Surrounding County Market Updates

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac get bailed out along with some other major companies, while we are fighting paycheck to paycheck here on ground level with all the other economic woes.  Maybe the government will bail out our deficit too.  OK, that’s not going to happen.  We will only reap some of the  benefits as these giants get back on track.   But in the mean time we still have to deal with the reality of the market around us.

Today I will show you not only Frederick County numbers on what is going on here but a look at adjoining counties.  Remember this is a snap shot in time and can change moments and days from now.  The true test of numbers will be to see what direction they are going six months from now.  I am positive that most of the inventory will drop between now and the New Year, only because it does every year.  More and more people tend to take their property off the market and wait until spring again.

Also included will be the number of Foreclosures and bank owned properties.  With the latest LIBOR rates adjustment, I am sure we will see some impact to the Short Sales and foreclosure list.

County Housing Market

I am surprised to see the activity just across the line in Pennsylvania.  I haven’t watch much of that market lately.  So this little exercise was eye opening for me also.  It seems they haven’t been plagued by the large number of foreclosures as we have in our area.  It also appears that Allegany county is holding their own also with almost 10% of their inventory selling in the last 30 days.  The inventory in Frederick county is starting to show signs of the season.  The total number of homes is down almost 10% from 2320 from the beginning of the month.  We should probably see this trend continue through the end of the year.  My guess is that we will see our inventory somewhere in the 1800s.  Check back in December to see if I am close.

The lending practices have definitely changed and will only lend money to qualified buyers this time.  Interest rates have been stable (for now) and housing prices have been pretty competitive.  There have been plenty of indicators that the worse is behind us, but we truly won’t know.  You might already be looking in the rear view mirror at the best Buyer’s Market in a very long time.

If you think you are ready, my phone is always on.

Have a great day.

Let’s take a closer look at Middletown Real Estate

To me Middletown has been a wonderful bedroom community to Frederick, Rockville and the Washington DC area. Since there isn’t any major businesses in this community of approximately 3,000 residents, most residents work elsewhere. The schools have claims of Blue Ribbon awards for their excellence in education. The town has excellent proprietors and community driven downtown businesses. (My favorites are The Main Cup and The Middletown Sportsland)

This tight knit community shows it’s pride in their preservation of history, community programs and complete support of local sports (Go Knights). They just recently had elections for their township board. Here’s the results from the Middletown Elections on April 7, 2008.

Burgess:
John D. Miller –610
Phyllis G. Thompson –209

Commissioner:
Dixie L. Eichelberger – 251
Vincent A. O’Reilly – 456
Anthony M. Ventre – 472
Bill Williams – 334

The town and it’s citizens have recently been battling the future presence of Dominion Gas in the Middletown Valley. You can read the press releases on the official Middletown Website. They are facing the construction of a gas pumping station off Marker Road. The concern is the impact on the historic value of the area, along with normal industrial noise and traffic. A grass roots citizens actions committee has been created to combines community efforts for the dispute this projects current placement. Their efforts have been documented on their website; Citizens for the Preservation of Middletown Valley.

As with any community, a poorly place industrial facility can negatively impact the surrounding community(s).

Middletown has wonderful developments like the Glenbrook Golf Community, North Pointe, Fountaindale South, Foxfield, Colebrook and a few of the more exclusive neighborhoods like The Vistas at Springdale and The Legends.

The housing numbers haven’t been too enlightening for this area as the mortgage market has taken it’s toll on homeowners. According to RealtyTrac, there are seven homes in Pre-Foreclosure status, nine with proceedings already taking place for foreclosure and three bank owned homes.

Below is the most recent market activity in Middletown.

Market Conditions in Middletown MD 4/9/08

So what does that tell me? The prices have dropped almost 11% over last year or less than 1% a month. Middletown has been a desirable area but has not been immune to the price depreciation that the rest of the county is experiencing. The absorption rate for this area is 13 months, which is a little higher than the county average. With interest rates still at an all time low, it is a great time to buy, just a tough time to sell if you have either purchased your home in the last few years or if you pulled the equity out of your home.

This chart and others can be found on the Area Prices Page.


If you would like to know what your home is worth, please contact me for a personalized market analysis of your home.