The Morgan Hill housing market is beginning to show some promising signs: The Closed Sales-to-New Listings-Ratio (CS:NL) rose nicely to 89.2% in June from 51.5% in May. June’s ratio nearly doubled 6/08’s of 47.2%. As you would expect Morgan Hill’s Average Sales Price (ASP) also rose in June, up 10.2% from May. However, the ASP of $614,500 is down 31.5% from last year’s average of $898,200 in June.
The best hint of what’s to come is the nice increases in CS:NL. As that indicator continues to increase the ASP is bound to go up.
Next door: Gilroy’s activity seems to be headed in the right direction. While June’s CS:NL ratio dropped slightly from May to June, June’s ratio nearly doubled over last year’s figures. The Average Gilroy Sales Price was lower in June than May by 3.8% and down 32.5% from a year ago. Stay tuned however.
As I update these ‘09 figures I predict an increase in ASP in both Morgan Hill and Gilroy.
For your own study of the actual Multiple Listing Service figures go onto “Client Portfolio” on the navigation bar. There you can see a great deal of real-time data. Enjoy.
In these Dog Days of Summer it seems like every other home I show in Gilroy lately has a pet door in the garage door entry to the home. There is nothing more exciting than to have “Spike” come blasting through the door to check out who is in his home.
Gilroy, as well as virtually every other city, has a building code requiring that homes be built with a firewall between the attached garage and the home. Many house fires begin in the garage so the firewall is engineered to impede a fire which starts in the garage from spreading to the home. Most jurisdictions require the firewall to provide such a delay for up to two hours.
While making “Spike’s” life a little more convenient the homeowner who puts a pet door in the the door leading into the home from the garage may have problems collecting from their homeowners insurance where a fire began in the garage.
I find it interesting that many insurance agents say homeowners with such pet doors will still be covered yet home inspectors seem compelled to address this issue in their written reports.
Occasionally, a homeowner will cut the firewall for attic access or to install a drop down ladder. They may face the same dilemma with their insurance company.
Building Code also requires that your garage-to-home door have a functioning, self-closing, hinge. For obvious reasons that door needs to close so that the firewall retards the spread of a garage fire. For reasons beyond me some homeowners disengage such a hinge. Again, such a move may prove costly later.
So, why not check with your homeowner insurance agent and see what their position is on the doggie door dilemma. We can check with the City’s code enforcement folks. Sorry “Spike”. Of course the standing rule remains: “caveat emptor”.
I had fun making the Video Tour for 1890 Orchard Rd. in Hollister, CA. Why not take a few minutes to watch it? As you do you will notice 3 things: One, this fresh 3 bd. 2 bth. home is nicely appointed and quite comfortable: Two, it sits on a peaceful, flat 5 acre parcel and is all decked out for your horses; and Three, this home is only a 1/4 mile from the Santa Clara County line so it is perfectly located for a comfortable commute, shopping at the Gilroy Outlets, hitting the beach or walking along famed Cannery Row. 15 minutes South and you are in Hollister. Another 30 min. and you arrive at the Pinnacles National Monument and, in 40 min. to the East you are on Hwy. 5 heading for Yosemite or Disneyland. Give me a call for your own tour of this nice property. I promise – you will be impressed.
Hollister’s housing is HOT! Last month (5/09) saw 27 more Closings than 5/08’s 33. That is an increase of 81.8%! Each month this year our number of Closings has leaped ahead of ’08’s. To date there has been a 151% increase in Closed Sales! In fact, try to buy a home in Hollister now. “Multiple Offers” is once again a standard phrase reported to buyers by their agents.
Contributing to this hot market: New Listings of homes for sale in Hollister are down 27.9% so far this year over last year. Last month alone we saw a drop in New Listings of 29.5% over 5/08.
The Gilroy housing market is experiencing a similar recovery with a 128.9% increase in closings and a 32.7% decrease in New Listings.
Make sure your Realtor knows all the current methods in getting an offer accepted. You are going to need that if you want to buy a home here in Hollister.
If you have thought about buying a home in Gilroy, it’s time to act! May’s Closed Sales were up 75.8% over 5/08! This is the 5th straight month of increased Closings over the same period last year. Year-to-date Gilroy Closings are up a whopping 128.9% over the first 5 months in ‘08!
The supply of homes listed for sale dropped 75.8% in May and was the 5th consecitive month this year where New Listings dropped. So far this year our Gilroy New Listings are down 32.7% from last year.
Similarly, Morgan Hill’s Closed Sales are up 59.4% and the number of New Listings is down 23.5% from 2008.
While the price levels and home loan interest rates are still low NOW is the time to come join us in the “Garlic Capital of the World” and buy your own home.
Have you noticed Morgan Hill’s housing activity? Wow! Recovery is well underway in our quaint town. In May there were 73.6% more Closings than in May ‘08. This is the 5th straight month this year where our Closings have increased over last year’s figures. To date, Closings have increased nearly 60% (59.4%)!
On the other hand New Listings of Morgan Hill homes for sale were down for the 5th straight month. The number of May’s New Listings were down 55.4% vs. 5/08 and year-to-date the drop totals 23.5% over the same period last year!
In nearby Gilroy the same housing trends are happening! Gilroy’s number of Closed Sales is up 128% from 2008! 128%! Wow! Our New Listings were lower by 27.9%.
The affects of ‘Supply and Demand‘ are being felt here in Morgan Hill and Gilroy. While the interest rates are still wonderfully low I wouldn’t wait to buy.
A prospective client is moving into our area from out of state and asked a rhetorical question: “Does the lack of pictures on the web indicate poor quality of those homes?” Well, yes and no.
No – “REO” and especially the “Short Sale” listing agents are often too busy to take more than one picture (sometimes none at all). Occasionally, a solo picture of the front of the home is all the agent could squeeze in. So the home might be fine.
Yes – there just may not be anything photo-worthy. Since most of the homes on the market currently are Short Sale or REO listings and since many of these financially challenged homes are pretty worn finding a compelling shot may be difficult.
However, some listings will show 8 or 9 photos of the front and back yards and none of the interior…MESSAGE: there probably is nothing INSIDE worth displaying. Also, have you noticed how forgiving a camera can be? We often turn to one another asking: “Yuck, is this the same house”?
So, after doing a Google Street Scene your best bet is to do your research on the location, statistics on the home(s) etc. from the web then, go out and look at several homes in the same afternoon. Your agent will put together an efficient tour of prospective homes for you. Not only will you see what the condition of the homes ARE and, could become, you will also get a feel for the neighborhoods. “Seeing (in real time) is believing”.
