About Matanuska Susitna County, AK

The demand for new homes year to date represents 21% of our market. Last year new home sales represented 20% of the reported homes sales in the MLS. Steady as she goes, there is still a demand for a new home.

There have been a few twists to our local market though. There seems to be quite a few new builders competing with each other. So even though the demand has remained steady the share of the pie appears to be split up a bit more. I counted through the existing inventory and came up with about 43 builders that had names displayed. There were about 10 more that didn't mention the name of the construction company.

I was curious what the new construction market did back in the hay day of 2005. There were 1671 closed sales with 623 being new homes. At that time the new home market represented 37% of the total market. That was huge! Although things have declined to about 1/2 of what it was, the demand still seems steady.

The population of our area must be growing to maintain a stable market with inventory that isn't climbing. The continued percentage of new homes sales is a healthy market indicator.

Follow this link "NEW HOMES" to see what new construction homes are available in Mat-Su Valley right now.

Out of a total of 978 sales in the Palmer and Wasilla in the last year 122 of them were foreclosures which is about 12% of the market. Realtytrac says that foreclosures comprised 25% of the total market nationwide last year so we are almost exactly 1/2 of that.

These foreclosed homes generally sell for less than the general market. If you have ever viewed homes that have been foreclosed it's easy to understand why. Nationally, they sold for 32% less than the general market while in Palmer/Wasilla foreclosures sold for 25% less. This shows how much difference a homes condition makes in the price. If you are a seller, the better your house looks, the more money you will get.

Another interesting fact is that foreclosed homes had to drop their price by 8% from their original list price to sell while the general market only had to drop their price about 3.5% of the from their original list price. This is an important number for buyers to keep in mind. Often buyers want to make offers at 10-20 percent under the list price...generally that is a waste of time.

From a listing licensee's point of view foreclosures are great because they always sell. Almost never does a lender call his Realtor and say, "sorry about all the time and money you have spent marketing my property but I have changed my mind about selling." Foreclosures always sell...eventually.

There are currently 48 foreclosures on the market in the Mat Su Valley. Let me know if you would like me to email the list to you. Just click the contact link near the top left.

This representation is based in whole or in part on data supplied by, and to, the subscribers of Alaska Multiple Listing Service, Inc. (AK MLS, Inc.). AK MLS, Inc. does not guarantee nor is it in any way responsible for its accuracy. Data maintained by AK MLS, Inc. is for its own use and may not reflect all real estate activity in the market.

ecoming a leader in Alternative Energy solutions. There are several factors that tend to bend Alaska in that direction.

One of the reasons Alaska is moving out in front in the alternative/renewable energy field is the many different options that are available. We have rivers galore, tidal and wave action in the oceans, geothermal possibilities all over the place, wind and more wind, and believe it or not we get a lot of sun. Actually, we get a lot of sun in the summer…not so much in the winter.

The fact that hydro-fuels are so expensive in many communities makes people wonder if there are less expensive ways to make power than burning $ 8 per gallon diesel. The high cost of energy is the number one reason Alaskans keep tinkering with alternatives. Although the environment is always a consideration, the cost of the power is at the forefront of peoples minds. If the cost of alternative energy is expensive, then it is impractical, and Alaskans are practical people.

Another reason that Alaska is moving to the front of the pack in the search for alternative energy solutions are the Alaskan people themselves. Alaskans tend to be an independent bunch, and the thought of producing one’s own power without dependence on a utility company is very attractive. They are willing to take risks and try things that others may not.

A few years back I helped Ricky and Shannon Wilder buy a home in the Matanuska Valley. A photo of thier home is at the top of this post. This property is on a large parcel of land between the Talkeetna And Chugach Mountain Ranges. The Matanuska Riverand the Glenn Highway are in the same valley but several miles from their home. The home was primarily powered by a generator when they purchased it but the Wilders have been weaning themselves from the generator ever since they moved in.

Along with their son Jordan, they have learned so much about alternative power that Ricky and Jordan wrote and published an e-book on wind power. The Ultimate Consumers Guide to Wind Power walks you through the options for wind power. Written from the perspective of people who actually depend on wind power, this book is a practical solution for anyone looking into this option for themselves.

Ricky and Jordan also have a website, (power-talk.net) on which they discuss and review actual products from a users perspective. They are not trying to sell you a product with their reviews but hope to save you time and money when you start getting serious about alternative energy for your own home.

The Wilders are have been working with solar as well. They report that they get usable solar power from February through October and hope to increase their solar array this year to take advantage of these months. In fact Ricky told me that March and April are great months for solar power because the sunlight is increasing and reflecting off the snow at the same time.

They heat their house and garage with a central wood boiler that is located behind the house. The hot water is piped into the house and garage which both have radiant in-floor heating systems. The Wilders harvest their firewood in a sustainable fashion using birch and spruce grown on their own property.

With wind and solar producing electricity and with wood heat they are almost completely self-sustaining. Shannon tends a large garden in the sunny spot in front of their home to help with their self-sufficiency.

They still need to purchase fuel for their transportation and saws but who knows…with battery technology improving all the time, perhaps they will be able to break the hydrocarbon habit completely.

First pubished on valleymarket.com by Marty Van Diest

The Matanuska Wind is challenging to all of us in the Mat-Su Valley. We had a couple of doozies so far this winter. I stopped at a local coffee stand this morning and they told me that their wind meter has sustained gusts lasting for up to ten minutes that were over 100MPH in the last wind storm.

That’s a serious wind. In fact I think that is the storm that toppled a semi truck on the Parks Highway in Wasilla.

The short video clip below was taken in the calm after the storm…just showing the damage to a siding of a house and the fence at the neighboring house. Both of these houses are currently for sale. Notice that the fence is not just knocked over…the fence boards are completely gone…somewhere in the woods downwind I suppose.

We have to think about the wind when we build around here. If your builder doesn’t put your roof on right you may lose not only your shingles but your whole roof as well. Your downwind neighbors won’t be happy when they see ten foot long pieces of metal roofing flying through the air at them. Your siding needs to be attached as if it can withstand hurricane force winds…because it surely be tested to that level. Your asphalt roofing should be tabbed down so that the wind cannot get under the shingles and rip them off.

But it’s something we all live with...all of us except the few that live in the protected wind shadow between Maud and Smith roads anyway. If you want to know more about the Matanuska wind check out this video that I shot last year…it shows where the wind blows and where it doesn’t.

If you want to work with someone who really knows the valley. Give me a call or write a note from our contact button. My cell number is 907-232-7900. My brother Jay and I have lived here in the Mat-Su Valley for more than 40 years, and I have been a full-time Realtor for 20 of those years. The valley is our home and we like to help valley people buy and sell valley property.

How did you like the wind storm last week? Lots of people lost power because of that howling wind. Some places were without power for days. Most heating systems require electricity to operate so these people were without heat as well.

If you have a gas fireplace you might be able to keep your house tolerably warm with that minimal heater…but what if you didn’t have gas?

One of these days we are going to lose our gas supply through a major line breakage, cause by an accident, or an earthquake, or perhaps just because of deterioration of the system. This may knock out our gas supply for weeks rather than just for a few hours or days. What then?

It seems to me that the best back-up heating system is a wood stove. A small supply of wood will keep your house from freezing up in an emergency. If you run out you can always find more fuel.

Some of us, including me, just don’t have a good place to put a wood stove in our houses. There is still a way to prepare for that real emergency. I have an old barrel stove in the shed, along with some stove pipe. In a real emergency I will install that stove quickly in the garage, stick the stove pipe out the window and fire it up. Of course, wood stoves are dangerous so precautions must be taken to keep from starting a fire, but it will serve its purpose when needed.

I urge everyone to have a plan for the inevitable emergency when we don’t have power or gas for weeks at a time. We are in Alaska, you can’t count on it happening when the temperature is balmy, ole Murph says it will be in January at -20 degrees. Be prepared.

By the way, if you are in the market to sell or buy real estate…contact me. I would be honored to help you with your real estate needs. I can give you some hints on using wood heat as well…that’s the only heat we had when I was growing up on the Innoko River.

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