I love statistics! They tell stories and paint pictures and always surprise me!
In 2009 there were 80 single family homes closed in the area of Skaneateles as defined by the multiple listing service. Three new ones were processed since the last weekly update: a lovely, immaculate home in the village that sold in the low $200,000 range fairly rapidly, a very small (600sf) but adorable house that found its price in the low $100,000, and new construction in the low $400,000 just outside the town but in the school district.
The lowest priced home sold in Skaneateles went for $60,000 and was of "modular" construction. The highest was 2.2 million dollars of waterfront at the southern end of the lake - great land and a gorgeous home. The median price was $325,000. In 2008 the number was $415,000; in 2007 it was $315,000, close to the current median.
There were no condominium closings this year and only one multi-family closing.
Five lots closed. The most interesting was 2.87 acres of village land for $600,000 - you can watch the new house being built there now! The low end was $180,000 for lakeview and almost 8 acres actually in Spafford.
Of the single family homes that closed, 15 were true waterfront properties, making this 18% of total sales. Last year the number was 30%, and the year before slightly under 20%. I suppose this speaks more to the lack of sales in 2008 of all properties, because only 66 homes total closed that year. The lowest priced waterfront was $360,000 and the highest the 2.2 million home. The median price of waterfront was $900,000, a very respectable number.
The surprising number to come out of this was in reference to village sales. Again, 30% of the homes sold in 2008 were village homes. In 2007 the percentage was 40%. This year there were 27 homes sold or about 35%. I would have thought less - but then, village property is usually a "good buy," in my opinion. Current active listings of village homes stands at 26 - a great sign for sellers in 2010!
Only 4 new construction homes were sold in the entire year. In some ways this is surprising, because there are some great houses to be built - I can say this because I just sold one!
I thought rentals would be up and they were. This year 34 homes/apartments listed in the MLS were leased. Last year there were 36, a sign of the times. In 2007 only 17 were leased; I always thought that it was easier to buy than to rent but this seems to have changed. More people are renting to make ends meet, fewer people feel confident enough to buy.
Predictions:
Waterfront will bounce back and take 30% of the closed listings this year.
New construction will remain tepid.
The median price will remain about $325,000.
Skaneateles will continue to be a showplace, a destination for weddings and vacations, and a marvelous place to live!
