AmyBSells Team - Cincinnati Real Estate Blog

Amy March 1st, 2008

It’s hard to ignore the recent gloomy talk on the national news about the slumping housing market in the formerly hot markets of Florida, Nevada, Arizona and California.

With all of this doom and gloom, the natural instinct is to roll up the driveway, shutter the windows and wait for the financial storm to blow over. But now is not the time to lock yourself in the basement. Here in Cincinnati we have Spring!

As a buyer watching rates and sitting on the fence . . .”would you rather buy a home a day too early, or a day too late?”

It’s time to get serious – before an inevitable rise in interest rates wipe out your advantage. The thing that will make make home prices stop falling is the very same thing that will push mortgage rates higher.

Some members of the financial press are starting to suggest that a bottom is near, and that buyers should get out and start looking for bargains in homes. Time Magazine ran a piece this week titled, “Ignore the Headlines!” by Dan Kadlec, where he notes that Fed rate cuts always “lift the economy eventually.” He also makes the case the buying a home today will beat waiting another year even if home prices drop an additional 10 percent.

To buy a $218,900 home at 5.5 percent is $994.31 a month. To buy next year at $197,010 at 6 percent will cost $994.94. The irony is that in the time Kadlec did his research and when the magazine came out, interest rates were already back over 6 percent, making his example all the more compelling.

You just never know, but you may not save anything to wait when there are great deals to be had today in today’s market.

• Buyers , Housing Market , Trends
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Amy January 14th, 2008

Who said that Real Estate is slow during the Winter/Holidays???????

Certainly not ME!!! I stand behind my statement that I have told to countless sellers each fall - “The winter market is a GREAT time to SELL your home!” - and I mean SELL your home.

Imagine for a moment (don’t close your eyes because you need to read, but just imagine). It is cold out, November or December, a crisp 34 degrees in the air. It may be snowing or spitting at you as you walk along the streets, up slippery stairs (be careful!) to homes that are for sale; boots, scarves, gloves, umbrellas. Not the most desireable time to shop for a home. If you could choose what time of year to buy a home, I am sure it would be the Summer or Spring - it is pleasant, warm and full of life and fun!

Well wake up! It is the winter. No green, white and cold, and not a fun time to shop for a house. Why am I so glum? I am just trying to illustrate a point to you. WINTER BUYERS ARE NOT SHOPPING FOR HOMES IN 34 DEGREE WEATHER for FUN!!!! They are doing it because they HAVE TO! The most serious buyers are buying homes during the winter months. These months are between November-February. If they are out looking for a house, it is not a fun walk down the street on a warm Sunday afternoon, they are drudging through snow and holiday traffic to buy a home, and they will not leave without one!

Winter buyers are often more serious for a few reasons. First, most winter buyers have a job offer to start in January, or are given a job offer in the new year, in January. They must move quickly to find a house and begin their new jobs. Also, families with children are trying to get their kids in school for the second half of the year, to try to keep things normal for their kids.

So may sellers take their homes off of the market in November, anticipating a slow winter. I guess Realtors are suggesting this, or have so often in the past that this is what sellers just assume to be the case. Consider that you may want to sell your home, and it is May, you may be one of 30 homes in your area and price range for sale, because it is the “best time to sell.” Well consider that it is December, and you want to sell your home NOW. You may be one of 10 homes on the market through the holidays and winter. When these serious buyers come trudging through the snow to see your listing, you have a 1 in 10 chance of selling to that buyer who WILL buy because they HAVE to. Compare that to the May 1 in 30 chance of selling to someone who is just maybe considering buying and is out enjoying the weather. Which would give you a better chance of selling, May or December?

I AM NOT GOING ON RECORD saying that the winter is slow. In fact, I am so busy and it is great! This year, since December 15th, I have sold 4 of my listings and helped 3 buyers purchase their homes. That is 7 transactions in the last 30 days, those 30 days include Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, New Years Eve, New Years Day. All 4 of those holidays, I had showings on my listings, or I received or negotiated an offer. Realtors never have a holiday, and I am happy to work to help my clients sell or buy their homes on a holiday! It was a great Christmas gift and a great way to start the new year for many of my clients! Two of those 4 listings wound up in a multiple offer situation, providing more profit for the sellers.

Who said this was a slow market? NOT ME!

Last, year, in 2006, I had 5 closings occur between Thanksgiving and New Years! All 5 of them were relocating for a job, or had to get their kids in school for the second semester. The year before that in 2005, I had 5 closings occur in February, and those buyers all put in offers in the December and January time period.

I believe in the winter market!!! My advice to you today, if your Realtor says that the winter market will be slow and nothing sells, find a new Realtor, because you will never sell if that is the attitude. I work 12 months a year, with steady business all year long. If I have sellers, I am working to sell the house. Be sure you know if your Listing Realtor takes off the standard Realtor break of Nov-Jan. I promise you, that is the time when most agents are not working because they don’t think that anything is happening. That is great for me and for my sellers who get their homes SOLD because I work to get them SOLD in the WINTER!

There is still time to take advantage of the WINTER market!!! With my work ethic and support team, we can have your home ready for sale in days, and SOLD in an average of 35 days (Most Realtors listings stay on the market an average of 100+ days) I am ready to SELL your house!

If you are serious about selling, call me!

I look forward to selling your home in this winter market!

• Buyers , Listing , Pricing , Trends
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Amy January 14th, 2008

Update on Mortgages in Ohio Real Estate

The Ohio Mortgage Bankers Association (OMBA) released some very interesting data regarding their Q3 2007 figures that I felt compelled to share with my readers in Cincinnati, Ohio. As a resident, Realtor and Certified Residential Specialist, I feel that it is increasingly the local Realtors job to educate their local public on the state of the Real Estate market. I always suggest that the more local the data and information the better. You can’t form opinions regarding the Real Estate market from national news, based on California, Nevada or New York; you must look at what is happening in your state, city and suburb. This is my reason for writing a series of articles regarding the local real estate market. The more informed you are locally, the better the market will be for us locally.

Let’s start with Ohio, the state level and the recent figures released from the states Mortgage Bankers Association (OMBA). As you may have heard in the past, Ohio was a state of high foreclosure rates. When you break the state down by top 10 counties that these foreclosures are occurring in, Hamilton County, nor any other areas of Greater Cincinnati are amongst the top 10 that are the state’s worst counties for foreclosures. This is great to know if you live in or around Cincinnati, or its suburbs. And it lends to the mentality that the more local your information and news is, the better!

In the state of Ohio, The home ownership rate remains near record levels at 68.2% reports OMBA. This high rate of homeownership is almost record breaking, does not tell me that we are in despair in our Real Estate market. I wish these numbers were a part of the newspaper and evening news statistics!

The OMBA further suggests that 35% of Ohio homeowners own their homes outright, no mortgages at all! 48% are in a fixed rate mortgage, which is the conservative route, and almost half of Ohio residents are being conservative about their home financing, providing a stronger outlook for the future of the Ohio market! 15% of Ohioans have an Adjustable Rate Mortgage (ARM). And the smallest single group of people in Ohio, just 5% of homeowners is a non-prime or sub-prime borrower with adjustable rate mortgages. This is only 5% of Ohioans that have this higher rate loan that adjusts. The squeaky wheel gets the grease is TRUE! Why don’t we hear about the 35% who own their homes or the 48% who have the most conservative loans on the market? Instead, the newspaper and news casts prefer to report the doom and gloom when merely 5% of Ohioans that agreed to take a mortgage above prime rates and that adjusts gets into trouble. The media goes by the saying, “If it bleeds, it leads!” and that is causing so much of the bad press surrounding this Cincinnati Real Estate Market, which is simply not true!

In fact, in Ohio, the foreclosure rate is 1.7% of all loans in Ohio. The market tells us that a little over a half of that 1.7% will actually be foreclosed upon, but there are no exact numbers. The OMBA suggests that the number one cause for delinquencies and foreclosures is historically job related, most specifically so in the Mid-West, which has lost a significant number of manufacturing jobs. It is a fact that lenders want to lend money to borrowers who are willing and able to pay the loan back. They are not trying to induce a foreclosure situation! In fact, the OMBA estimates that between $30,000-$60,000 net loss occurs each time there is a foreclosure on a single property.

The lending community is taking note of these figures and situations that arise from these foreclosure situations. The competition in the lending marketplace has increased, leading the way for borrowers to find more options for their financing from the stronger, remaining lending institutions. The lenders are now pushing borrowers towards the more traditional mortgages, with down payments, fixed products and conventional loan options, which all help the borrower, the lender and the real estate market.

So, yes, Ohio has seen a small amount of foreclosures as state, Cincinnati and even smaller number of foreclosures. This concern over foreclosure figures has created more awareness in the lenders and loan options, which allows borrowers more education on their financing options. I hope that these numbers show you that in Cincinnati, we are going well, in Ohio, we are as well. Get your news locally, and there is always more good than bad, they just prefer to tell you the bad.

Hang in there and check back soon for some local articles on Hyde Park, Mount Lookout and other Cincinnati Suburb market conditions as they happened in 2007.
Data and statistics noted in this article are based onthe Ohio Mortgage Bankers Association’s Q3 2007 figures.

• Buyers , Financing , Foreclosures , Pricing , Trends
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Amy April 14th, 2007

Real Estate is an Investment in Mount Lookout, Hyde Park, Oakley and East Cincinnati

Cincinnati Real Estate is an exciting industry, or hobby, depending on your current occupation. For me, it is both, as I am a Full Time, Resident Realtor, with a focus on Mt. Lookout, Hyde Park and Oakley, and the East side of Cincinnati in general. As a Certified Residential Specialist as well as a Hyde Park area resident, I find the numbers I am about to show you as vital as the air we breathe. I don’t think I have been involved in a conversation in a social setting in the last two years where the Real Estate market wasn’t a large topic amongst my local friends and acquaintances, in the midst of buying or selling in this market.

It is somewhat of a buyers market still, I would venture to call it a Price Correction Period, but even with that, we are seeing great appreciation figures over 5, 3 and 2 years after purchase. Let me show you some specific information that was compiled through several MLS searches I run on a regular basis to help me and my buyers and sellers understand the current market.

This information was complied through the use of the Cincinnati MLS, creating a 90 day snapshot of the local market, and later in the article, a look 5 years back at the average increase in values over time. I hope you will find this information informative and unique, and should you have any additional questions, you can reach me. See each of these charts attached to this blog, the first pertains to the Market Analysis and is called Q1 Area Numbers, and the second group of figures can be found in 2006 Area Appreciation.

Mount Lookout Local Market Analysis and Absorption Rate

In the last 90 days the Mount Lookout market has seen 127 homes go on the market, sell or go pending. Of those 127, 35 were sold in the last 90 days, 20 are pending a closing and 72 remain for sale today. The average home sold in Mt. Lookout is priced at 466,475 and the average sold home sells for 323,932. The average home has 3 bedrooms, 2.97 bathrooms and remains on the market for an average of 73 days. 54% of the time, homes in Mt. Lookout sell in less than 30 days, at about 95% of their list price.

Let’s take a look at what these numbers mean to you, the Mt. Lookout seller. Based on the figures above, 18 homes go under contract each month in Mt. Lookout. If there are 127 people in line to sell their homes, and 18 go under contract each month, there is a 3.9 month supply of homes on the market in Mt. Lookout. This means that if no other homes come onto the market, it will take your Mt. Lookout home about 3.9 months to go under contract on the long end, 73 days average, and 54% of the time in 30 days or less, giving your home a 25.5% chance of selling in 30 days.

Hyde Park Local Market Analysis and Absorption Rate

Hyde Park remains to be the solid anchor keeping Mount Lookout and Oakley planted in strong Real Estate Values and Sales in Cincinnati. In my recent assessment of the Real Estate of these three beloved cities of Cincinnati I have always found most consistent the Hyde Park area.

In the last 90 days, Hyde Park has had 195 homes enter the market. Of these 195, 49 have sold, 26 have pending contracts, and a remaining 120 are still for sale. In Hyde Park the average list price is $466,218 almost identical with Mount Lookout, but in Hyde Park the average Sale price is $511,250. The average days on the market for these Hyde Park homes are 83 days. In Hyde Park 44% of the homes sell in 30 days or less, with 24% taking more than 120 days to sell. The average list to sale price percentage in homes selling in Hyde Park is 91%. The average Hyde Park home has 4 bedrooms, and 2.86 bathrooms.

Let me put these numbers into perspective for the Hyde Park seller. This means that of those 195 sellers, 25 of them go under contract each month. If there are 195 people in line to sell their homes, and 25 go under contract each month, there is a 4.8 month supply of homes on the market in Hyde Park. This means that if no other homes come onto the market, it will take your Hyde Park home about 4.8 months to go under contract on the long end, 83 days average, and 44% of the time in 30 days or less, giving your home a 20.8% chance of selling in the next 30 days.

Oakley Local Market Analysis and Absorption Rate

Oakley is known in the Hyde Park area as the starter home neighborhood. The average home prices are lower, but the return on investment beats both Mt Lookout and Hyde Park in a 5 year period! The homes are generally a bit smaller than the neighboring two areas, and therefore, its resident’s tend to move up to the Hyde Park and Mt. Lookout area as their families begin to grow! Not too many people desire to leave our little triangle where shopping, restaurants and parks are so convenient and friendly; you just can’t imagine living anywhere else!

In the last 90 days the Oakley market has seen 124 homes go on the market, sell or go pending. Of those 123, 42 were sold in the last 90 days, 23 are pending a closing and 59 remain for sale today. The average home sold in Oakley is priced at $197,703 and the average sold home sells for $184,368. The average home has 3 bedrooms, 1.73 bathrooms and remains on the market for an average of 71 days. 30% of the time, homes in Oakley sell in less than 30 days, at about 94% of their list price, and another 28% take more than 120 days to sell, at about the same 94% of their list price.

Taking Hyde Park, Mt. Lookout and Oakley under the same umbrella, the Oakley market is much different from its bordered areas, for the better and for the worse. In Oakley, we see more first time buyers finding some great homes with wonderful appreciation rates. The average sale at $184 is an excellent price point for the first time buyer.

Let’s take a look at what these numbers mean to you, the Oakley seller. Based on the figures above, 21 homes go under contract each month in Oakley. If there are 124 people in line to sell their homes, and 21 go under contract each month, there is a 2.7 month supply of homes on the market in Oakley. This means that if no other homes come onto the market, it will take your Oakley home about 2.7 months to go under contract on the long end, 71 days average, and 30% of the time in 30 days or less, giving your home a 36.7% chance of selling in 30 days. More people can afford the average price of the homes, therefore more people will be able to buy, and more do in Oakley!

Entire East Cincinnati Local Market Analysis and Absorption Rate

In the last 90 days the East Cincinnati market has seen 4092 homes go on the market, sell or go pending. Of those 4092, 866 were sold in the last 90 days, 618 are pending a closing and 2608 remain for sale today. The average home sold in East Cincinnati is priced at $323,651 and the average sold home sells for $226,599. The average home has 3 bedrooms, 2.56 bathrooms and remains on the market for an average of 88 days. 35% of the time, homes in East Cincinnati sell in less than 30 days, at about 96% of their list price.

Let’s take a look at what these numbers mean to you, the East Cincinnati seller. Based on the figures above, 494 homes go under contract each month in East Cincinnati. If there are 4092 people in line to sell their homes, and 494 go under contract each month, there is a 5.3 month supply of homes on the market in East Cincinnati. This means that if no other homes come onto the market, it will take your East Cincinnati home about 5.3 months to go under contract on the long end, 88 days average, and 35% of the time in 30 days or less, giving your home a 19% chance of selling in 30 days.

In the areas that I concentrate on servicing, Hyde Park, Mt Lookout and Oakley, the market data shows a shorter time to sale, as well as a higher list to sale ratio, with a higher chance of selling in the next 30 days.

Cincinnati is always a conservative city, even in the Real Estate Market

Believe me when I say these numbers are great compared to other areas of Cincinnati and the USA. The actual buyers market is defined as when the supply of homes is more than 6 months in a given market. As you will see in the Hyde Park areas including Mt. Lookout, Oakley and in East Cincinnati, we are all under this 6 month supply. This is great news, but, we are still in a depressed market. We are just smart about it.

This Real Estate market that we are in today is about correcting the abundance of appreciation we have been seeing on the homes in this area. In California and New York where Real Estate was in a tremendous boom, selling 2 bedroom 2 bath flats for $800,000 in the early 2000’s have now plummeted to $400,000 or less is in much more of a stressed market correction. Being that the areas of Mt. Lookout, Oakley and Hyde Park are one of the better appreciating areas of Cincinnati, we feel this price correction a little more than the whole of Cincinnati, similar to California and NY feel it stronger than the rest of the US. In the past, we have thrived on selling our homes for $50,000 to $100,000 more than we purchased for a few years ago, getting our price and moving on. Today, it is not that way. Experiencing our own correction, in Mount Lookout, Hyde Park and Oakley, we need to be mindful of value, we are not getting the tremendous margins of appreciation we were seeing in the late 90’s early 2000’s, but we are holding our own much better than other areas of Cincinnati. So while we aren’t making as much as we did in the past, or we would like to be making on the sale of our homes, we are still ahead of most of the 100 other suburbs in the area in our return on investment. Compare these numbers below with the 2 year return on your Proctor and Gamble stock at 14.5%, or your Fifth Third stock at -11.6% of the S&P500 up 21%, all beat by our local Real Estate appreciation!

Mount Lookout Real Estate Appreciation and Return on Investment

Mount Lookout is the #7 area in Cincinnati for return on investment over a 5 year period with 39% return, and it is #6 in Cincinnati for highest average sale price at $387,511 in 2006. Mt. Lookout’s latest 3 year return on investment percentage is a strong 32%, and in 2 years, 25%.

Hyde Park Real Estate Appreciation and Return on Investment

Hyde Park is the #10 area in Cincinnati for return on investment over a 5 year period with 33% return, and it is #5 in Cincinnati for highest average sale price at $408,247 in 2006. Hyde Park’s latest 3 year return on investment percentage is a strong 41%, and in 2 years, 12%.

Oakley Real Estate Appreciation and Return on Investment

Oakley is the #6 area in Cincinnati for return on investment over a 5 year period with 40% return (beating out Mt. Lookout and Hyde Park). But, in converse, it is #28 in Cincinnati for highest average sale price at $191,721 in 2006. Oakley’s latest 3 year return on investment percentage is a strong 29%, and in 2 years, 12

Each of these three areas are clearly a great area to invest in your home for a long or short term.

Hamilton County Real Estate Appreciation and Return on Investment

Compare the numbers for the above areas to those of Hamilton County as a whole, where the average home sale in 2006 was $181,206. The five year appreciation in the entire Hamilton county was 8% followed by 5% for 3 years and 2% for 2 years. As you can see the Mt. Lookout, Oakley and Hyde Park areas provide a better return on your investment than the whole of Hamilton County.

Amy Broghamer, an Expert Realtor, will advise you to make the best Investment based on your goals

As a Certified Residential Specialist, I am trained and educated in analyzing the market the way no part time or new Realtor knows. I not only assess the market in the ways I have shared with you today, but countless other aspects of the area and home are taken into consideration when I price a home for sale, or help a buyer decide on an offer price in this area. What all buyers want to know #1, is this a good investment of my money and time, obviously in Mt. Lookout, Hyde Park and Oakley, the answer is YES!

If you would like more information on the Mount Lookout, Hyde Park Oakley or other East Cincinnati areas, home sales, or an idea of what your home might sell for in today’s market, give me a call and I will be happy to give you specific details of your home today’s market, where ever you might be living/investing!

• Buyers , Hyde Park , Mount Lookout , Oakley , Resale , Sellers , Trends , Value
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Amy January 11th, 2007

The Number 1 Question I have been asked in the last month as a Certified Residential Specialist is: “Is it the right time to buy Real Estate and why?” Usually the very next question is “Where should I invest?” and that second question is for another blog topic!

To answer this question, for me, a well seasoned Accredited Buyers Representative, is second nature.

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• Sellers , Trends
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