Housing market good for first time buyers, bad for sellers
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On a national scale, existing home sales declined last month 3.5 percent to an annual rate of $4.67 million from $4.84 million in June. However, according to the National Association of Realtors this rate increased 21 percent more than the $3.86 million that was set in July of last year.
In the Mission Valley, the real estate market is prime for first-time home buyers, but not so much for those looking to sell.
Polson Broker Wilma Mixon-Hall and owner of Savoir Faire Properties said she currently has 37 listings from as high as $1.7 million to as low as $88,000.
“It’s definitely an opportune time for buyers. A first-time home buyer can get a three bedroom and two bath for around $150,000,” Mixon-Hall said. “(But) there are a lot more listings than there are buyers.”
Broker Janette Rosman of Windermere Real Estate Ronan, Inc. in Ronan has been tracking the housing market using statistics such as her company’s active housing listings, new listings and sold listings.
“There are a lot of major foreclosures selling close to listed prices,” Rosman said. “(But) our market is not good.”
In Polson, active listings are down one percent, new listings are down four percent, and residential homes sold are down two percent. The volume of houses sold is down by 10 percent and the average sell price is down seven percent. This time last year the average house sold in Polson went for around $192,041 and this year is being sold at $177,175.
In Ronan, the active listings are down 17 percent, new listings are down 27 percent, but under contract houses are up 75 percent. Last year Rosman had 12 houses under contract and this year she has 21. The number of houses sold is also up by 13 percent with 15 sold last year and 17 this year.
In St. Ignatius, active listings are down 20 percent and new listings are down 21 percent.
Rosman said this means that people that don’t have to sell are not trying to sell their property.
Houses under contract in this area are up by 20 percent because last year she had five and now has six contracts.
The sold price volume is up 14 percent because three of the six homes sold were in the $300,000 range.
In Charlo, the active listing is down 36 percent, new listings are down 50 percent and there are currently no houses under contract.
“The market is excellent for buyers but not for sellers,” Rosman said.
However, she said the expectation of low prices often hinders both buyer and seller.
“Sellers need to be realistic,” Rosman said of sellers’ prices. “(And) because it is a buyers' market, buyers make a low offer, and it they don’t get it, they walk off,” Rosman explained. “What happens is a standoff. It’s very difficult today,” she said of the broker or real estate agent’s job to mediate between the two.
On the national level, the housing market has taken a hit and in several areas it is cheaper to rent a property than it is to purchase. The national median mortgage payment is $1,687 per month, nearly twice the median rent of $868 per month.
“I get a lot of people calling about rentals,” said Broker Wilma Mixon-Hall in Polson.
Mixon-Hall said that in addition to trying to sell houses to a small population of buyers, working with banks has also become difficult.
“Government has gotten so big and no one in the larger banks has any authority to approve loans,” Mixon-Hall said. She said sometimes she will have three days to close a house and will not get word from the bank until the very last second.
“You’ve got to have nerves of steel,” Mixon-Hall said.
She said she prefers local banks because not only does it keep the money local but also they are easy to work with.
She also suggests that homebuyers look into loans offered by the United States Department of Agriculture’s rural home loans and the Montana Board of Housing loans.
Recently the Montana Board of Housing announced that their 30-year fixed rate is at a historically low rate of 3.875 percent, a point below the former record. First-time home buyers only need a 3.5 percent down instead of the usual 20 percent required by most home loans.
Mixon-Hall said when she sells property to locals and especially to people out of state, she likes to promote the sense of community and the beauty of the Mission Valley.
Rosman said Washington, Oregon and Idaho are the three largest states that typically have residents moving to this area.
“Until we see them (baby boomers) sell their properties in those states, we won’t see a change to the housing market. They want to come here, but until they sell, they can’t,” Rosman said of retired people who either lost in the stock market or like everyone else are looking to sell.
“That has had an effect on the whole nation,” Rosman said.
