2015 Real Estate Market Update (Jan-Jun)

It's official: the Vermont real estate market has recovered.  

The cover story in this past Sunday's Burlington Free Press (September 6, 2015) was "Real Estate Rebound", detailing how the market is returning to pre-recession levels with shorter time on the market, less inventory, higher median sales prices. Champlain Valley sales via MLS were up 14% the first half of 2015 over last year, with all counties showing increases in sales. Tom Heney, Executive VP and GM of Four Seasons, Sotheby's referred to the under $400K market as being a "sellers' market" because demand was great and it was taking just under 4 months for those properties to sell.

However, Heney stated that "executive homes", which he defines as consisting of homes in the $400,000 to $900,000 price range, aren't faring so well. "The range of that (executive market) is 18 to 20 months worth of inventory,"  Heney said, adding, "It's not a runaway buyer's market but it favors them because they have a choice."

Wow.  What caught our attention was the 4 month time on the market figure referred to by the realtors as indicative of a market 'on-fire' or  'a seller's market.'  Really? Picket Fence properties sell at least TWICE as fast as agent-listed properties around 2 months. Either the realtors are putting lipstick on their 4 month old pig or we need to come up with better puffery to describe the pace of the market for Picket Fence properties.

Picket Fence Preview sales for the first half of 2015 show time on the market figures for all regions averaging less than 2 months before receiving an offer:  The Champlain Valley averaged 44 days;  Northern / Central Vermont  51 days, and Southern VT / Upper Valley NH 57 days. This is almost identical to 2014's January - June time on the market.  However, Picket Fence total reported sales for January - June 2015 were exactly 100 more than the same time period last year!

Executive Homes - What's more, forty-five homes over $400,000 were reported sold through Picket Fence Preview in the first half of 2015. The range of sales prices was $400,000 to $1,275,000...average was $495,822. Their average time on the market was 40.46 days (range 3 days to 240 days)! So, with realtors the expected wait is 18 - 20 months...540 to 600 days to sell vs. 40 days with Picket Fence.  The Picket Fence sellers mentioned above saved an average of almost $30,000 each in commissions.   To top it all off, each PFP seller received an average of 98.13% of their asking price!

So...why do Picket Fence sellers sell so much faster than those listed with agents?  Perhaps more desirable properties are being offered through Picket Fence Preview, skewing the time on the market in our favor.  Agents have 'complained' about this factor in the past saying our comparisons were therefore 'unfair'.  Sure, homeowners who realize their property will sell itself are just plain smart to not needlessly fork over 6% to an agent for something they can do better themselves. Plus with Picket Fence there is better marketing to the public, via the magazine and web, that makes the difference, coupled with motivated sellers holding open houses and showing their properties by owner that gives Picket Fence sellers an overwhelming competitive edge.

Einstein defined insanity as persisting with the same strategy again and again while expecting a different result. Those listed with agents can either persist with their strategy and hope, or can benefit from the experience of others and sell through Picket Fence. The reward will not only be huge amounts of time saved, but also measured in a small fortune of precious after-tax, in your bank account, money (by avoiding those huge commissions).

Listed with an agent? It's not too late to get out of that dilemma before the market turns against you.

Sell it yourself through Picket Fence: It's Easy, It's Fast, It Saves You Money and it WORKS!