Portland, ME

The number of Portland Maine Homes currently on the market including SF and condos is approximately 500. Similar to southern Maine real estate trends, the demand continues to slacken and prices continue to trend downward in Maine’s largest metropolitan cregion.

Avg Avg
# of Properties List Price Sold Price List/Sale
Current Listed 505 354,000 n/a n/a
Sold 2008 503 262,000 253,000 97%
Sold 2007 778 278,000 269,000 97%
Sold 2006 882 272,000 263,000 97%
Sold 2005 887 280,000 273,000 98%

As one of my real estate role models Barbara Corcoran said recently on the Today Show, "You can never know. But most people agree that we are IN the bottom, and the smart people - the sharks - are out there buying right now."

Those people - the sharks - are the ones who know how to find the right segments of the market and take advantage of the opportunities they have to offer. What does that mean for Portland?

As we approach the end of the 2^nd quarter of 2008, I thought it would be helpful to take a look at a few of the more popular markets and see how they've been performing.

Since much of my business is in the condo market, I'm looking at the median sale prices for condos in three neighborhoods: Portland's East End, Downtown/Old Port, and West End.

The periods of time I'm comparing are January 1, 2007-June 20, 2007 and the same period for '08.

In general, the median condo price in Portland (FYI - the median condo price will generally buy you a 2-bedroom, 1-bath condo between 1,000 and 1,100 square feet) dropped from $210,000 in 2007 to $202,000 this year.

Keep in mind that when the median price goes down, it doesn't necessarily mean that values have gone down. It can simply mean that there are more affordable products available (smaller condos, for instance, or condos that need more work).

East End: Prices are down, and sales are up - indicative of a buyer's market.

2007: 8 sales, MSP $272,500

2008: 11 sales, MSP $250,000

Downtown/Old Port: Prices are down, and sales are up - indicative of a buyer's market.

2007: 13 sales, MSP $335,000

2008: 22 sales, MSP $243,000

West End: Prices are up, and sales are down - much of the affordable conversion inventory has been flushed out - we could have already seen the bottom here.

2007: 60 sales, MSP $176,250

2008: 38 sales, MSP $189,950

To explore the segment YOU're interested in, check out my website below to conduct a property search WITH ADDRESSES.

http://michelleflaherty.mainelistings.com

I heard a talk recently given by Rich Casto, a trainer with RealEstateCoaches.com and former Prudential Franchisee, and although much of what he said irritated me (that is not a criticism, but a mark of success in his signature "break-you-down-to-build-you-up" approach), one thing really hit home and changed the way I'll be giving listing presentations from now on.

Six words: "How do you want to compete?"

I won't speak for anyone else, but when I was taught to determine market value, I was told to include comparable pending and current sales in the presentation, but only really talk about the solds. After all, that is what an appraiser will do. I also was taught to add on 1% each month for "time of sale" - what I would give to go back to THOSE days!!

Today, the market is different, and Casto's point was that our approach should be different too. He argued that for a property to sell, it must be better than its CURRENT competition, regardless of what properties have sold for recently.

I think the problem we run into as agents is that we advise sellers to price their properties based on seeing all the data and making a decision that works for them. However, often times what works for them is based on how much they owe, "have to net" on the sale, or what the property appraised for recently. Unfortunately, those factors have nothing to do with what a buyer will pay.

He also pointed out that 40% of properties that sell sell in the first 30 days, and 90% of properties that sell sell in the first 90 days, so if sellers don't compete out of the gate, they can plan on a long journey ahead full of lowball offers and missed opportunities. And for agents, that means time and money drained indefinitely to market properties that may never sell.

If we shift our thoughts about value from the appraiser mentality to that of today's savvy buyer, we'll be doing ourselves and our clients a huge favor.