A report from the Newark Advocate in Ohio. “In June, the average sale price of a Licking County home was $310,437. In June of 2020, home sales averaged $250,453. Since the average sale price dropped from $310,437 in June, to 279,347 in July, does that mean the housing bubble has burst and prices will continue to decline? ‘I think it depends on the price range and condition of the house,’ said agent Carol Marr. ‘It’s slowed down a bit, but it typically slows down this time of year.’”
From Westword on Colorado. “According to Veronica Collin of Fresco Real Estate, the appraisal gap is the reason that so many sales fall apart at the last minute. ‘We saw one in five houses come back on the market in metro Denver because of the appraisal gap,’ she says of dashed deals in recent months. In such scenarios, she adds, ‘sellers have to start over — and hopefully in this market, they’ll have a backup offer and it isn’t all that painful for them.’”
From WTOP News in Virginia. “When it comes to housing prices and sales, red-hot Arlington County cooled a bit last month compared to last summer. NVAR reports the median price of a home that sold in Arlington County last month was 9% lower than a year ago, and the average number of days on the market, or how long it took to sell a home, was up 35% compared to last July. There are also more properties on the market in Northern Virginia. Total active listings are 14.6% higher than a year ago. A forward-looking gauge also shows moderating buyer demand in Northern Virginia. ‘We began experiencing this moderation in activity ever since the July Fourth weekend,’ said NVAR President Derrick Swaak.”
The Reporter Telegram in Texas. “Midland ranked second in the nation in terms of percentage of home listings with price reductions, according to a Realtor.com report. The report showed Midland trailed only Des Moines, Iowa, on the list of ’10 cities where sellers are slashing home prices.’ The percentage of home listings in Midland was 28 percent. The median list price in July in Midland County, according to the report, was still $330,050. Toledo, Ohio; Metairie, Louisiana; and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; rounded out the top five cities.”
“The Reporter-Telegram emailed the Permian Basin Board of Realtors for a comment but didn’t receive a response. Chris Beckett, broker and owner at Pine & Beckett Realtors in Midland, is quoted in the report that he ‘cuts prices on his listings every seven to 10 days.’”
From Hometown Station in California. “Although the market experienced a huge challenge for the past year, experts agree that recovery–or cooling down–is bound to happen, even for a little. San Diego real estate expert Kimo Quance warned buyers not to be too eager and grab seemingly lower prices right now, as the market is ‘still cooling down.’ This means that they may look to be lowering down, but things can see a better situation in the future.”
From North Jersey. “Elena Walczyk had a buyer lined up to purchase the mobile home in Cape May County that she and her husband had rented out for years. But when Walczyk, 59, gave her tenant notice to terminate their lease about four months ago, the tenant stopped paying her $350 monthly rent and water bills, Walczyk said, estimating the renter now owes more than $2,100.”
“Walczyk depended on that rental income not only to pay the nearly $1,400 property tax bill, $599 yearly in insurance, $640 yearly for sewer costs and around $45 a month for utilities. After paying the bills, she and her husband usually earned $200 a month profit on the property, but only that’s if they didn’t have to make repairs. Costs kept piling up, such as replacing electric cable or rebuilding the deck after it burned down. ‘It became more trouble than profit,’ Walczyk said.”
The New York Post. “Jennifer Lopez is still having trouble unloading her $25 million Manhattan penthouse — which has been on the market for nearly four years now, The Post has learned. Lopez, 52, first listed the property in October 2017 for $26.95 million — three years after she initially purchased the duplex penthouse in Flatiron for $20.16 million, property records show. In 2019, without any offers, the home took a $1.96 million price cut. Still, however, it wasn’t enough to entice a buyer and the home remains for sale today.”
The Vashon Beachcomber in Washington. “Unable to sell all of Misty Isle Farms to a single buyer despite more than a decade of intermittent effort, the owners of the sprawling Vashon estate are now having some success selling it off in pieces. In 2007, the entire estate was listed for a whopping $125 million, making the Vashon ranch tied as the second most expensive single-family property listing in the United States. As the Great Recession hit and years passed, the asking price dropped dramatically – to $43 million in 2014, then $28 million in 2017, before the owners decided to market the property in smaller pieces.”
“Portions of the estate east of Old Mill are not listed for sale. Windermere realtor Linda Bianchi said she did not know the reason this property wasn’t listed. ‘Perhaps the family could choose to keep it,’ she said.”