Sanford NC Real Estate News

Lee County Residential Market Report

A detailed analysis of the local Real Estate market can be a real benefit when buying or selling a home. I did my last market report back in July and the market has changed some since then. For this report, I used data from the Sanford MLS to analyze the Real Estate market in Lee County. This analysis includes homes currently listed for sale along with sales data for the last 18 months. This data gives an idea of which segments of the Sanford market are sluggish and which parts of the market are experiencing more sales.

The following data gives a view of the general real estate market in Lee County. When looking for a home, it is important to use general data together with more specific neighborhood data to help determine a fair price both when buying and selling a home.

Buyers can use knowledge of the market to make sure they get a good price. Sellers need this type of data along with a comparative market analysis to determine the right list price for their home. If you are considering buying or selling Real Estate in Sanford or the surrounding area, contact me for more information!

Lee County Sales and Listing Data

Please allow me to explain the table on the left:

• The “Currently for Sale” column lists the number of homes for sale as of January 13 for each price range.
• The “12 Month Sales” column shows the number of homes sold for each price range in the last 12 months.
• The “Average per Month” column gives the average number of homes sold in each price range per month for the last 12 months.
• The “December Absorption Rate” column takes the number of homes currently for sale and divides by the number of homes sold in December for each price category. The absorption rate gives you an idea of how many months it will take to sell the homes currently listed for sale. As a rule of thumb, an absorption rate of less than 4 months indicates a seller’s market. An absorption rate of 4-6 months indicates a balanced market, and an absorption rate of 7 or more months indicates a buyer’s market.
• The “12 Month Absorption Rate” is similar to the previous column but uses sales from the last 12 months. This is less sensitive to month to month fluctuation.

Lee County NC Homes Sold Under $99,999

The graph at right represents homes sold for under $99,999 over the last 18 months in Lee County, NC. The number of homes sold in this price range is fairly consistent except for a spike in sales in April and May of this year. This increase in home sales can be explained by a single investor who sold 50 homes in April and an additional 18 homes in May.

The 12 month absorption rate for homes in this price range is 4 months when all sales are included, and 6 months when the single investor’s sales are excluded. The absorption rate using December sales is 6 months. An absorption rate of 4-6 months indicates a balanced market where there are about an equal number of buyers and sellers. If the market continues the average from the last year, it would take 4-6 months to sell the homes currently listed for sale.

Lee County NC Homes Sold From $100,000 TO $199,999

The graph at left represents homes sold for $100,000 TO $199,999 over the last 18 months in Lee County, NC. The number of homes sold in this price range is fairly consistent throughout the year except for a slight decline during the winter of 2006 and 2007. Sales during the last 4 months of 2007 were lower than the same period in 2006, which shows that this market segment is slowing down the last few months. This is the most popular segment of the market, with 342 homes sold in the past 12 months.

The 12 month absorption rate for homes in this price range is 8 months, which indicates a slight buyer’s market. This means there are a few more homes for sale than buyers. If the current trend were to continue, it would take about 8 months to sell the homes currently listed for sale. Sales tend to slow during the winter, which is reflected in the December absorption rate of 15 months.

Sellers in a slight buyer’s market need to price their home accurately to make sure it is exposed to as many buyers as possible. A well executed marketing plan can help a home stand out from other homes on the market.

Buyers in this segment can expect several homes from which to choose.

Lee County NC Homes Sold From $200,000 TO $299,999

The graph at right shows homes sold for $200,000 TO $299,999 over the last 12 months in Lee County. There is quite a bit of fluctuation in this market segment. The number of homes sold in this price range declined last fall with a spike in December. After December, there were very few sales in January and February before the market recovered in March. From March through August this segment did well. In September only 1 home sold in this price range, and with the exception of November, sales in the last quarter were significantly less than seen in 2006.

The 12 month absorption rate for homes in this segment of the market is 17 months, which indicates a buyer’s market. This means that sellers outnumber buyers. If the current trend were to continue, it would take around 17 months to sell the homes currently for sale. The absorption rate for December when only 2 homes were sold was 58 months.

Sellers in a buyer’s market need to market their home effectively to make buyers find it among the other listings. Pricing the home for the market is crucial to make sure it is shown to buyers. Sellers may want to consider using a professional stager to stage their home to make it really shine and stand out from the crowd.

Buyers in a buyer’s market can expect to choose from many different homes.

Lee County NC Homes Sold From $300,000 TO $399,999

The graph to the left gives a picture of homes sold from $300,000 to $399,999 over the last 12 months in Lee County. The number of homes sold in this price range was steady through the fall of 2006 and then declined in January of 2007 . This price range recovered some in March but is still selling slower than last year. From September to December of 2006, 15 homes sold but only 7 homes sold during the same period in 2007.

The 12 month absorption rate for homes in this price range is 23 months, which indicates a strong buyer’s market. In December, only 1 home sold, resulting in an absorption rate of 38 months. This means there are more homes for sale than buyers available to purchase homes. If the current 12 month trend were to continue, it would take almost 2 years to sell the homes currently listed.

Sellers who are selling in a strong buyer’s market need to work hard to make their home stand out from the crowd. Sellers need to market their home aggressively. Homes which are priced too high may not be shown to prospective buyers who have a list of homes to choose from. Sellers need to strive to make their home the best value possible to attract buyers.

Buyers in this price range may have the upper hand. There are more homes for sale than buyers and buyers may be able to use this to their advantage.

Lee County NC Homes Sold over $400,000

The graph at right shows homes sold for over $400,000 over the last 12 months in Lee County. Only a few homes have sold in this segment in the last year, with 2 in February, 2 homes sold this June, 3 in July, 4 in September, and 1 each in October and November.

This price range has a 12 month absorption rate of 33 months, which shows a stagnant market. There are currently 33 homes for sale but only 12 homes were sold in this price range in the past year.

Sellers who need to sell in a stagnant market must price their home aggressively to make sure all possible buyers are exposed to the home. Sellers may need to market not only locally but regionally as well to attract a buyer. Sellers should consider all available resources to allow their home to sell.

Buyers in this segment are in the driver’s seat and may be able to get a real bargain from among their many choices.

• Minimum home size
• Approval of home design prior to construction
• Restrictions prohibiting fences or restricting their height or color
• Prohibit above ground pools
• Approval of paint colors for the home exterior by the HOA (homeowners’ association)
• Prohibit more than a certain number of pets
• Prohibit parking boats or commercial vehicles

1. First choose a grass that is somewhat drought tolerant. For our lawn that is in partial shade we choose turf type tall fescue.
2. Set your lawn mower higher. For many kinds of grass the length of the roots are affected by the height of grass above the ground. Grass with longer roots needs less watering. A side benefit is that taller grass may shade out weeds.
3. Water infrequently. Grass that is watered frequently grows dependent on regular watering so watering less frequently encourages deeper roots and more drought resistant grass. When you do water - water in the early morning and water enough to get the ground wet about 8 inches deep.
4. Use organic fertilizer - we use either cottonseed meal or alfalfa pellets to fertilize the lawn. We find these at the local feed store and they are cheap. Have you ever seen a lawn where unevenly applied chemical fertilizer left streaks in the grass? organic fertilizer has to slowly degrade so if you apply too much it just takes longer to break down - no streaks! Chemical fertilizer also frequently washes off into local streams and ponds, causing algal blooms that unbalance the ecosystem. Since organic fertilizers take longer to break down, they help prevent this problem.
5. Choose a smaller lawn. We made our lawn big enough for a game of catch and then used a natural mulch in a wooded area behind our house. The area with the natural mulch doesn’t need any watering and the only maintenance is applying a new layer of mulch once a year.

Find more organic lawn advice on the Oragnic Lawn Care FAQs at Grdenweb.