Exeter, NH

Make this Saturday an open house visitiation day! There are always plenty of open houses to attend in your area. Have your real estate agent search for you. And don't forget to stop by this open house in Exeter, New Hampshire! This beautiful home is on 6 acres of land, surrounded by tall pines and even includes a 4 stall barn on the property! Come take a look and print out the flyer below.

Every time we drive to work or school, use our heating system or air conditioners, clean our windows, or even style our hair, we make choices that affect air pollution. Here are ten steps we can all do to reduce air pollution.

1. Walk or ride a bike. When looking for a new home - look closer to work so that you might be able to do this. You might consider a smaller home in a closer location. At the very least it will reduce your car travel. I love the fact that I can walk to my office and do it often.

2. Share a ride or use public transportation. Here in Portsmouth we do have the trolley systems and Coast buses.

3. Combine errands for fewer trips. It will also give you more time to other fun things.

4. Keep your car well maintained, with tires properly inflated. When buying a new to you car - really look at the gas mileage. Do you really need a truck (are you a farmer?) that only gets 15 mpg and all you do is city driving?

5. Avoid idling in your car. Don't sit there with the a/c running as you look at the ocean. How about opening the windows instead.

6. Turn off lights, computers & TVs when not in use. I have my hair dryer, curling iron and mirror on a power strip. When not in use I turn them all off by the power strip. I also keep my microwave unplugged when not in use.

7. Use energy-efficient light bulbs and appliances. Appliances all come with energy star ratings these days.

8. Run dishwashers and washing machines only when full. And use cold water when washing the clothes.

9. Choose environmentally friendly consumer products and cleaners. Or make your own. It is amazing what you can do with products like baking soda, vinegar and bleach.

10. Make and live the motto - Reduce, reuse, recycle!

Let's all do our share for cleaner air. We only have one planet - Let's keep it around for generations to come.

(c) Shannon Aldrich, Keller Williams Coastal Realty Portsmouth NH

Join our monthly e-newsletter for real estate updates, area happenings and market changes by emailing Shannon at saldrich@kw.com Your email will never be shared or sold!

Exeter NH saw a 9% increase in average sales price during the first quarter of 2008. The average sale rose from $300,717 in 2007 to $329,404 in 2008. That's the good news - now here is the challenge. 28 homes sold during this period which is down by 28% from 2007 when 39 homes were sold during the same three months. The other good news has to be that there are currently 17 homes under contract. So we could be seeing a result of this year's challenging and snowy winter.

The average days on market have also increased by 18 days. In 2007 it took an average of 178 days to sell a home in the first quarter and we are currently at 196 days.

Every town is different - there is no "National Market" and from these reports you can see that each town is an entirely different market. One town can be up, stable or down and the next town over has an entirely different scenario. Exeter NH is the 18th largest town in New Hampshire with 14,754 residents and 6,563 housing units according to the 2006 Census. It is the home of Phillips Exeter Academy.

There are currently 154 homes for sale in Exeter NH - that represents 16.5 months of inventory. That is definitely a Buyer's market and Seller's must price their homes according to what the market will bear. After all a home is only worth what a Buyer is willing to buy it for and what a Seller is willing to sell it for. Homes in Exeter are currently ranging in asking price from $169,900 to $1,999,000.

Interested in living in Exeter? Search MLS

Visit The Seacoast Sold Report to see what has been happening in Exeter NH and surrounding towns.

Data for these stats was pulled from the NNEREN MLS Database on 3/28/2008.

2007 stats run from 1/1/07 to 3/28/07

2008 stats run from 1/1/08 to 3/28/08

*Avg. DOM = average days on the market **Median L/S Ratio = median list price to sold price ratio

Conclusions / My Take:

Based on these stats, I would conclude that the condo market in Exeter, NH is recovering. Condos are selling faster, for more money and closer to asking price.

As for the single family home market in Exeter, NH... These stats suggest that it is still more of a buyers market in that the sales prices 2007 vs. 2008 have declined and homes are taking longer to sell. Also, sellers are granting higher discounts on their list prices this year than last year.

My take on this is that the more affordable properties tend to sell faster and condos are generally more affordable than single family homes. Also, a larger percentage of condo buyers are first time buyers versus those who buy single family homes.

I believe that the reason the single family market is still suffering is because single family home prices, on average, are still quite high. Many folks who buy a single family home have to sell in order to buy. This results in a domino effect when the first property takes longer to sell, or doesn't sell at all.

The key here is to make sure that if you are buying or selling that you hire a good local REALTOR that really knows the CURRENT MARKET in YOUR AREA. They can advise you as to your local market condition and counsel you on the pros and cons of buying or selling in these uncertain times.

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me. We specialize in New Hampshire's Seacoast towns

-Katherine Anderson, Broker / Manager

Coldwell Banker Hobin Realty, LLC

Rye & Hampton, New Hampshire - USA

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