Pete Spencer

Usually my report pertains to residential homes on less than 10 acres sold for the as reported by the Lebanon Board of Realtors MLS but over the last week there were no homes sold, and with that I thought it was a good time to share some land sale statistics.

These statistics pertain to raw land over 3 acres sold from the first of the year to yesterday as reported by the Lebanon MLS. There have been 18 land sales over 3 acres reported this year for a total of almost 1.1 million, that's down from last years 38 sales for 1.6 million during the same period on 07. The average price this year is over 61K, last year in the same time period it was around 44K. The average parcel size this year has been 30 acres, compared to last years 20 acre average. This year's average of over 2037 per acre is lower than last year's 2167 average, which is not surprising considering the smaller average parcel size.

One of the most common questions I receive from people is what land is worth in Laclede County and I always explain that there are many variables that determine lands value. Those variables include the properties condition, if it is wooded or pasture, the size of the parcel and its amount of road frontage, it can also be affected it's proximity to a town or the school district it is in. In looking at a 4 year average for land sales the best way to break it down is by parcel size so here are the averages. Lots sold with less than 3 acres over the last 4 years averaged less than an acre in size and sold for an average of $12,800. On Land sale 3 to 10 acres the average size lot was 5 acres and sold for almost $4400 per acre. The 4 year average for land sold between 10 and 40 acres was just over $1900 per acre with the average size being 30 acres. Farms from 40 to 100 acres sold for an average of under $1400 per acre and had an average parcel size of 71 acres and the 4 year average for large parcels of 100 acres or more is $830 per acres with the average size being 220 acres. Land sales can be a challenge so be sure and consult and expert when it's time to sell. You should be able to look at comparable sales from you area with similar qualities that will give you a good idea about what your land is worth.

This report pertains to residential homes on less than 10 acres sold from Aug 15th to Sept 11th as reported by the Lebanon Board of Realtors MLS.

Over the last month there were 12 homes sold for a total of 1.4 million. The average price of these homes was almost 123 thousand with the median price at 114K, these homes had an average time on the market of 153 days. There are currently 11 homes listed as under contract in the Lebanon MLS and those homes have an average price of 105,000.

Year to date there have been 186 homes sold, that's down from last years 236 during the same time frame, the average price is 110 thousand dollars, which is down from 07's 114.5K; the YTD volume of 20.5 million is under last years 27 million. Our average time on the market this year has been 142 days, that's up some from last years 139 day average.

As of this morning there were 392 homes with less than 10 acres, listed with the Lebanon MLS compared to 353 last year in the same week. The average asking price is 150k with median asking price of just about 120; these homes have an average time on the market of 138 days.
What a crazy week for the mortgage industry it has been, with the federal government taking over Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac interest rates on fixed mortgages have plummeted. I have seen fixed rate quotes this week for as low as 5.75. There are lots of opportunities for potential home buyers right now including low rates, bond money on some loans and a $7500 tax credit for first time home buyers. Speaking of the tax credit, many people have heard of the Housing and Economic Recovery Act of 2008 which was passed by the Congress on July 26 and signed by President Bush on July 30, but hardly anyone knows what it means. Here are the highlights of the tax credit, visit my blog for the details. If you purchase a home between Apr 9 2008 and July 1 2009 you may qualify for the credit. A first time home buyer is defined as an individual or couple who has not owned a home in the previous 3 years. Income qualifications are, 75k for single people and 150k for married couples. This tax credit is not a deduction, it is a credit which means that if you owe $1000 on April 15 and qualify for this credit you would not pay the $1000 and would instead receive the difference back, $6500. This tax credit is basically like a 0% loan over a 15 year period and would need to be repaid when the home sells or at 500 per year for 15 years, and if you happen to sell the home in 2 years and only break even, you are not obligated to pay back the credit. Be sure and ask your accountant about all the details regarding this and any tax credit. Don't miss out on one of the greatest times there has ever been to be a home owner, if you have been thinking about buying, get off the fence and do it.