region.”
The SRKGC is a wonderful example of the cooperation of enthusiastic volunteers, private landowners, and state and local governments. The organization welcomes new volunteers and memberships. Visit their site at: http://www.srkg.com/ There you will find a wealth of information on other hiking resources, as well as additional information about the trail network itself.
Ultimately, the market dictates value, based on current conditions. Your house has many values-one to the tax assessor, others to your lender and insurance company, and yet another value to you, the owner. Prospective buyers will also value it differently. What a buyer will pay is typically called "market value". The best price obtainable in any market can only be determined by aggressively testing the market and challenging the competition. So...what affects the value of your house? There are some factors which have no effect on the current value of your property, and you probably know what they are: what you paid for your house; the cash proceeds you want or need from the sale; or what your friends and neighbors say your property is worth. Also, there are some factors that are "given" - over which we have no control: your property's location, age, the size of the house and lot, and its floor plan and architectural style. Also, we cannot control the market conditions, including interest rate and the availability of financing, buyer demand, the state of the economy, the prices of recently sold properties, or the possible seasonality of demand. We also have no control over the competition: how many similar properties are for sale, or their prices, financing terms, location and physical condition. But, we can control the asking price!