Skaneateles Real Estate - The Fast Finish Update

So I spent the last 6 weeks trying to recoup summertime at the lake and with the kids, but finding that while business seemed to slow a lot from the fast pace of earlier, it wasn't all that slow due to closings and other wonderful occasions.  Some things didn't come together - disappointments all around and work was required on endings.  But that happens.  I have to admit that two of the issues that did get resolved were mind-boggling....properties exchanged hands but the legal work was never done?  It was missed a couple times? And of course this happens after everything else has occurred...inspections, mortgages, surveys...moving trucks standing by.  Thank goodness for attorneys who will not let anything slide and in one case at least worked tirelessly to bring the deal to a satisfactory conclusion.

It's not all buying and selling - there is so much more!

So to update what happened in Skaneateles....there are currently 111 single family homes listed as active in the Skaneateles area as reported in the multiple listing service.  Of these, 28 are in the Village and 21 are waterfront.  After July 30th 32 new listings came on the market, 8 of them in the Village with 5 being brand new, not re-lists.  There was only one new lake listing though.  Five of the new listings are under contract, 2 from the Village, both listed under $200,000.

Seventeen houses are under contract right now.  Five are in the Village, and either over 300K or under 200K.  I believe the majority of Village homes listed are somewhere in the middle!  Three waterfront properties are waiting to close.

The very good news is that we now have 62 closed sales this year, an increase of 22 just in the past 6 weeks!  Five were from the Village and 5 were waterfront.  As I said - selling late in the spring brings these closings in the late summer.

Sixty-two closings means I will write up the Third Twenty in a bit.  Comparing this to last year we are still behind, as we are with 2012.  Certainly we are above the two previous years which were awful!
Year-to-date closings:    2014      62
                                      2013     78
                                      2012     85
                                      2011     51
                                      2010     47

But it's almost fall, and I have seen open houses better attended and showings increasing.  Now is the time to get out there and look and buy!

The Second Twenty

Closings are always good...and these are from June and July actually.  I know there have been quite a few more since, so I thought I better get these recorded.  In no particular order:

1383 Foxfield Drive - Town of Skaneateles - $274,000

51 Calemad Drive - Town of Sennett - $404,000

1265 Oak Bluff - Town of Skaneateles - $980,000

83 Fennell Street - Village of Skaneateles - $305,000

44 West Lake Street - Village of Skaneateles - $989,000

81 West Genesee Street - Village of Skaneateles - $280,000

3330 County Line Road - Town of Skaneateles - $415,000

2364 East Lake Road - Town of Spafford - $255,000

2397 Wave Way - Town of Skaneateles - $275,000

4142 Jordan Road - Town of Skaneateles - $173,500

1264 Greenfield Lane - Town of Skaneateles - $495,000

2996 County Line Road - Town of Skaneateles - $526,000

5 Palmer Place - Village of Skaneateles - $309,000

1080 Jewett Road - Town of Skaneateles - $148,600

2680 Nunnery Road - Town of Spafford - $157,000

50 West Genesee Street - Village of Skaneateles - $385,000

3012 Rickard Road - Town of Spafford - $250,000

35 Academy Street - Village of Skaneateles - $875,000

3602 County Line Road - Town of Skaneateles - $515,000

48 East Elizabeth Street - Village of Skaneateles - $199,500

Wow!  Not to toot my own horn (too much at least) I was involved as either the list agent or the buyer
agent in four of these transactions!

Skaneateles Real Estate - Dog Days Update

Now why do they call them that?  "Dog Days."  I have a vision of our Boo just lying around in the heat on a dusty road, his tongue lolling out.  No, that's Charlie, and his tongue is always out (only has two teeth!)  The market is sluggish - waterfront is getting shown, and yes, I have sold a non-waterfront home or two in the past couple weeks, but this is the down part of summer.  People from other parts of the country believe it's the best season - but not here.  Everyone is too busy soaking up the sun to go look at houses.

We have 103 active listings in the Skaneateles area of the multiple listing service.  Of these, 25 are waterfront and 24 are in the Village.  There are 8 new listings - or rather, 4 absolutely new and 4 re-lists, some from a few years ago.  The new ones are two in the town and two waterfront homes.

Waiting to close are 32 properties.  That seems like a lot, and I must say getting things closed in the summer is sometimes a challenge.  Again - sun-soaking takes precedence.  There are also vacations to take into account and holidays.

In the past two weeks since the last update 8 houses have come under contract - 2 waterfront, 2 Village and 4 in the town.  I still say it's sluggish - except for waterfront, homes are not being shown as regularly.

We now have 40 closings for the year.  In the next few days I will write up the Second Twenty, the list of homes that closed and the price at which they closed.  Three new closings brought us to forty - one each for Town, Village and Waterfront.  None of the new closings were listed over $300,000.

Last year and the year before were boom years.  By this time last year we had 56 closings.  I am now willing to admit that it will be a slower year.  Our inventory is down, list prices are slightly higher, and so are the mortgage rates.  The combination puts a damper on the market.  Add to that our eternal winter - remember snow and turtlenecks in May? - and it's not surprising.  I do look forward to a robust fall however!

So go sun-soak - enjoy the season - but pick out your new home and casually drop by an open house or two.  Summer in Skaneateles is a privilege!

Skaneateles Real Estate - The "Uh-oh" Update

Just did not realize that it's been this long....many apologies.  I had this premonition that it had been a while when someone asked me a statistical question about the area and I found I couldn't spout off the answer without thinking.  Then I thought and knew I didn't know!  Got that?  Not sure I do...but while waiting for offers to be accepted this afternoon I did the research.

There are currently 105 active listings in the Skaneateles area of the multiple listing service.  Of these, 26 are in the Village and 24 are considered waterfront.  While I was away (off showing houses, selling houses, closing houses) there were 34 new listings entered into the computer.  While I doubt all are new - I know of a few re-lists) 12 of them are in the Village and 5 are waterfront.  Odd that the numbers are so similar overall, but the new Village listings far outnumber the waterfront.  It's the season - also probably more re-lists in the Village.

In the under contract category, there are 26 properties.  Seventeen were sold/contracted in the past 45 days since my last update.  If that trend continued we would have a record-breaking year.

There are now 37 closed homes and 16 of these closed since the last update at the end of May.  Six were in the Village, and 4 were waterfront.  (People are out there eating dinner by the lake, watching the sun come up or go down, kayaking in the early morning mists, hearing the waves break on the shore at midnight....hope it makes you long to buy something!)

A slight damper comes to these numbers by looking at 2013 when there were 50 closed homes by this time. But it simply wasn't the same sort of winter we had.  I was still wearing a turtleneck in the morning while walking Charlie the last time I wrote!  Not right, not right at all!

I like analyzing data, as you most likely know, so I looked at median prices.  Good news! The median list price of those homes sold was $327,900 - higher than last year.  Good news (maybe)! The median list price of all the currently active listings is $419,000.  Expect an increase, once would think, in the closed prices too.
Not so good news.  The median price of the listings under contract is a lowly (for Skaneateles) $224,000. In other words, the lower-priced homes were the ones that sold in the past couple months.

Summer is fully here now - houses are being shown a bit more slowly than in the spring rush - but I know I have offers being presented so I think others do too.

Enjoy the summer - get out and go to a ball game - eat at Doug's - watch fireworks - go to the sidewalk sale this weekend.  Have fun in Skaneateles - no better place to be!

Open House(s) Alert! Sunday, June 8th

Come see this very beautiful home at 3882 Highland Avenue in Skaneateles.  I am showing you this interior photo because that way you can see the hardwood floors, the fireplace in the living room, and I can tell you that the window you see at the rear is actually a door.  The door leads to a marvelous over-sized deck next to a stone patio.  Both look out on a level yard.  Altogether - front and back lawns - the land is almost an acre.

Price: $339,000  It has four bedrooms with 2.5 baths, a newly remodeled kitchen, dining room, and this spectacular living room.  The basement is currently used for storage and as an office.

Check out more photos on the internet - ML#S309177.  Time of the open house - noon to 2:00.  It won't be such a bad way to spend a summer Sunday, taking refreshment on the back deck.  If it gets too hot I will use the remote to roll out the awning for you.

Highland Avenue is in the town, but within walking distance of the Village and the lake.  It has public water, large lots, and a great variety of homes.  You can reach it from Genesee Street by turning at the eastern light on the corner of East Lake Street, then take another right onto Onondaga, and the next left will be Highland. You will pass two more open houses on your way there.  Feel free to check them out - I think this home does well by comparison.

This is the first open - don't miss it!  And please tell me that you read about it on my blog!  See you there!

Skaneateles Real Estate - The More Regular Update

We are getting back to normal here after that very rough winter.  The sun is shining, my slider to the deck is open, Boo is barking at some other dog, and I can hear new construction in the background.  Not only that, but our nephew is working his way through LeMoyne by painting our house this summer!  That is, when it's not the day after he and his buddies had all you can eat wings at Quaker Steak and Lube...(uncompensated advertisement).

The Skaneateles housing market has been roaring!  At least in the listings area.  A couple days ago I sent out new listings that were comparable to the owners of one of my listings so they would have a better sense of their competition, and it was one listing after another!  There are currently 89 single family properties listed as active in the Skaneateles area of the multiple listing service.  Of these, 22 are in the Village and 22 are waterfront.  (I love it when they are the same number - happens fairly often, too!)

Thirteen - as in 13! - listings came on the market in the past 17 days since I last posted.  Of these, only 3 were re-lists.  Their prices range from a low in the mid-$100s to almost $800,000.  Four are in the Village and 3 are waterfront.

We seem to be getting a logjam of "under contract" homes.  There are 25 waiting to close, and there were 21 the last time I wrote.  Four of these are new - one Village and one waterfront - but there were 8 during the last period.  Definitely the sales have slowed, as have the showings.  Now it's time for those houses that are under contract to actually close.

We had one closing in the past 17 days.  I won't even write what the numbers were by this date for the past two years because they will give the wrong impression.  I know that a number of these homes will close, and by mid-June we will be at least competitive with the past few years.  Again - houses need to be priced right to get showings; also sellers must be aware that the market is seasonal.  If it's active weeks are missed, then either a great deal of patience is required or it is time to reduce the price to get action.

We have a great product - Skaneateles - and great homes, both for year-round living or as second homes. Think of it - people come to upstate New York to buy a second home not because it's on the water, but because of the draw of the Village and the area.  We are so very, very lucky to live here!

The First Twenty

I just went back and looked at last year for the 2013 First Twenty post.  It was written that horrible Friday after the bombings at the Marathon.  My friend Rebecca lives in Watertown and we texted all day.  Turned out there was a reason to be worried for her safety.  This year is different - her daughter may come to Syracuse University for her Master's, and all is calm and strong in Boston.  Here, too, I might add.

In no particular order:

2019 Woodland Lane                     Town of Spafford                       $475,000

3809 Highland Avenue                    Town of Skaneateles                   $167,000

2887 Nunnery Road                        Town of Spafford                        $305,000

657 Crow Hill Road                        Town of Skaneateles                   $309,000

1992 West Lake Road                    Town of Skaneateles                   $900,000

112 Sinclair Street                           Village of Skaneateles                  $431,760

3512 County Line Road                   Town of Skaneateles                   $318,900

2512 Wave Way                              Town of Skaneateles                   $835,000

1990 West Lake Road                      Town of Skaneateles                  $500,000

3390 Rickard Road                           Town of Spafford                       $170,000

25 Griffin Street                                 Village of Skaneateles                 $265,000

1553 Red Tail Lane                            Town of Spafford                      $600,000

79 Woodlot Landing                           Town of Niles                           $310,000

20 Leitch Avenue                                 Village of Skaneateles               $700,000

23 State Street                                     Village of Skaneateles               $175,000

3825 East Street                                   Town of Skaneateles                $175,000

876 West Genesee Street Road             Town of Skaneateles                $245,000

9 Wicklow Drive                                   Village of Skaneateles               $335,000

6909 County Line Road                         Town of Skaneateles                $340,000

54 East Lake Street                                Village of Skaneateles               $245,000