2011 Year in Review ~ Manchester CT

2011 has closed and the real estate analysis has been done. By most accounts 2011 was a worse year than 2010, but let's take a look at what actually happened in Manchester CT in 2011.

During 2011, there were 321 closed sales with a median price of $169,000. Both number of closed sales and median price were down from the previous year, which posted 358 closed sales with a median price of $185,000. So median price decreased by 8.65% and the number of closed sales decreased by 10.3%.

If we look at average sale price, which was $188,808 in 2011 vs. $201,788 in 2010, we see that the average price decreased by 6.43%.

Here is a look at 2010 and 2011 closed sales by month:

As you can see, there was quite a bit of variability among months. Remember that the home-buyer tax credits expired in June 2010 so we saw a surge of activity in the months preceding the deadline. We also saw a surge in June 2011 because the real estate conveyance tax was set to increase on 7/1/11.

We don't have any incentives on the horizon, unless you count the very low mortgage rates we have been enjoying, so we will have to wait to see how 2012 turns out. Going forward, I will be reporting both the average sale price and the median sale price.

“Swapping Houses, A Concept That Works in Hartford and East Hartford”

After reading this article I am realizing this happens more than I thought. I am working with two clients right now that are working to put an exchange together. Barbara owns a home that is in Hartford, CT, that is much too big for her. She has had the property on the market for over a year and wants to downsize. She recently posted an ad on Craig’s list.

A couple from West Hartford, CT, responded to the ad. They indicated, that Hartford wasn’t their first choice, but they went to see the property anyway, guess what, they fell in love with the home. In the discussion with the seller, they indicated they would be interested in purchasing the home, if they could sell their condo. Condo, she wanted to know about the condo. She decided to look at the condo, which was much smaller than her house and would work.

I had originally done the mortgage for the couple that owned the West Hartford condo. They called me, asked if I would meet with all of them to see if an exchange was possible. To me this sounded like a marriage made in heaven.

The owner of the home in East Hartford had a $61,000 mortgage remaining. She was asking $170,000 for the property. The West Hartford condo had a $124,000 mortgage and they estimated the valued at $140,000. They all had a difficult time understanding how an exchange was possible. I explained to all of them, let’s think about it this way. I’ll buy your house for $170,000 if you buy our condo for $140,000. Once I explained it that way, the lights went on.

They each have their attorney’s doing the purchase agreements, once those are done, I’ll do the mortgage for each of them. Certainly a situation where both parties got what they wanted and needed.

Danbury Neighbors Swap Houses

Associated Press

At first, it was just something they joked about. Danbury residents Tosha and Michael Gordon needed a bigger house to raise their family, while neighbor Rachel Williams - who lived across the street - was looking to downsize.

Then Williams' real estate agent, Matt Rose, suggested the neighbors trade homes.

"[Rose] knew us," said Tosha Gordon. "We did need more room; we have three kids and one bathroom. But we weren't looking, because the market was so bad. We thought maybe we'd do an addition down the road. We didn't have plans to go anywhere any time soon. That's the crazy thing about this for us."

Back in August, swapping homes was just a wisp of an idea, floating on the embers of a neighborhood fire pit.

"We had a bonfire outside our house during the weeklong power outage in August when (tropical storm) Irene came through," Gordon said. "Rachel and Mike and I were joking about swapping houses. My husband said, `You'll need to redo the bathroom here!' We didn't take it seriously at all."

Williams, though, was serious about downsizing. Her husband passed away in 2010, and "it was getting to be a real hassle to take care of everything" in her four-bedroom ranch, she said.

In the aftermath of Irene, the Gordons' fire pit became a gathering place.

"Our neighborhood is really nice," Williams said, recalling chats around the bonfire, and neighbors who helped her have a tag sale.

"We had no power (after Irene) for seven or eight days," she added. "After that I said I just can't do this house anymore. Then when October came and we had all that snow, I was ready to scream!"

Williams, whose daughter Sara, 26, lives with her and is pursuing a master's degree, said she and the Gordons had actually joked about swapping houses earlier.

The Gordons have three young boys: Liam, 7; Colin, 5; and Owen, 22 months. And they weren't getting smaller. When Rachel's husband had been outside mowing, the Gordons would say "You don't need that big house!"

"Well, you've got to buy it from us!" came the reply.

Williams said she enjoys fixing things and that her brother is in construction. When she began house hunting with Rose, she looked at several fixer-uppers.

Unfortunately, it seemed everything would cost more to renovate than it was worth.
Still, she was determined to move. In early October she told the Gordons she was putting her house on the market.

"We were going to lose our neighbor," Tosha Gordon said sadly. "I knew it was a hard decision to leave, and I'd said to her if it's meant to be it will go smoothly and you'll know it was right."

It was at that point that the Gordons called Rose to find out the listing price. Then they invited Williams over.

"She'd been to our house, but not for a tour," Gordon said. "We gave her a tour to see if it was doable, and she gave us a tour. A few days later we made an offer. It was totally crazy."

The hardest part, Rose said, was having to put a price on both properties. (AP)

image: phanlop88/freedigitalphotos.net

Berlin, CT Market Report: 2011 In Review

2011 was a mediocre year for home sellers in Berlin, CT. 192 Homes in Berlin CT sold through the year – down 5% from 2010. Should the trend continue, just 11% of the 140 homes currently on the market in Berlin will sell in any given month. Another telling figure is the amount of homes that expired in 2010. An expired home is a home that goes on market, but ultimately just does not sell at. In 2011, 89 homes in Berlin expired – leaving the odds of successfully selling at 70%.