Real estate market perks up
Real estate market perks up
The clouds may be breaking over Bakersfield's gloomy winter real estate market, though the number of home sales has tumbled in recent months.
About 1,380 existing houses were sold in the first three months of 2006, a 13.2 percent drop from last quarter, according to a report released this week by local appraiser Gary Crabtree. The decline was even larger when compared to the same time last year, showing a 24.7 percent drop.
The dip in sales mirrors what's been happening throughout the state and country, Crabtree said.
"It wasn't like Bakersfield was the Lone Ranger," he said.
Bakersfield's median house price also took a hit during the winter months, dropping by about 6 percent, Crabtree said. March's median price was $295,000.
But new signs of growth this spring have local real estate agents hopeful. February and March brought modest home price increases, but agents say the phones are starting to ring again.
"The buyers have started calling and coming out," said agent Nancy Harper with McKinzie Nielsen Real Estate. "I'm actually very encouraged, but I do know that it's going to require a little more patience."
It's a matter of getting sellers to price their houses realistically and coaxing nervous buyers back into the saddle, Harper said.
Not everyone's convinced, however, that Bakersfield's current prices are here to stay.
The plunge in sales and rise in the number of homes on the market -- currently about 2,900 -- should be driving prices down, said Robin Ablin, owner-broker of RSC Realty.
Houses are now staying on the market an average of 45 days, up from 26 days last year, according to Crabtree's report.
People just haven't been calling, Ablin said. He recently had to reduce the asking price of a well-kept house in east Bakersfield's Hillcrest neighborhood by roughly $15,000 because only four people had looked at it since September.
Even if prices dip, though, demand will grow again, he said.
"As long as people keep moving here, Bakersfield's going to keep growing," Ablin said.
Commuters from Southern California will keep turning to Kern County as an affordable option, said Russ Valone, president of San Diego-based MarketPointe Realty Advisors. A leveling in prices is healthy, he said.
Buyers now have more to choose from and won't be entangled in bidding wars. Local agents say sellers need to set more realistic asking prices.
Bakersfield's market was long undervalued, and houses have reached a price where they should be, said agent Alice Profeta with Watson Realty.
"(Buyers) might as well go out there and buy now while we have a decent interest rate," she said.
An agent from Florida recently told Profeta, "It took longer to sell a house than it does to have a baby," she said. Compared to that, Bakersfield's still in good shape.
BY MISTY WILLIAMS, Californian staff writere-mail: mwilliams@bakersfield.com Friday, Apr 21 2006 10:10 PM
The clouds may be breaking over Bakersfield's gloomy winter real estate market, though the number of home sales has tumbled in recent months.
About 1,380 existing houses were sold in the first three months of 2006, a 13.2 percent drop from last quarter, according to a report released this week by local appraiser Gary Crabtree. The decline was even larger when compared to the same time last year, showing a 24.7 percent drop.
The dip in sales mirrors what's been happening throughout the state and country, Crabtree said.
"It wasn't like Bakersfield was the Lone Ranger," he said.
Bakersfield's median house price also took a hit during the winter months, dropping by about 6 percent, Crabtree said. March's median price was $295,000.
But new signs of growth this spring have local real estate agents hopeful. February and March brought modest home price increases, but agents say the phones are starting to ring again.
"The buyers have started calling and coming out," said agent Nancy Harper with McKinzie Nielsen Real Estate. "I'm actually very encouraged, but I do know that it's going to require a little more patience."
It's a matter of getting sellers to price their houses realistically and coaxing nervous buyers back into the saddle, Harper said.
Not everyone's convinced, however, that Bakersfield's current prices are here to stay.
The plunge in sales and rise in the number of homes on the market -- currently about 2,900 -- should be driving prices down, said Robin Ablin, owner-broker of RSC Realty.
Houses are now staying on the market an average of 45 days, up from 26 days last year, according to Crabtree's report.
People just haven't been calling, Ablin said. He recently had to reduce the asking price of a well-kept house in east Bakersfield's Hillcrest neighborhood by roughly $15,000 because only four people had looked at it since September.
Even if prices dip, though, demand will grow again, he said.
"As long as people keep moving here, Bakersfield's going to keep growing," Ablin said.
Commuters from Southern California will keep turning to Kern County as an affordable option, said Russ Valone, president of San Diego-based MarketPointe Realty Advisors. A leveling in prices is healthy, he said.
Buyers now have more to choose from and won't be entangled in bidding wars. Local agents say sellers need to set more realistic asking prices.
Bakersfield's market was long undervalued, and houses have reached a price where they should be, said agent Alice Profeta with Watson Realty.
"(Buyers) might as well go out there and buy now while we have a decent interest rate," she said.
An agent from Florida recently told Profeta, "It took longer to sell a house than it does to have a baby," she said. Compared to that, Bakersfield's still in good shape.
BY MISTY WILLIAMS, Californian staff writere-mail: mwilliams@bakersfield.com Friday, Apr 21 2006 10:10 PM
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