About Chittenden County, VT

February 4th, 2010

Burlington Vermont

Vermont continues to have the lowest foreclosures of any state in the entire United States. Recent information reported by Bloomberg BusinessWeek indicate that Vermont has suffered the least with ONLY 143 foreclosures in the entire state for all of 2009!

RealtyTrac, in its monthly report from December 2009, reported that only 6 homes in all of Chittenden County (includes 17 towns around and including Burlington VT) went into foreclosure or 1 in every 10,479 housing units.

Put another way, The Vermont Housing Finance Agency (VHFA.org) reported from the Bloomberg.com website that as of January 29th, 2010, Vermont had the lowest foreclosure rate in the country at 0.04% of all homes in the state. The Bloomberg article went on to report that Vermonters are avoiding the foreclosure mess in part owing to traditions of "thrift, modesty and self-reliance - bolstered by laws that protect buyers and land".

In addition, the article went on to say "state and local laws discourage the kind of speculation that spurred development in some states, said Robert Hill, executive vice president of the Vermont Association of Realtors in Montpelier. "If a site for home construction is found to be on prime agricultural soil, the project is halted. The house must be built elsewhere, other land must be purchased and put in a trust as an offset, or the builder must go to court to seek clearance," he said.

Hill continued saying, “The permitting process is extremely difficult to maneuver in Vermont.” “Any developer or builder has to make a significant investment of time and effort. You just can’t come in here and throw stuff up overnight.”

Whatever the reasons, tiny Vermont (pop. 621,270) leads the nation in a category we can be extremely grateful for. With stringent environmental and zoning laws on the books for decades supply has been kept low. This enraged developers looking to make a fast buck during the go-go years. Hill added, as a result, "demand has outstripped the supply of housing. With no surplus of homes, prices didn’t collapse (like in many other states) when buyers decreased," Hill said.

If you are considering listing your home for sale or buying a home, condominium or other real estate in Burlington, Vermont, please give me a call or email me to discuss the market and your options. I would be delighted to assist you. I can be reached on my direct line at 802.238.5256 or email me at Chris@ChrisHurdVT.com

Armed with solid numbers, buyers and sellers alike can manage their expectations and the current realities of our local market.

As always, please feel free to post any thoughts and comments right here on Hurd's The Word

This Saturday, February 6th Burlington, Vermont will participate in the 15th annual Penguin Plunge to support Special Olympics of Vermont. This Burlington event has become well known from its start in 1995 with only 15 participants to a record 900 participants in 2009. This year should break all records with approximately 1,000 participants. Jump into the icy waters of Lake Champlain to help support the 850+ Special Olympics athletes in Vermont. Donations will go towards providing the athletes with opportunities to participate in sports training and athletic competitions.

If you would like to participate in the Penguin Plunge, fundraising expectations are a $25 registration fee and a $150 fundraising minimum per participant. This year, Special Olympics of Vermont hopes to raise $350,000 from the event. You may click here to register: http://www.vtso.org/burlington_plunge.php

Come down to the Burlington waterfront at 11 am to watch the festivities.

For more information, contact Kim Bookless at KBookless@vtso.org

For a less chilly way to support Special Olympics of Vermont, visit Mexicali Grill and Cantina in Williston today between 11 am and 10 pm as they will donate 10% of all proceeds from food and drink purchased today (including take-out) to Special Olympics of Vermont.

Catamount Realty Group proudly supports Special Olympics of Vermont. If you would like to make a donation, you can do so on line at https://secure.specialolympics.org/site/apps/ka/sd/donorcustom.asp?c=mlIYIjNZJuE&b=5190615&BeneficiaryID=VT146 or by mailing a check to Special Olympics Vermont, 368 Avenue D, Suite 30, Williston, Vermont 05495 Double or triple your tax-deductible donation to Special Olympics Vermont through your company's matching gift program. Find out if your company will match your donation to Special Olympics with our custom search engine. If you need information to process these matching funds, please contact Chrus Bernier (cbernier@vtso.org) at Special Olympics Vermont.

Indian Creek

Indian Creek townhomes located in South Burlington, Vermont, built between 1991-1982 offer 60 stunning townhomes. Live in a quiet park like setting situated on 20 acres of beautifully landscaped grounds where majestic weeping willows and towering evergreens grace the tree lined streets. Only minutes to shopping centers and the Dorset Street Park. These lovely townhomes offer many amenities such as swimming pool, tennis court, garden space, snow removal, trash removal, and others. Pet rule is one pet allowed.

Many of the condos are graced with a bright glass breakfast atrium perfect for dining with family. Other features may include a gas fireplace, hardwood floors, living room with built in book shelves, generously sized bedrooms with lots of closet space and a formal dining room. Enjoy the private deck looking out to the wooded back yard.

There is a one car garage and off street parking for your vehicles.

Children living in this community attend South Burlington Central School, Frederick H. Tuttle Middle School and South Burlington High School.

Prices range from $ 210,000 to $240,000.

For more information visit http://www.CatamountRealtyGroup.com For Burlington Vermont condos and townhomes, visit http://www.catamountrealtygroup.com/burlington_neighborhoods.htm For South Burlington condos and townhomes, visit http://www.catamountrealtygroup.com/southburlington_neighborhoods.htm.

Thinking of buying a home or selling a home, townhome, condo or other real estate in Burlington, Bolton, Charlotte, Colchester, Essex, Essex Junction, Hinesburg, Huntington, Jericho, Milton, Richmond, Shelburne, South Burlington, St. George, Stowe, Underhill, Williston, Winooski or another surrounding town in Vermont?

Contact us, we would be honored to interview for the chance to represent your best interests.

January 27th, 2010

Shelburne VT

Based upon information provided by the Northwestern Vermont Board of Realtors (NVBR) as of today for all of 2009, there were 85 single family residential and condominium
units sold within Shelburne
Vermont with a total sold volume of $34,810,350.

These numbers represent a 16.44% INCREASE in the number of units sold from the same time period one year earlier (1/1/09-12/31/09). Divide this number by the units sold (85) and you get an average sale price of $409,534. These numbers represent a 2.20% increase in the average sales price from the same time period one year earlier (1/1/09-12/31/09).

Average days on the market for all these 85 properties was 127 compared to 96 one year earlier or 32.29% longer on the market.

If you are considering listing your home for sale or buying a home, condominium or other real estate in Shelburne, Vermont, please give me a call or email me to discuss the market and your options. I would be delighted to assist you. I can be reached on my direct line at 802.238.5256 or email me at Chris@ChrisHurdVT.com

Armed with solid numbers, buyers and sellers alike can manage their expectations and the current realities of our local market.

Call me at 802.238.5256, email me at Chris@ChrisHurdVT.com or post your comments here at Hurd's The Word

(These figures include sold numbers for single family residential and condominium only in all the towns which comprise Chittenden County, Vermont only. All information deemed reliable but not guaranteed by Vermont Real Estate Information Network which supplies these figures.)

January 27th, 2009

Charlotte VT

Based upon information provided by the Northwestern Vermont Board of Realtors (NVBR) as of today for all of 2009, there were 29 single family residential and condominium units
sold within Charlotte Vermont
with a total sold volume of $19,493,197.

These numbers represent a 61.61% increase in the number of units sold from the same time period one year earlier (1/1/09-12/31/09). Divide this number by the units sold (29) and you get an average sale price of $672,179. These numbers represent a 10.84% decrease in the average sales price from the same time period one year earlier (1/1/09-12/31/09).

Average days on the market for these 29 properties was 137 compared to 106 one year earlier or 29.25% longer on the market.

If you are considering listing your home for sale or buying a home, condominium or other real estate in Charlotte, Vermont, please give me a call or email me to discuss the market and your options. I would be delighted to assist you. I can be reached on my direct line at 802.238.5256 or email me at Chris@ChrisHurdVT.com

Armed with solid numbers, buyers and sellers alike can manage their expectations and the current realities of our local market.

Call me at 802.238.5256, email me at Chris@ChrisHurdVT.com or post your comments here at Hurd's The Word

(These figures include sold numbers for single family residential and condominium only in all the towns which comprise Chittenden County, Vermont only. All information deemed reliable but not guaranteed by Vermont Real Estate Information Network which supplies these figures.)