4 Reasons To Get in the Ann Arbor Real Estate Game in 2009
So, the story goes that coal miners would carry caged canaries into the mines with them. Canaries, being very sensitive to toxic gas, would cease singing as the gas levels rose to dangerous levels. Thus the phrase canary in a coal mine.
I have maintained for some time now that Michigan is the canary in the housing coal mine for some time now. Our housing market peak was late 2004/early-mid 2005. We then saw the market decline from mid 2005 till present.
A lot of what is currently griping the nation’s housing market is a mis-perception. Especially as that perception applies to the Ann Arbor real estate market. The perception is that homes are not selling and cannot sell no matter what is done with the quality, price or marketing of that home. The reality is that well-priced, great quality homes sell even before their nearest foreclosed competition.
Of the 5 buyers this year that told me, “We only want to look at foreclosures, because that’s where the values are,” only one of them actually put an offer in on foreclosed home.
As a Realtor®, I have been working with buyers and sellers in this changing market for a few years now. It is with some bemusement that I have been able to counsel agents across the country on how to handle the depreciating markets that they are now experiencing. Bemused, because what they are now experiencing, Michigan went through a few years ago!
I guess this article from Yahoo! exemplifies just how rough things have gotten across the country. Michigan has been dealing with all of these issues for some time now, except maybe the recession thing, but we sure battled the perception of a one state recession! These are the nine items they believe will cause the 2009 housing market to continue to flat-line: Continue Reading
