Lower Makefield Home Sales Through 7/30/12

The number of homes sold in Lower Makefield Township in 2012 has significantly increased as compared to the number sold during the same time period in 2011. 

Check out this chart to see the monthly and yearly changes in home sales in Lower Makefield Township.

Upper Makefielt Home Sale Statistics Through 7/30/12

Newtown Township Home Sale Statististics

The number of homes sold this year in Newtown Township through July, 2012 has significantly increased.  There was a dip in July but the overall trend is positive.  In fact, there were 32% fewer homes for sale in July, 2012 compared with the number for sale in July, 2011.

Average prices in the township fluctuate considerably due to the sales of new construction homes that are priced above the average sale price of existing homes within the township. 

A better indication of home sale prices for existing homes in Newtown Township is the statistics for Bucks County.  Prices in Bucks were up 1.5% if the average price of sold homes for July, 2012 is compared to the average price of sold homes in July, 2011. However, if home prices for the first seven months of 2012 are compared to the first seven months of 2011, prices were down 1.9%.

It is too soon to tell whether prices have bottomed out, but statistics indicate prices are relatively stable as compared the declining prices experienced since 2006.

This chart shows the month by month and year by year fluctuations in home sales over the last few years. 

Selling an Inherited House

My husband just inherited a partial interest in a property in Massachusetts. Being a realtor, my husband and  his relatives assumed I would be heavily involved in the sale of the property which was fine by me.

The first task was to find a realtor. My relatives and I interviewed three realtors from different brokerage firms.  I shouldn't have been surprised when I found that the way realtors operate in Massachusetts differs from how we operate in Bucks County.  The reason I shouldn't have been surprised is that buyers relocating from other states to our area are frequently puzzled by the differences in how we do business. Where ever you go, you have to adjust to local practices.

All of the realtors we interviewed were good realtors and were qualified to sell the house. Choosing between them was difficult.  A major concern for us was that we do not live close by and it will be difficult for us to maintain the condition of the property. Also, there were a few issue items we needed to address before putting the house on the market. Therefore, we were looking for an agent who would "go the extra mile".

There are some agents that will take a listing and never mention to the seller that repairs might be necessary and that rooms need painting and decluttering.  That was not the type of agent we were looking for. We were willing to do these things ourselves, but we couldn't stay in MA for an extended period of time.  There were some followup issues with plumbers and landscapers that the agent we chose would have to deal with. 

We chose not to interview a high profile agent with many, many listings who hosts an ongoing radio real estate discussion.  She appears to deal in volume and we thought she would not be able to provide the attention we were seeking. 
Talk is cheap and promises are frequently broken; so, we asked for references and called them. The references provided details of their experiences with the agents, and we became comfortable with our final decision on which agent to work with.

Agents are not responsible for the security of a property, but the agent we chose lives nearby and was willing to check regularly that doors were locked, and nothing seemed amiss.  That made us more comfortable leaving the property unattended.  So far, she has exceeded our expectations.

It was important to me that out chosen agent hire a professional photographer to take home photos.  In our area, most agents do.   That was not the norm in the area of our inherited house.  One agent said she does not like to put many photos on the internet because potential buyers feel they have already seen the house and it is difficult to get them to view it in person.  That seemed crazy to me.  With 90% of buyers searching for properties on the internet, numerous high quality photos generally increase the number of showings.  We did not select that agent.

The three agents we talked to estimated the market value of the property. Their estimates varied by 5%.

Sellers should never choose an agent primarily because they provide a high estimate of the value of the property.  Estimating the value of a home is not an exact science.  Agents sometimes overestimate the value, or deliberately provide an estimate as high as can be reasonably justified so as not to disappoint the sellers.  The list price and the marketing abilities of the agent should be separate concerns.  We wound up listing the property for a lower price than our agent suggested.  We averaged the three estimates of market value and listed it at the average amount.

Being absentee owners, we are expecting more from our listing agent than she would have to do if we were living locally.  Therefore, we offered to pay her a higher commission than she had requested.  Our thinking was that we have a difficult house to sell and we are expecting a lot from the agent.  She should be compensated for the extra effort.

Showings start tomorrow.  I'm crossing my fingers that the house will sell quickly.