The Journal News reports from New York. “The chill in the national housing market is sending a shiver through the Lower Hudson Valley. Inventories for housing of all types rose by double-digit percentages in both counties, while the number of sales fell sharply. Sales of houses in Westchester fell by 20.5 percent, the largest increase for the third quarter over the past 17 years for which records were kept. Putnam house sales fell 37 percent.”
“Therese Fokine has been trying since January to sell an investment house she owns adjacent to her own in Mohegan Lake. Originally listed at $315,000, it now is being offered for $269,900. ‘Interest rates went up, and that’s a real killer,’ Fokine said.”
“Greg and Joan Patterson lowered the price on their house at Valeria in Cortlandt after they put it on the market in the spring for $610,000. ‘People are waiting. There’s a perception that there’s going to be better deals,’ Joan Patterson said.”
“Some brokers said part of the problem is the reluctance of sellers to take less for their houses than they could have gotten in the recent past. ‘That’s hard,’ said Carlton Gillman. ‘They don’t want to know theirs is worth less than it was six months ago.’”
“Greg Rand, managing partner of Prudential Rand Realty, agreed. ‘The interest is there. What you’ve got is a standoff. I don’t see the buyers buckling,’ he said.”
“Realtor Ilene Goodman in Croton-on-Hudson said ‘quite a few’ of her listings were marked down this year. ‘One of the first things you have to tell people (who sell) is, you can’t set the price and I can’t set the price. It’s the market that sets the price,’ Goodman said.”
“(Broker) Ross Keating in Putnam Valley sees a different dynamic. ‘People hear things are slowing down, so they start waiting, and it’s a self-fulfilling prophecy,’ he said.”
“Inventories for housing of all types rosing by double-digit percentages in both counties, while the number of sales fell sharply. ‘Considering that third quarter closings normally reflect peak market activity in the spring selling season and that this year’s performance was lackluster, there is little reason to expect a turnaround with the fourth quarter results,’ the MLS said in its report.”
Tags: Mortgages, Real Estate, Homes, Market Conditions
