Texas Hill Country Blog

MORE MARKET UPDATES FOR 2010
July 30, 2010

 When real estate prices are going up there are two areas where you see more inventory come on the market:  city lots & rural developments.  A supply and demand issue.  When slow markets begin to turn to   better markets there is typically not enough inventory for the demand of new homes or real estate for those people who have been saving their money in the slower economy. 

Fredericksburg & Gillespie County experienced a lot of new city developments and single family rural subdivisions coming on the market over the past ten years with a number of these being developed as late as 2006 and 2007.  The economy was already showing signs of a slowdown by 2007, even more in 2008, then finally the low point in 2009.  Thus far in 2010, it is looking to be a better year; obviously, we’ll know more when the year is over.

Lot inventory remains high in the city of Fredericksburg although the Months of Inventory is lower.  This lower number is because certain developments have not put their properties back into the “MLS” even though the lots remain for sale.  We could give you the data that unit sales for lots is up a strong 27+%, but the real story behind this is only 8 lots sold in the city of Fredericksburg in 2009 and only 11 have sold thus far for 2010 thru June.  The long term comparison is to the high year in lot sales with 53 lots selling in 2006. 

The building community is feeling the pinch in the market as much as anyone.  There is very little ‘spec’ building taking place with the amount of home inventory available to buyers.  There is currently  16 plus ‘brand new’ homes for sale in Fredericksburg.  Home builders are not financially in a position to speculatively build a home “hoping” it will sell, when all indicators show the number of homes on the market and the time it is taking them to sell.

Another aspect of the lot market is that Fredericksburg is still a retirement community to many of our buyers.  These buyers are coming from other markets in Texas or out of state and they must sell before purchasing here. 

At this time, there is no new city lots being developed.  Lenders watch these same statistics and they aren’t willing to put money out when inventory is at high levels.  In typical real estate fashion, the day will come when lot inventory will again be low and the demand will be stronger.

Rural Tracts in the Gillespie MLS are those   properties that are located in a platted development and  typically range from 2 to 20 acres, although they could be larger.  Rural Tract sales in 2009 and 2010 mirror the lot sales mentioned above.  Months of Inventory was lowered because sales were just slightly higher and   inventory didn’t increase much either.  The high year of tract sales was in 2007 with 45 units compared to 13 in 2009, and 14 in 2010.

Just like lot developments, Gillespie County had a large number of rural developments come onto the market beginning in the late 1990’s.  In a good  economy people tend to move away from town getting a small of piece of the country for peace and enjoyment.  As the economy turns and slows, typically people stay closer to the town because in an overall sense the cost of living is somewhat less. 

 More on ranches next week.    

Buyer’s Agents - and why EVERYONE needs one!
April 1, 2009

I began earnestly searching for a home for my daughter and me in December.    You would think being a real-estate agent would have given me the upper-hand.   But it seems that I was only drawn to the “troubled” properties.   With each home I was interested in, something invariably came up.   I tried buying a “short sale”, but decided the process was too long and arduous.    I considered a couple of other properties, but was concerned about the cost of converting them into the home I envisioned.    More important than the home itself was location.   Don’t get me wrong.   There are no bad areas in Fredericksburg.   Every neighborhood has it’s own charm.   But I knew exactly what I wanted, a quiet, kid-friendly, single-mom friendly place.

And guess what?    Out of all of the available properties for sale, there wasn’t a single one that I felt in my gut was the right one.    I thought perhaps I was making excuses for not buying out of trepidation of being a single home-buyer for the first time.    But I had faith the right home would come along – and I would know it immediately.

One of the biggest mistakes I made was in representing myself.   Again, as a real-estate agent, you would think I would have the upper hand.   But emotions got in the way of common sense – and I wasn’t doing my daughter or myself justice doing this house-hunting on my own.

One of the agents I work with told me of a For Sale By Owner in his neighborhood – an area that was exactly what I had envisioned for my daughter and I.    I immediately called the owner and went and saw the house within the hour.   When I walked in the door, I knew “This is it.   This is our new home.”

Fortunately, I work with a great group of agents, and this same one volunteered to represent me and be my Buyer’s Representative.   We filled out the paperwork and made it a formal agreement.    Almost immediately after entering into this agreement, my Buyer’s Representative had an offer ready to present to the seller.  

Needless to say, it was not an easy process by any means.   I removed my real-estate agent cap entirely for this transaction and allowed my agent to take charge.  And it was one of the best decisions I ever made.    I wanted the house and knew I would do whatever it took – within reason – to get the house.   My agent knew this, but the seller didn’t.    Had I been representing myself, the seller would have known in a heartbeat how much I wanted his home, and I would have lost all negotiating power.

In the end, with much assistance and guidance from my agent, it all worked out.   My daughter and I are now happily ensconced into our long-term home, the seller walked away happy and the buyer (me) is elated.    (Any my agent now has a new neighbor!)

Kudos to my Buyer’s Representative.    He had a challenging deal:  representing an agent he works with in a For Sale By Owner transaction – without any compensation!  (The seller refused to pay any commission, and my agent refused payment from me.)    And he did an excellent, A+ job.

Thanks Charlie!

Horse Property
September 14, 2007

If you have horses that need to be boarded short term or long term we have a place locally that can accomidate both.  Close to town with horse friendly facilities including 2 horse arenas, indoor box stalls and outdoor runs.  All situated on 40 acres of trails to ride on. Contact us for further information.

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