JULY FEARRINGTON HOUSING MARKET REVIEW

2010-06-30T14:37:00.000-04:00

CHATHAM COUNTY NEWS AFFECTING FEARRINGTON

There have been some interesting developments this past month that have a bearing on Fearrington.

Great news about the schools that serve Fearrington.

For the second year in a row, Northwod High School, which serves Fearrington high schoolers, has been ranked in the top 6% NATIONWIDE in a recent Newsweek survey. A strong academic program, a committment to technology in the classroom and good achievement have earned them this honor.

The new Margaret Pollard Middle School will open around the middle of the upcoming school year. This school will serve Fearrington middle school students who have been sharing the North Chatham campus with elementary students, as well as Perry Harrison middle school students in a similar arrangement. Not only will Fearrington middle schoolers have a brand new school but Fearrington elementary students will be able to expand into the entire North Chatham campus.

And lets not forget the Woods Charter School that has completed its first academic year in their new facility just a few minutes from Fearrington. One of the most successful charter schools in the state as well as nationally, they consistently have among the higest achievement scores in the state.

Having strong schools serving Fearrington is one important factor in keeping property values up.

Chatham County Budget

Property Tax Rate to Rise: The Chatham County Board of Commissioners has approved a small property tax increase of 1.97 cents per $100,000 of the assessed value of a property. That will amount to an increase of about $39 on a property with an assessed value of $200,000. Almost all of the increase will be going to costs associated with the opening of the Margaret Pollard Middle School and a shortfall of 1.6 million dollars in the state's contribution to the Chatham County Schools which would have resulted in numerous teacher layoffs. For the second year in a row, county employees did not get a pay raise and there were cuts in many cuts in non-school related areas.

Improved Bond Rating One positive note is that two bond rating agencies have recently upgraded Chatham's ratings by two levels. Chatham now has the highest bond rating of any county of its size which will make it less expensive to issue major bonds in the future. For a full story on the Chatham county budget and property tax click on this link. http://www.chathamnc.org/Index.aspx?page=19&recordid=1964&returnURL=%2findex.aspx

The Fearrington Housing Market.

Current Conditions: Sales of resale home in Fearrington continue to be doing ok although at lower prices. Properties listed in the Multiple Listing Service (MLS) under $325,000 are doing well. Over $325,00 sales are slow and there have been no sales over $400,000 since March. There are currently five MLS listings under contract, one more than at this time last month, and four listings closed in June. There are currently 27 houses listed in the MLS which is a one year supply of inventory based on the average number of sales annually over the past 3 years. At this point we are pretty much selling the same number of houses as are coming on the market each month, but we are having a hard time putting a dent in that one year supply. Fearrington showings of listings in the MLS in the past month have been pretty slow although we did have a good turnout for the joint open house on June 13 which resulted in at least one property (my listing) going under contract.

The bottom line is we have more supply than demand and prices have continued to drop. IT'S A FABULOUS BUYER'S MARKET IN FEARRINGTON VILLAGE.

FEARRINGTON VILLAGE HOME SALES:

YEARLY FEARRINGTON SALES: For the 12 month period of July 1, 2009 through June 30, 2010 there were 30 Multiple Listing closings in Fearrington. The year before there were 21 closings for the same period and the year before that there were 27. (That's the good news)

AVERAGE FEARRINGTON HOME SALE PRICES: During this last 12 month period the average Fearrington house sold for $277,430 (96% of list price). For the previous 12 month period it was $271,071(96 % of list price) but the year before it was $286,022(98% of list price). Clearly, the buyer has been controlling the market.

SQUARE FOOT PRICES: Another revealing number is the price per square foot. This past 12 month period it was $131; the year before $133 and the year before that $142.50.

DAYS ON MARKET: The last interesting stat to look at is the days on market. During the past 12 month period the average DOM was 115!, the same period the year before it was 70 and the year before the average DOM was 63. This steady increase in DOM is a clear indicator of excess inventory.

WHAT NEXT? We are now in the summer doldrums for real estate. The two weeks before and after the fourth of July are popular travel times resulting in very slow real estate activity. In addition, the economic pundits are predicting continued price declines for the next year-anywhere from 3 to 11% nationwide depending on who you listen to. On top of that Fearrington sellers are having to contend with a stock market that is in free fall. How the stock market is faring is usually the most inportant indicator of how Fearrington sales will do.

WHAT DOES IT MEAN? All of these statistics are still pointing to a market where buyers have lots of inventory to choose from and are expecting to get a bargain. BUT YOU CAN SELL YOUR HOUSE! In this market sellers need to present their homes in a way in which theirs will stand out. That means it needs to be SPOTLESS, UNCLUTTERED, PROPERLY MAINTAINED, NICELY DECORATED, CURRENT APPLIANCES AND REALISTICALLY PRICED TO SELL Providing a "carpet allowance" or "paint allowance" is not going to make your house stand out. A new carpet and fresh paint will. A professional REALTOR® will be able to advise you on properly pricing your house in this market and how to get your house ready for sale.

CAUSE FOR OPTIMISM Even though our stats are soft, they are not as bad as in many parts of the country, and there is good reason to hope that market conditions will improve in the coming months.

First and foremost, Interest rates are extremely low and it looks like the Fed will keep them that way for the foreseeable future.

Second, The economy is continuing to improve despite the stock maret and the woes of the Eurozone.

Third, the longer this slow market keeps going the more pent up demand is building

THIS IS A GOOD TIME TO ACT If you are thinking of selling in Fearrington, even though things are still slow, this may be the best market environment we will see for some time.
For someone who is thinking of moving to Fearrington, there is plenty of inventory to choose from and prices are great for buyers and interest rates are low.

WHAT'S AVAILABLE? There are currently around 26 Fearrington properties listed in the MLS . You can see all my listings with lots of pictures on realtor.com by clicking on any of the links below: You can see ALL Fearrington properties listed in the MLS by clicking on the "Fearrington Listings" button on the Home Page of my website www.maggietunstall.com

I will be happy to set you up in the MLS so that you can see all Fearrington properties listed in the MLS and to be notified when new ones come on.

5 McDowell http://www.realtor.com/realestateandhomes-detail/5-Mcdowell_Pittsboro_NC_27312_1119455130

25 Yancey http://www.realtor.com/realestateandhomes-detail/25-yancey_pittsboro_NC_27312_1119229403

165 Wintersage http://www.realtor.com/realestateandhomes-detail/165-wintersage_Pittsboro_NC_27312_1114499977

462 Beechmast http://www.realtor.com/realestateandhomes-detail/462-Beechmast_Pittsboro_NC27312_1111571602

503 Beechmast http://www.realtor.com/realestateandhomes-detail/503Beechmast_Pittsboro_NC_27312_1116194260

162 Windstone http://www.realtor.com/realestateandhomes-detail/162-Windstone_Pittsboro_NC_27312_1111022614 (Under Contract)

15 Caldwell http://www.realtor.com/realestateandhomes-detail/15-Caldwell_Pittsboro_NC_27312_1115242568

881 Millcroft http://www.realtor.com/realestateandhomes-detail/881Millcroft_Pittsboro_NC_27312_1116147619

1355 Bradford Place is temporarily off the market, but can be seen by special arrangement.
Posted by Maggie at 1:56 PM

MAGGIE TUNSTALL ON FEARRINGTON REAL ESTATE

JULY FEARRINGTON HOUSING MARKET REVIEW