January, by the numbers:
| Active | New January 2015 | Under Contract | Sold January 2015 | Sold Last 12 Months | |
| Barre City | 64 | 9 | 5 | 4 | 75 |
| Barre Town | 46 | 6 | 8 | 3 | 84 |
| Montpelier | 34 | 5 | 8 | 2 | 51 |
| U32 | 37 | 6 | 7 | 3 | 62 |
| Northfield | 34 | 3 | 7 | 2 | 35 |
| Totals | 215 | 29 | 35 | 14 | 307 |
Looking just at the total number of houses on the market and the twelve month sales, there is roughly nine months of inventory right now. That might sound like a lot. I mean, come on, nine months of anything sounds like a big supply. But it really isn't. Especially when you notice that every single town had more sales than are active right now. That shows that each town is getting rid of inventory.
Cold Winter? Not In This Real Estate Market: We've had a very busy January! If Vermont winters were supposed to hinder the market, you'd never know it at Green Light Real Estate. The market is coming back to its former glory pre-2008. Comparatively, in January 2013 there were 14 houses that went under contract in the Central Vermont market. In 2014 there were 13. January 2015 saw 22 houses go under contract! At GLRE, we're very excited to assist eager buyers find their dream homes, and to help anxious sellers feel at ease.
Email GLRE for more details or with questions about anything that's on this market report.
Sales By Month: And how about this one? We've seen this before, with the most sales happening in May, and then peaking again in September and October. To tell the truth, we just think this is interesting. There's never a month where there are zero sales. And buyers work within time frames that work best for them. Some people want to be in their new house at the beginning of spring, while others are just starting their search then (those are the July-October sales). And those dozen sales in February? Those folks got into contract between Thanksgiving and Christmas. Those are our kind of people!
Average Sale Prices Over the Past Two Years
| Jan13-Jan 14 | Jan 14- Jan 15 | % Change | |
| Barre City | $126,886 | $123,162 | -2.93% |
| Barre Town | $190,642 | $175,829 | -7.77% |
| Montpelier | $218,802 | $231,429 | 5.77% |
| U32 | $219,032 | $244,875 | 11.80% |
| Northfield | $157,277 | $169,278 | 7.63% |
| Average | $182,528 | $188,915 | 3.50% |
All signs point to healthy. The Central Vermont market, taken as a whole shows 3.5% price appreciation, although there certainly are some variances between the different towns. Interestingly, 3.5% isn't too far off from historic inflation levels. And there is a school of thought that says that home prices should reflect inflation levels, over the long term. Yeah, I know. We're just a bunch of egg heads here.
What's trending right now?
Detailed Inspections: At the suggestion of good, conscientious, and forward thinking Realtors (ahem...), buyers and sellers are getting in front of potential inspection issues. Have a house with old wiring? Well, get an estimate early in the process. Has the furnace or boiler been serviced lately? If not, get that done with the inspection, or even before it. That kind of foresight can speed things up, and make for smoother closings. And everyone likes smoother.
Common Appraisal Stumbling Blocks: Honestly, in this market, we don't see too many problems with houses appraising for the contract price. We can attribute that to professional appraisers, and also with accurate pricing and good negotiation. It takes a village. However, there are a couple common items that get flagged, especially when buyers are making a small down payment. Hand rails, location of well and septic system, and badly deteriorated roofs get called out. Since we're rocket scientists here...let's get those items taken care beforehand. Why not?
Interesting Decision Making: Oh yes, our old childhood friend the Magic 8 Ball showed up recently during a house search. "Should we buy this house?" was the question. I won't tell you exactly what the afterlife said (is a toy factory an after life??). But I can say that the buyers are happily pursuing a different property. Maybe if they had consulted a Ouija Board...
January's Sales--You know you're curious!
| Town | Address | Original List | Final List | Final to Original | Selling Price | Sale to Final List | DOM |
| Barre City | 7 Palmisano Plaza | 65,500 | $51,500 | 79% | 48,500 | 94% | 91 |
| Barre City | 201 Fairview | 110,000 | $62,900 | 57% | 62,900 | 100% | 291 |
| Barre City | 53 Hill Street | 100,000 | $100,000 | 100% | 95,000 | 95% | 579 |
| Barre City | 15 Division Street | 117,000 | $119,000 | 102% | 110,975 | 93% | 72 |
| Barre Town | 18 Cardinal Circle | 149,900 | $149,900 | 100% | 145,000 | 97% | 65 |
| Barre Town | 247 Beckley Hill | 169,500 | $169,500 | 100% | 155,000 | 91% | 58 |
| Barre Town | 220 Miller Road | 225,000 | $225,000 | 100% | 215,000 | 96% | 27 |
| Montpelier | 579 Gallison Hill Road | 80,000 | $80,000 | 100% | 50,000 | 63% | 236 |
| Montpelier | 103 Sherwood Drive | 158,900 | $154,900 | 97% | 152,000 | 98% | 105 |
| Calais | 416 Gosselin Hill Road | 275,000 | $250,000 | 91% | 238,000 | 95% | 201 |
| East Montpelier | 45 Casavant Road | 225,000 | $225,000 | 100% | 215,000 | 96% | 13 |
| Worcester | 151 Gould Hill Road | 449,000 | $379,000 | 84% | 345,000 | 91% | 1285 |
| Northfield | 98 King Street | 159,000 | $159,000 | 100% | 150,000 | 94% | 14 |
| Northfield | 88 Alpine Drive | 390,000 | $229,000 | 59% | 229,000 | 100% | 894 |
Tons More on Facebook: Make sure to check out Green Light Real Estate's facebook page. Sometimes helpful. Sometimes quirky. Always interesting. One of our favorites is the "Strange Houses" link and video. Let's just say that it takes all types...
As always, if you know someone who's thinking of buying or selling OR if you or someone you know is thinking of a career in real estate, keep Green Light Real Estate in mind.