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I've been searching for months, and unable to find a decent home in a good school district at a reasonable price. Looking primarily in Harrisburg for 3,000 sq ft, newer home 350k or less.
If the housing market crashes or economic / population growth stalls in the Charlotte area.
"Reasonable price" is relative. You want a large home, a new home, and in a top school district for a below market price. Something has to give like a smaller home, a worse school, or accepting some renovations or you'll be waiting until the market reverses (which is anybody's guess when that happens).
It would be like saying "why aren't there any new BMW's for a reasonable price of $25,000." Well... BMW's don't cost that much. Honda's do.
What makes me angry is that sellers think they can sell their run down tract home for low to mid 300s and it just sits there for many months.
Allen Tate Realtors had a summary of this phenomena locally. 60% of homes are selling extremely fast. The seller lists and they get 10 competing offers because the home is priced right and has the factors that move a home. The other 40% will sit longer due to a bad price and sellers that are not realistic... they think their furnishings are still in style and don't distract from the home... they think their 2004 kitchen remodel is still worth what they paid in 2004... they are proud of their home and in denial other people don't find it attractive, etc....
For some people, they can't go much lower than where they are priced and it still won't sell. They might owe $250 on a house they bought in 2006 and are hoping to make some profit on the house, when in reality it hasn't gained much value since they bought it.
In the Harrisburg area in particular, there were many subdivisions built in 2003 - 2007. If you look at the sale records for a lot of the homes listed that are 60+ days on the market, they are priced today at a 1% margin over what they bought the house for. The seller would be selling at a loss if they went lower (and realistically are when accounting for interest payments / maintenance into the home). There is so much vacant land in the Harrisburg area that new construction pushes re-sell down. People ask "why would I buy a $350k 2006 house that is now old when their is a brand new $350k house getting built down the street?" There is no scarcity of land or "location factor" to drive prices up on resell homes like there is in areas like the lakes and South CLT. Most people in Harrisburg don't want to sell for a loss so they are just sitting there hoping somebody takes their house that hasn't appreciated much.
Allen Tate Realtors had a summary of this phenomena locally. 60% of homes are selling extremely fast. The seller lists and they get 10 competing offers because the home is priced right and has the factors that move a home. The other 40% will sit longer due to a bad price and sellers that are not realistic... they think their furnishings are still in style and don't distract from the home... they think their 2004 kitchen remodel is still worth what they paid in 2004... they are proud of their home and in denial other people don't find it attractive, etc....
For some people, they can't go much lower than where they are priced and it still won't sell. They might owe $250 on a house they bought in 2006 and are hoping to make some profit on the house, when in reality it hasn't gained much value since they bought it.
In the Harrisburg area in particular, there were many subdivisions built in 2003 - 2007. If you look at the sale records for a lot of the homes listed that are 60+ days on the market, they are priced today at a 1% margin over what they bought the house for. The seller would be selling at a loss if they went lower (and realistically are when accounting for interest payments / maintenance into the home). There is so much vacant land in the Harrisburg area that new construction pushes re-sell down. People ask "why would I buy a $350k 2006 house that is now old when their is a brand new $350k house getting built down the street?" There is no scarcity of land or "location factor" to drive prices up on resell homes like there is in areas like the lakes and South CLT. Most people in Harrisburg don't want to sell for a loss so they are just sitting there hoping somebody takes their house that hasn't appreciated much.
This is the problem I have with the vast majority of these cookie cutter neighborhoods. The house is likely never going to be worth more than what you paid for it new because they've turned homes into appliances:
*They have nothing that distinguishes them from the hundreds of others (no property, no interesting floor plan or custom work, no established trees, no detached shop, no basement, no room for a pool, etc...)
*They are built from lower end materials and look bad after a few years
*They are building more of them every day so why would someone buy yours for the same or more money and not a new house?
On the flip side, the cost and stress of building a custom home is prohibitive to a lot of people. That's where the older home in an established neighborhood that needs some TLC starts to make a lot of sense. You get a feel for what the neighborhood is like, the houses will likely have some character and the lots will probably be larger too. It will likely be a better long term purchase.
This is the problem I have with the vast majority of these cookie cutter neighborhoods. The house is likely never going to be worth more than what you paid for it new because they've turned homes into appliances:
*They have nothing that distinguishes them from the hundreds of others (no property, no interesting floor plan or custom work, no established trees, no detached shop, no basement, no room for a pool, etc...)
*They are built from lower end materials and look bad after a few years
*They are building more of them every day so why would someone buy yours for the same or more money and not a new house?
On the flip side, the cost and stress of building a custom home is prohibitive to a lot of people. That's where the older home in an established neighborhood that needs some TLC starts to make a lot of sense. You get a feel for what the neighborhood is like, the houses will likely have some character and the lots will probably be larger too. It will likely be a better long term purchase.
I agree. I have no idea why so many people want new construction in a vinyl box neighborhood. I would rather have character and a good location any day!
Of the 42 houses on the market in Harrisburg that are 3,000 sq. feet or more and have been on the market for more than 30 days, 28 are houses where they are listed at or below what the bought the house for, likely explaining why these sellers are unwilling to go lower.
4237 Barons is a great example. They bought for $450k in 2015, listed in February 2017 at $499k, and have stair stepped all the way down to $449k today. At this point it is a stale listing and nobody is interested, and if they are interested, they aren't going to offer 98%-100% of list because they know they are the only offer. I wouldn't be surprised if they got an offer of $470k or something when they first listed and they said "no". Many sellers have held out to get 98-100% of list in the first week because other people did.... only to find their house becomes a stagnant listing later on. Many people have a hard time thinking they bought a house and got no appreciation over 2 years. At this point they are left with taking it off the market for 6 months or selling it for less than they bought it for in 2015.
4817 Annelise Dr is starting out on the same path. They tried to make a small profit on the house they bought in 2008 only to find buyers are still not interested in paying more than they did. This poor tract home screams 2008 construction. The kitchen, which at one point was nice and new, doesn't look like a 2017 kitchen. Just down the street, a new home development is going up with homes in the mid-300's and you get a move in ready home with a 2017 kitchen. I'm sure after buyers look at this home, they go sign up for the new construction. There is little reason to renovate a tract house like this, so it really is like a used Toyota Camry. It is fine, but it doesn't gain money.
You'll see the same cycle on most of these stagnant listings 45+ days on the market.
There is no time in the market that is best for buyers and sellers alike.
All that one can hope for is a stable market, one with prices acceptable to both, and numbers of buyers and sellers at an unchanging proportion for a few months in a row. This situation is theoretically possible but rarely found.
When will it be a Buyers Market again in Charlotte Metro?
Fairly big geographic area, but perhaps as a result of overbuilding particularly of not so great quality housing or in some sub-optimal locations, during/following the next economic downturn, some combination ...
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