Skaneateles Real Estate - The Weekly Update

"Inundated!"  That was my word for the rental market this past week.  So many calls for the two properties I have listed in Skaneateles - each $1,300, each 3 bedrooms.  Last Sunday I held two open houses and told people to come - one couple came to both, and another took an application for one of the homes.  People insisted that they see these homes - but then didn't come.  The rental market is a difficult one - but I wasn't alone.  The "inundated" also came from another agent who was beset with calls.  So many people can't buy, for one reason or another, that they want to rent.  And what better place to rent than in Skaneateles?

Currently there are 146 active single family residences for sale in the Skaneateles area.  Of these, 46 are in the Village and 31 are considered waterfront.  This week there were no new listings - just a re-list with a HUGE drop in price for a waterfront home.  There were also no new contingent sales, so the number remains at seven.

But there were pendings - of the 10 in the multiple listing service for Skaneateles, three went mostly straight to pending.  One is a village home that has had the price drop over the past year, and the other two had lakefront.  Again, fairly long times on the market with drops in price.

We remain at 54 sales for the year.

About those rentals....15 show that they were rented since the beginning of the year, two are currently contingent, and there are only 10 on the market.  These range from a low of $795 to $2,900.  The highest priced rental this year went for $5,500 per month - but for a home well worth it.  I wish the selling market was as hot - I'd love to see 100 homes on the market with 150 closings this year to date.

2208 Coon Hill Road

If you are out and about this weekend, stop by both of my Coon Hill listings - open Sunday, 1:00 to 3:00.  Just a very short two miles down East Lake to a left on Coon Hill Road.  I will buy you a "drink" at the Welsh bar!

Skaneateles Real Estate - The Weekly Update

Last night as I came home from the office I thought I might have left my cell phone there which would not have been good.  It wasn't in its cupholder, and as it was dark by then, I had to pull over into Butters Farm.  The cell was on the seat, once I turned on the lights, but rather than back up and out I continued up the hill to do the loop back to Jordan Road.  I usually go up that way in the daytime to show houses, rarely at night.  It was lovely - most of the homes had spectacular lighting, and with the landscaping and fall decorations it was really beautiful.  One of those "not taking the straight way home" moments that proved worthwhile.

Currently in the Skaneateles area of the multiple listing service there are 150 homes listed as active, with 47 of them in the village.  These numbers have been fairly constant for a long time now.  There are 33 homes considered to be waterfront as well.

Two new listings came on, both in the $300,000 plus range.  One is a village home, fairly newly built, and the other a small camp. 

There are four properties marked contingent - one is a sweet Village home which I've hoped would sell, as have others I know.  I am glad it has a contract on it.  The other categories - under contract, do not show, and pended both have five homes listed.

BUT!  We have two new closings this past week which should raise the average price of a home in Skaneateles a great deal.  One is a waterfront estate that closed close to its asking price of well above one million, and the other is a magnificent country home above half a million dollars.  We now have 54 homes that have closed so far this year.

I decided to see what the median price of the closed properties is - and it turned out to be about $300,000.  Of these, 13 are Village homes and 11 are waterfront.  Three homes closed above one million. 

If you add Spafford, then four homes this year in Onondaga County have closed above a million and all of them are Skaneateles properties.  The same (4 each!) could be said for 2010 and 2009.  In 2008 there were only three by this time of year - and yes, all Skaneateles.  Finally going back to 2007 there were 11 homes closing above a million - again, all Skaneateles!  It takes five years of records - 2006 - before another town, Dewitt, can claim a million dollar home.

We live in an expensive town - at least in Onondaga County and most probably all of Central New York.  The financial problems have touched us, too - the numbers bear that out with the precipitous drop from 2007 to 2008.  But the homes are still as lovely, the lake is still as pure.  These fall days can still take your breath away!

Skaneateles Real Estate - The Weekly Update

So the rant continues.  I went in to a closing this morning.  Correction - I started driving in to a closing this morning but received a call as I drove up Old Seneca Turnpike outside of Marcellus.  All the paperwork hadn't arrived from the mortgage company - Wells-Fargo - so we would be delayed an hour.  Not a big deal, but since we had had a difficult time getting to this point, a bit worrisome.  They are located out west, in a different time zone...maybe that was it.

I went back to the lake, did a bit of work there, took a phone call or two, then headed into Syracuse to be in time for the now-10:00 closing.  My clients met me in the coffee shop.  "Another half hour."  So we talked and shared a few stories.

The seller's attorney arrived for 10:30.  Still no documents, but we caught up a bit.  I decided that waiting around was not going to make things happen, so I left.  I went out to Pier One and shopped, then as I was leaving (at noon) I got a text that said "Fifteen minutes."  Hooray!  I texted the agent on the selling side and went in to the city.

My clients had made it upstairs to the bank attorney's office by then and they were indeed signing papers.  But they were still waiting for Wells-Fargo's documents, just getting ready.  I left again at 1:00, at their urging. 

They finally closed at 3:30.  The very sad part of all this is that their purchase was the first in a series of four homes that depended on their closing. 

Buying a home should be a joyous occasion.  It should be the culmination of a process and after months of dreaming it should be thrilling.  This was far from it, and the bank was to blame in this case.  How sad that makes me -

But there are currently 151 properties listed as active in the Skaneateles area of the multiple listing service.  Of these, 47 are in the Village and 32 are considered waterfront. 

Four brand new listings came on the market this week.  Two are mine, as it happens.  One is listed for $218,000 and also for rent on Old Seneca Turnpike at the corner of Highland.  It is truly a fun home - all arches, fireplaces, steps, and colorful!  The other one is at 1650 Coon Hill Road ($179,000), towards the East Lake end of the road.  It is next to the fire station - and no, the siren does not sound there any more!  It has hardwoods, four levels of living space, and a deep back yard.  It will be open this Sunday from 1:00 to 3:00. The other two listings are in the higher range - a village home on a quiet cul-de-sac has come on for around $600,000 while a waterfront property is at the half million mark.

Sorry - no new contingent or under contract, do not show homes this week.  One has gone to pending, however.  So there are currently 15 homes altogether in these categories.

We do have a new closing, though, bringing the year-to-date number to 52.  A sizeable waterfront home in the village closed, within 10 per cent of its original list price and six months from the date of listing. 

So please do not let my sad tale of woe dissuade you from buying a home.  I went to two other closings today, too - and they were in and out in just over an hour.  Of course this was a local bank, with a local mortgage person hovering to make sure all went well.  And it did!

Skaneateles Real Estate - The Weekly Update

Just getting this out there.....a bit of a rant.  For the past two weeks several of my properties have been ready to close, but have not closed due primarily to bank issues.  This goes across the board - national mortgage lenders, local banks, and even a credit union have held up families from moving.  In one case, four families have been affected due to the need to close the first so the others can close.  Issues have ranged from mitigating the radon (after the bank had seen the contract weeks and weeks ago and apparently said a credit at closing was possible) to asking for more information at the last minute.  We have not - thank goodness - gotten to the closing table only to leave and go home to packed trucks.  But it has been disheartening.

I will report that one attorney, who shall remain nameless in this blog, has told me that he/she will not deal with either Bank of America or Wells-Fargo.  His/her approval for any contract these days states that explicitly:  "I approve...as long as the mortgage will not be sought from either of these companies."  (I paraphrase.)  A cautionary word to the wise......and yes, do not give credits for radon, just get it done! 

Back to Skaneateles and the real estate market....There are currently 145 homes listed and active, of which 45 are in the village and 32 are on the water.  Five new homes came on this past week.  Two in the village - lower $300,000 and upper $100,000 range, as their sizes dictate their prices.  In the country you can choose a smaller home in the mid-$100,000, a larger home with substantial garage space and some acreage in the mid-$200,000 or go for more acreage, more square footage and look at one in the $400,000 plus range.

Six are considered contingent, but continue to show.  One new one that was listed around $500,000 and is a waterfront property is newly added to this category.  There is nothing new in the "under contract, do not show" area but there are five waiting to close.

One little camp went straight to pending, joing four others.

Unfortunately there are no new closings - we are stuck at 51, but this is better than 2010 and 2008.  Hooray!

Good news to end this blog - my in-laws have opened Hobby House Toys at 7 Jordan Street, next to the Irish Store.  Please stop in and say hello to Sue and John - and buy a toy while you are there, too.  Then go out and buy a house to put it in.

Skaneateles Real Estate - The Weekly Update

Keeping in touch with the real estate world on a weekly basis certainly helps me in my business.  Although I go everywhere, almost, knowing what is happening in Skaneateles gives me a lift.  I can quote closings, trends, compare the market to past years, and feel confident that what I say is accurate.  Of course, there are some weeks, such as this one, when not a lot happens and it seems a might difficult to write a blog about it.  But here goes -

There are the same number of homes in the Skaneateles area listed as active as there were last week:  150 for the entire area, and 44 for the village.  The number of waterfront homes dropped by one.

Three new listings came on the market.  A very pretty home with a bit of land around it outside of Skaneateles was listed at about $400,000.  A smaller village home - but around 2,000 sf nonetheless - debuted in the mid-$300,000 range.  A gorgeous lake rights property was presented around $600,000.

There are 6 homes listed as contingent, with one new one added (lake rights also).  Two were marked under contract, do not show.  One of these was a previous "C" and the other went right to "U."  This one had just been listed, too. 

Only three are pended, and the number and homes remain the same.  Nothing new sales-wise, but this Friday is the end of the month and I can guess that there will be action to report, if not next week but the week after.  I know several attorneys whose calendars are swamped.

So go play in this absolutely lovely fall weather - the sun is out, the day feels fresh, and I am on my way to lunch at Creekside with an old friend!

Skaneateles Real Estate - The Weekly Update

As I drove up East Lake Road tonight towards the village, I saw many homes that have been on the market for a while that I have shown or know a bit about.  They all seem to be "priced right," but then they haven't sold so I guess, as some say, the market has "rejected" them.  I know they are good homes with great features - so why do they sit?  I am not sure - location?  condition?  fear?  I have to believe people are simply not willing to take on homes that aren't "safe bets."  But then again, what is that?  The eternal question - why some things sell and others don't!

Into the fray this week....There are currently 150 homes in the Skaneateles area that are on the market.  Of these, 44 are in the village and 35 are waterfront.  (Remember the days when there would be only five or six homes out there?  We all had our lists of potential buyers, and when a property came on - or we got wind of it coming on - we would rush to the phones...ah, the good old days!) 

One new one came on in the village and it is a smashing home by all accounts.  Priced well over a million dollars, it has location and condition certainly as well as the ephemeral "penache."  Lovely, just lovely!

Six are currently listed as sold but continue to show - one new one was added to this list, a "town" property actually in Spafford.  There are still the same three under contract, but do not show, and now only three pended - always a good sign because that means some have moved to the sold column.

As indeed they have!  We have 51 single family homes that have closed so far this year as we enter the fall buyong season.  The latest three include a town property close to the village with views, originally priced in the low $300,000.  A small village home also sold, once the price dropped under $200,000.  My lovely 50 West Genesee Street has a new owner too!  Hooray!

Analyzing these three new sales, the good news is that they each came in within 15% of their list price.  Either agents are getting better at pricing, or the owners are more realistic.  Or simply these were the right prices for the current market.  In any case - congratulations to the new owners!

Skaneateles Real Estate - The Weekly Update

Last Friday I returned from Manhattan in the morning.  I had just gone down on Thursday morning planning to come back the same night, but I was concerned about the flooding I had seen on the drive.  I stayed over, got a quick walk in on Riverside, then started home.  I flew out of the city easily - the Henry Hudson is so fast and uncomplicated in the morning! - but found myself sitting in traffic on 81 in Binghamton.  I listened to the reports:  the Governor was somewhere in a helicopter overhead, there were photos apparently of just the tip of the golden arches of some McDonald's restaurant somewhere, the water had crested but was threatening the structure of bridges.  I heard Owego was hard hit, and thought of Adam Weitsman's business (see http://www.syracuse.com/ for updates on this and his response). 

I can't stand sitting in traffic, so I turned off and took Route 11 until I lost it somewhere in the country.  I stopped along the way at a small convenience store and gas station where I met people looking for faster routes coming from Albany.  And there I heard it, the classic response to "Wow, what a lot of rain we've had!"  "Could have been snow!"

Meanwhile homes in Skaneateles were listed and sold this past week.  Currently there are 150 single family homes listed in the multiple listing service.  Of these, 44 are in the Village and 34 are considered waterfront.  I am not going to itemize re-lists any more, only the new listings that come on the market.  A beautiful high-end home outside of Skaneateles (actuallly in Spafford) was listed above $600,000.  Another pretty Village home came on, around $300,000.  In the town not too far out is a new split level, on the market in the mid-$200,000 range.

Five homes are considered under contract but they still can be shown.  One of these, listed under $200,000 and in the Village, was just marked contingent.  There are no new "Under contract - do not show" homes (currently 3 in the category) or "pended" homes (6).

Our closings for the year stand at 48.  Interestingly, 10 were Village homes and 9 were waterfront.  These percentages are just slightly above the current breakdown of active homes.

The fall selling season has just begun!  If you would like to check out one of my listings, 5 Palmer Drive, please come to the open house this Sunday from 12:00 to 2:00.  Signs will be up directing you from Genesee Street and Academy because it is hard to find and very private.  Please tell me you read about the open on this blog - I would love it!