I came to the rather brilliant conclusion, way overdue, that buying a house is not like buying a car. I have had and will continue to have buyers who want specific criteria in a home. Some want village, and village only. Others want a view of the lake or waterfront that is cleared and easily accessible. I had my stream people a few years ago who wanted to fish but also had a budget. Homes can be changed, I think, to a certain extent. Locations can't. When I bought my Fiat convertible recently I had several choices - red, black, black with red interior - and except for varying delivery dates and promotions I could have gotten it in March or September - virtually the same car. Not so with houses. Once that house has gone, especially in Skaneateles, it doesn't come around again in six months (usually). The rates are so low that adding another $10,000 or so to get the house that the buyer specifically wants does not add a great deal to monthly payments - probably less than $50 per month or $600 per year on a 30-year mortgage. Just food for thought, as homes are moving quickly these days.
Currently there are 116 active listings in the Skaneateles area of the multiple listing service. Of these, 27 are in the village and 30 are considered waterfront. This past week four properties were re-listed and three new ones came on the market. All three are in the $200,000 to $300,000 range but are vastly different. One is in the village, and the others are in the town, one with acreage and the other on a major road.
There are a total of 38 single family homes with contracts on them. One new home was placed in this category last week. We now have 33 sold and closed properties year-to-date with the addition of a pretty village ranch.
Since Skaneateles is so far ahead of last year's totals I thought I would compare its progress to surrounding towns.
Elbridge is also doing well - 15 closings compared to 9 the year before. The median list price of $140,000 is slightly higher than 2011, and there were three homes that closed over $200,000.
Marcellus has no change in volume (20 homes) but its median list price was $155,000 compared to $128,000 in 2011. In both years there were 6 homes listed over $200,000 that closed.
Camillus has had an incremental increase in sales with 85 this year compared to 73 last year. While the median list price dropped to $127,000, this year 6 homes listed at over $300,000 closed and two of these were over $400,000. It looks like the higher end homes are finally catching up - and that could explain Skaneateles' spike in spring sales, also.
In any event - there are good deals out there and yes, unique homes that may not be on the market again this decade. Buy now!
