- Re:real estate values in Carroll County - Wolfeboro Community Forums

Article from today's Fosters that you might want to refer to when you get your December tax bill. 1/4 of homes in Wolfeboro were revaluated this year and if your assessed value went up, compare it to the fact that median home prices in Carroll County went down 19% from last year to this year according to the NH Realtor's Assn figures.

Article published Oct 28, 2008
Big drop in N.H. home prices

DOVER — New Hampshire continues to feel the fallout from the nation's financial crisis as home sales fell by 10 percent in the third quarter compared to a year ago, according to the New Hampshire Association of Realtors.

Statewide, third quarter unit sales in 2008 dropped 10 percent from the same period in 2007, from 3,509 sold residential housing units to 3,162, according to data provided by the Northern New England Real Estate Network.

September 2008 sales numbers were markedly better than that, showing a 3 percent increase in sales from 981 in 2007 to 1,006 in 2008, according to the network's report. Likewise, the median price numbers for September were better than the third quarter numbers as a whole.

Median residential home prices dropped 10 percent during the third quarter, from $264,500 in 2007 to $238,000 in 2008, but the September decline was more modest, at 8 percent.

"It's very difficult to predict anything in this volatile economy," said Jim Lyons, president of the New Hampshire Association of Realtors in Concord. "But to the extent that we pay the most attention to the most recent numbers available, it's encouraging to see that September showed us less of a price decline than we've been experiencing generally, and in fact an increase in sales."

Lyons also pointed out that the current trend of sales and price decreases should always be considered in context of the massive real estate market gains from the late 1990s through 2005, when New Hampshire median prices more than doubled over a six-year period.

"We're still in a correction, which is a normal part of every market cycle," he said. "On the other hand, qualified buyers still have favorable interest rates and plenty of inventory to choose from."

In Strafford County, the number of homes sold in the third quarter dropped from 303 in 2007 to 256 this year, which represents a 16 percent decline. Median home prices also fell by 9 percent from $225,000 in September 2007 to $205,000 this September.

In Rockingham County, home sales fell 6 percent in the third quarter from 736 units to 695 units, according to the realtors association report. Median home prices dropped 11 percent from $305,000 in September 2007 to $270,000 this September.

Meanwhile, in Carroll County, home sales fell 21 percent in the third quarter from 238 homes sold in 2007 to 187 units this year. Median home prices also dropped 19 percent from $245,000 in September 2007 to $198,000 this September.

"It's creating opportunity for those folks who are qualified to purchase a home," said Lyons, a Realtor who owns Select Real Estate in Conway.

He said people looking to sell their homes should wait for the market to settle down, which he believes will happen after the presidential election in November.

"If you can avoid selling at a time like this, you should stay out of the marketplace," Lyons said.

Currently, the average time it takes to sell a home in New Hampshire is 125 days, or more than six months, Lyons said. In a good real estate market, he said, it takes 60 days, or two months, to sell a home.

Lyons said that situation could also make it difficult for people who hope to sell an existing home or condominium and buy a bigger home. The best thing is for a home seller to work with a Realtor and sell their home for a reasonable price and then purchase a home that falls within their price range. The interest rate for a 30-year fixed mortgage is 6 percent, which can make buying a home easier to afford, he said.

Peter Francese, a nationally renowned demographer and a columnist for the realtors association, said there are some positive economic indicators in the state.

Francese said employment and economic activity are strong in the Granite State. He also said New Hampshire is an affluent state with multiple demands for housing and that home prices are returning to an appropriate relationship to income.

"Clearly our state is better positioned than nearly all other states to weather this economic downturn," Francese said.

Interesting article CW.

Sounds like a press release from NNEREN to me, not a disinterested report. NNEREN is what most people know and refer to as MLS.

I do wonder if the person who wrote this article took into consideration foreclosures. I think what's happened is that we've hit bottom in many respects and that if someone was on shaky ground then they've either been pushed over the edge into foreclosure or they have refinanced by now.

I have a rate of 3.9% not the average of 6% as the report says. Sounds like the author was pushing 6% as some bargain.

I don't doubt the numbers are basically correct however, my bookkeeper is a Realtor and she tells me that NOTHING is selling because any potential buyer looks at a foreclosure for $50-$75 or a regular house for $150-$200 and there isn't much decision making involved.

All markets - from real estate to wine to antiques to household goods - eventually succumb to supply and demand and correct themselves to the point where consumers can tolerate. Look at the oil prices. There was no reason they had to be so high and once people stopped driving and said enough is enough then the prices came down.

So now I wonder that oil prices have come down will our electric and water and sewer still continue to go up, up, up as you keep pointing out?

I personally think we should have a maximum wage instead of a minimum wage which would correct a lot of things quickly.