There must have been something about the headline "Syracuse area housing market among slowest in America" that caught the attention of real estate agents and companies in our area. I had posted the story based on data from Realtor.com. The numbers showed houses sit on the market longer in the Syracuse area than all but a handful of other cities in America.
The morning after posting the story, I learned how many real estate professionals read CNYCentral.com and utilize Facebook and Twitter. Some posted on our website with more precise details of numbers from recent months. Others e-mailed and questioned my professionalism and lack of research. And even more Facebooked their stories of the Syracuse market being short on quality inventory and quick sales with homes priced to sell.
Diane Burlingame wrote: "As manager for one of the top realestate companies, I can attest that the market here is active - we have many buyers and not enough listings. It is a great time for sellers to put their home "in the market". Priced right is the key. We still have multiple offers on some homes. While prices have not increased, the activity has."
Mark Red wrote: "Syracuse area median price 2011-$131,440, average price 2011-$153,872 63.5 days on the market, 2012 median price $132,000, average price $157,885, 62.1 days on the mar...ket. For what it's worth there has NEVER been a better time in Central New York in my 34 years as a REALTOR to buy and sell than right now for two reasons: rates will probably go up in the spring (just slightly not greatly-this is opinion) and thus remove some buying power from buyers."
John Arquette wrote: "Current inventory of single family homes in Onondaga County stands at 1,668 homes which is down 26% from just 8 months ago. Drilling down a bit further we find that of those homes 496 have been on the market for over 6 months, these are either in need of updating or are overpriced and would not sell in the strongest of markets. The only thing holding the local market back is the lack of clean well priced homes in all price ranges. Once sellers realize what an opportune time is it to sell we will see one of the stronest markets in CNY since the summer of 2006."
We even had John on for a lengthy interview on our CNYCentral television newscasts later in the day. Thanks to all the local experts who further explained the latest in the Syracuse area market. Bottom line: priced to sell is key for sellers. Buyers take advantage of low rates and prices while quality inventory remains fairly tight.
Any questions or comment please forward them to mattsmemo@CNYcentral.com. I may even use some of your thoughts on NBC 3 News at 5:00, the 10:00 News on CW6 or on CNYcentral.com.
The opinions expressed in this blog are the sole responsibility of the author and are not reflective of the views or opinons of the station or Barrington Broadcasting.
