Housing cost increases for 2002

By Loren Davis

The committee to study workforce housing in the area is going to have its work cut out for it this year as prices continue their upward climb. In 2002 the median sale price of a home on the market from Ossipee to Jackson was $142,000. For 2001, it was just $117,000 (more than a 20 percent increase), based on Multiple Listing Service data. For the same two years, the average price at which the property was listed went from $144,009 to $187,784. So, sellers had high expectations and either reduced prices or accepted lower offers than their asking price. Still, many of us saw multiple offers during the year on attractive properties. There are currently 188 homes on the market in our area with a median list price of $182,450.The period of time that houses have been on the market is an important factor. I am often asked how long a home has been for sale by clients. On the average, single-family homes were on the market for 97 days in 2002, down from 114 in 2001. This would indicate a hotter market. Currently, the figure is up to 127 days for homes here. In the Boston area the time on market is about 50 days. Our higher figure would indicate a slowing of the local market. For buyers, it can be more difficult to gain concessions if a house has just been listed for sale or has only been on the market for a couple of weeks. Sellers should reconsider their asking price and consult with their agent if their house has had activity, but no offers, after several weeks.In the condominium market, the median sale price rose from $110,000 in 2001 to $119,950 last year. This was about a 9 percent increase. In previous articles in The Conway Daily Sun, it was reported that many condo units experienced appreciation of twice that rate. Currently, there are 56 listings of condominiums in the area, and the average number of days on the market has gone up to 177. One reason for this could be the median price for available units is now $149,900.In previous articles, I have pointed out that an important influence in our local real estate market is the demand for second homes, vacation homes and retirement property. As many of these buyers come from south of New Hampshire, it is notable that the median price of homes sold throughout Massachusetts in 2002 was $341,000!Loren C. Davis is owner and founder of Buyer Representatives of Northern New England. He has been a member of the White Mountain Board of Realtors for 10 years and has practiced Exclusive Buyer Agency for five. He is past-president of the New Hampshire Association of Exclusive Buyer Agents and has earned the Accredited Buyer Representative (ABR), Graduate Realtors Institute (GRI), and the Graduate Buyer Representative (GBR) designations. He may be reached by phone at (603) 447-1329 or 1-800-741-5091. His web address is www.buyerrepnne.com.