Realtors optimistic for housing market

Home sales in Sudbury fell in 2006, but according to real estate agents in town, the market is looking up for 2007.
  "We’ve had a couple of sales already in January," said Louis B. Stephan, president of   Prudential Ursula M. Stephan Realtors in Sudbury. Stephan noted that the sales market is starting to pick up and the last couple of months have gone well.
"Historically, November has not been good for sales, but this year, November was well above average," said Stephan.
  Across the state, home sales were down in 2006 from 2005 levels. According to The Warren Group, a company that provides real estate and financial data, single-family home sales fell 13.5 percent in November, as compared to sales in November 2005. The good news is that Warren Group statistics show in Sudbury, the drop in sales wasn’t as pronounced as in other towns. From January through November, 219 single family homes sold in Sudbury, compared to 231 homes that sold during the same period in 2005.
  Scott Beane, sales manager of William Raveis Real Estate & Home Services in Sudbury, said other towns in the area are seeing much greater drops in the number of single family homes sold. He cited Multiple Listing Service (MLS) numbers that show towns such as Marlboro saw a decrease in sales of more than 55 percent and Stow saw a decrease of more than 33 percent.
  Beane attributes Sudbury’s better performance to the town’s school system and its character. "It’s that New England feel of community that continues to make it an attractive place," he said.
  2006 saw sellers in Sudbury being more cautious about entering the market, and Stephan said that their motivations are guiding whether they’re deciding to move forward with a sale or wait until the market ticks back up.
  "For people relocating, their motivation to sell is high and they will sell to get on with their life," Stephan said, noting that these sellers are more willing to negotiate a price with buyers. For people who are retiring and consider their home as their nest egg, Stephan said this "may not be the right time to sell and they might be able to defer two years to maximize their profit."
  In fact, the median sales price of homes sold in Sudbury in 2006 was down from the previous year. From January through November, the median home sales price in Sudbury was $625,000, according to the Warren Group. This was down from $682,000 during the same period in 2005.
  But agents caution that this dip in home prices shouldn’t spell the end of a great housing market because prices are still much higher than they were a few years ago. Stephan said there has simply been a correction in housing prices and he’s encouraged that not only are sellers being more realistic about their sales prices, but also buyers are being more reasonable in their negotiations with sellers. This is resulting in more home sales.
  Beane noted that Sudbury is still in a very strong real estate market and people who are currently selling their houses will still be getting a good return on their investment if they’ve owned their home for more than a few years.
  Beane said most sellers in Sudbury are eventually selling their homes for about 95 to 96 percent of their asking price. Unfortunately for sellers, on average, they are waiting a long time to sell their homes and they are facing increased competition.
In fact, according to Beane, the average house in Sudbury is on the market for 216 days, more than double the amount of time from one year ago. There are also more homes on the market – at the end of the year there were 164 listings in Sudbury, compared to 107 listings at the end of 2005. His advice to sellers to help close a deal on their homes is to be realistic about the selling price and pay attention to the condition of their house as it goes on the market.
  "People aren’t feeling desperation yet, but they are more willing to invest money to fix up their homes, increasing the curb appeal," said Beane.