Summer is upon us and the Real Estate Market for Pawling and the area has been a bit disappointing. Overall sales are down about 6% in comparison to last year. The fact that we had a rough winter, a slow warmup, and snow on the ground until the middle of March did not help matters. We have seen a large number of homes come on the market this Spring. I think the reason behind that is, many sellers have been waiting for and hearing from the media that there would be an improvement in market conditions. Spring has always been the best time sell, but as you all know it’s all about where the house is located too. Some areas are just going to do better than others. In looking at the statistics the slowdown in activity did not have a negative impact on prices.
We do see lots of reasons for optimism for Dutchess homeowners. Although sales activity was down slightly, we think that there may be some price appreciation by the end of the year. Prices have been steady now for about 2 years, and secondary indicators do seem to signal we’re moving into more of a seller’s market. For example days on market fell by 11.7% from the first quarter last year. This tells us that homes are selling a bit more quickly and closer to the asking price. It might take a while longer, but we believe that the Dutchess market is moving toward some meaningful appreciation by 2015.
I thought it might be interesting to look a little larger picture other than just Pawling. Here are a few statistics for all of Dutchess County. The numbers below back up our overall point of view.
Single Family Homes
Current Quarter Prior Year Quater
Q1- 2014 Q1- 2013
Total Closed Sales 314 334
Average Selling Price $280,918 $268,432
Average Days On Market 188 213
Price Per Square Foot 134 132
Here are some statistics from Westchester Putnam MLS regarding the number of homes currently on the market in Pawling in a given price range, and the number of solds in the last 6 months as of 7/25/14
$200,000 to $300,000 31 Active on the market and 11 Sold
$300,000 to $400,000 29 Active on the market and 5 Sold
$400,000 to $500,000 16 Active on the market and 1 Sold
$500,000 to $600,000 5 Active on the market and 0 Sold
$600,000 to $1,000,000 24 Active on the market and 1 Sold
That’s it for now; I hope all of you have a great summer and best of luck with all your Real Estate Endeavors!! I will touch base again with you all later in the year.
Todd Kessman
Berkshire Hathaway Hudson Valley Properties
14C East Main Street