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Will it be your list opportunity or missed opportunity?

3/18/2018

If you’ve considered selling your Lakes Region home now may be the perfect time to list… before presently-peaking home values inevitably drop again.

Across the Lakes Region property values are peaking while the number of “days on market” required to sell is plummeting. In two of the towns I analyzed for this article, the year-to-date supply of homes for sale is also the lowest it has been in years. Yes, it’s a seller’s market but this opportunity won’t last forever.

Let’s take a look at four Lakes Region towns—Laconia, Gilford, Meredith and Moultonborough—where the data suggests it’s a great time to list:

Laconia--In 2017, single family homes and condominiums in Laconia sold at the highest median closed price and the fastest median pace (40 days on market) in over a decade. Year-to-date, Laconia offers the lowest number of active listings (single family homes and residential condominiums) since at least 2007.

Gilford--As with neighboring Laconia, last year Gilford homes (single family and condominiums) sold for the highest median closed price since 2007. They also closed at the fastest median pace (38 days on market) in at least a decade. Year-to-date, Gilford offers the lowest number of active listings for single family homes and residential condominiums since at least 2007.

Meredith--Last year Meredith homes (single family and condominiums) sold at the fastest median pace in at least a decade (38 days on market). The median “closed” price for Meredith homes was also the highest since 2007.

Moutonborough--In 2017 Moultonborough homes (single family and condominiums) closed at the highest median home prices since 2007. Moultonborough homes also sold at the fastest median pace in at least a decade (44 days on market).

It’s a seller’s market but it won’t last forever…
Peaking home values are obviously encouraging to potential sellers. A low inventory of homes for sale gives you the best listing opportunity as there is less competition (especially right now… the market will inevitably be flooded with more and more competitive listings as we progress into spring). Finally, a low number of days on market suggests motivated buyers. Quick closes are a win for both buyer and seller.

But there are numerous factors working to arrest skyrocketing home prices. The real estate site Zillow predicts that home builders will start constructing more entry-level homes to meet homebuyer demand. If you wait too long to list, you may find yourself in competition with new builds that haven’t been a part of the market mix in significant proportion since before the great recession.

Then there’s the imminent threat of increasing interest rates. Mortgage rates are now at their highest level in four years and predicted to rise even higher, with some experts predicting five percent in the near future. While climbing rates indicate a good economy, they can force many potential homebuyers from the market. Rising rates also reduce the likelihood of competitive bids for your property. According to a Redfin survey of 4,000 consumers at the end of last year, a five percent interest rate would cause more than a quarter of today’s homebuyers to slow their plans.

Finally, there’s the recently passed tax legislation which limits property tax deductions to $10,000. This reality hasn’t sunk in for many buyers yet, but the longer you wait to list, the more impact these changes will have on demand at higher price points, because the tax incentives just aren’t there the way they used to be, especially for second/vacation properties.

List opportunity or missed opportunity--Lakes Region property values in Laconia, Gilford, Meredith and Moultonborough are the highest in at least a decade, while the number of “days on market” required to sell is at its lowest point in ten years. Low inventory is presently to the seller’s advantage, but only if you make this your list opportunity, not missed opportunity.

To sweeten the pot, if you contact me to list your property now there may be time and opportunity for it to be featured in the 44-page, full-color Roche Realty Group “Lakes Region New Hampshire Living” portfolio of properties, 80,000 copies of which are distributed in 240 locations statewide.

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Sell your home like a champ, with the ROPI-Dope

3/11/2018

In 1974’s “Rumble in the Jungle,” former heavyweight boxing champion Muhammad Ali “shook up the world” by using a strategy called the “rope-a-dope” to defeat both the odds and his younger, stronger, undefeated and heavily favored opponent, world heavyweight champion George Foreman.

If you’re wondering what in the heck this has to do with real estate, bear with me and read on. I’ll explain below how to use a similar strategy to sell your home like a champion.

But first, let’s look at how the rope-a-dope worked. Starting in the second round, Ali repeatedly leaned back against the boxing ring ropes and covered up, allowing Foreman, who was renowned for his raw punching power, to land hundreds of thunderous blows, mostly on Ali’s arms and body.

If you thought taking punches from a 6’3” 220 pound, heavily muscled, Olympic gold medalist and heavyweight champion is a counterintuitive way to win a fight, you weren’t alone.

At the time many observers believed Ali was completely outmatched and absorbing a horrible, possibly lethal beating.
In reality, Ali’s position and protected stance caused much of Foreman’s punching power to be absorbed by the springy elasticity of the ring ropes. The result was that Foreman’s strength and energy were sapped by throwing a huge volume of punches that missed, were blocked, or landed with little damage.

After the fifth round it was evident that Foreman’s power was fading, increasingly depleted by the huge volume of wild blows he was throwing. In the rounds that followed Foreman’s punching and defenses were rendered ineffective.
By the eighth round Ali sensed that the timing was right. His moment of opportunity had arrived. He pressed in, ultimately landing a left hook and a hard right to the face that dropped Foreman to the canvas.

Ali won the fight, one of the most famous of all time, by knockout.

By using the rope-a-dope, Ali won using strategy over size, patience rather than power, and timing more than technique.

If you’ve owned property in Gilford, Laconia, Meredith or Moultonborough for the right length of time, you can use a strategy similar to the rope-a-dope to sell your home like a champion.
I call it the ROPI-Dope.

What is the ROPI-Dope? You may be familiar with the term “ROI” which stands for Return on Investment. Business professionals and investors frequently use this term to describe how much profit they’ll earn in exchange for the amount of investment they put up.

As I specialize in real estate, I’ve appropriated the term “ROI” and modified it to be specific to property, hence “ROPI”—Return on Property Investment.

How can the ROPI-Dope help you sell like a champ? Like, Muhammed Ali, you can use strategy, patience and timing to sell your home for a profit, regardless of its size.

Here’s an example of how the ROPI-Dope works: many homeowners who purchased single family homes in Laconia in 2008, which was the previous peak in area home values, have been “on-the-ropes” ever since.

Their property investment has been battered by market blows that BOOM! drove median single family home values from $214,950 in 2008 to $161,000 in 2009 and BAM! down to just $155,000 in 2013.

But strategic patience is often rewarded. The home market is elastic, just like ring ropes.

By 2014 Laconia’s median single-family home prices spiked a bit to $190,000. Encouraging, but it wasn’t time to press the attack just yet. Prices dropped again in 2015 (to $175,000).

In 2017 Laconia area single home values finally surpassed the previous high in 2008, hitting a median closed price of $215,000.

Is the timing right? Has the moment of opportunity arrived? Muhammed Ali looked like he was losing throughout much of his fight with George Foreman. Similarly, people who bought in 2008 have looked like they were losing value for ten years.

But Ali prevailed because he was patient and he had a plan. He endured because he understood elasticity. You can too.

Ali was victorious in round eight, and now that median home prices have surpassed the previous peak, 2018 may be the year for you to stop leaning against the ropes and take a swing at a winning sale.

But median prices don’t tell us the tale-of-the-tape for your home specifically. Your Lakes Region home’s value may be above or below the general trend, depending on a number of factors. And if you bought a home in Gilford, Laconia, Meredith or Moultonborough prior to 2004, your ROPI may be a knockout.

The best way to know is to get a comparative market analysis of the value of your home so you can see what it might sell for in today’s market conditions. If you’ve seriously considered selling, please contact me to learn more about your home’s value. When it comes to your Return on Property Investment, is it time to act, or better to stay covered and endure a little longer?