Brad Stolson

Is your REALTOR Advising You or are you Advising the agent what to do?

Granted you are not obligated to price your home at what the agent suggested but at the very least should your agent not be suggesting a reasonable market value?  I have heard too many times in Brooks, that the opening statement from the agent is “how much do you want to list for?”

 

I seen a house  listed at almost $100,000 over their actual market value, then after 2 weeks the price reduced by $30,000 – and then….they advertised a HUUUUGGGEEEE price reduction to appear like this is a great deal – the house was still nearly $70,000 overpriced?  This can’t be good for anyone in a real estate market – it artificially inflates values for the next house in the same neighbourhood and it loses all buyer confidence which results in insulting lowball offers.

 

Look around town – there are some ridiculously priced homes that have no business competing with other homes that should be at that price.  In my opinion, the agent should know better and should be strongly encouraging their client to be at or close to market value.  After all, a falsely inflated market helps no one in the City of Brooks.

 

I spend a large amount of my time teaching the agents at RE/MAX Main Street Realty, on how to properly price properties and how to give solid advice.  We are not in the business of just putting up signs – but educating our clients on the value of their home.

 

Enough venting – to the statistics.  First quarter statistics are in (over a month now – but better late than never).

 

To date, RE/MAX Main Street Realty is having a banner year.  February and March competed with and exceeded all of our expectations and in fact they were the best February and March’s ever recorded (including 2008 – the last “good” year of real estate).  The volume of sales has not overly affected the actual price of real estate but the properties are certainly changing hands quickly and often.

 

1^st Quarter Stats – Brooks and County of Newell

-2011 – 51 transactions vs. 2012 – 90 transactions

 

-          RE/MAX Main Street Realty doubled their production this quarter versus the same quarter last year with 49 transactions. (55% of the total transaction reported by the Board)

-           The average sold price for Main Street Realty also rose from $215,000 to $234,000, compared to the average in Brooks of $210,000. 

-          We also show that Main Street Realty has conducted their transactions quicker – the average days on market were reported at 133, compared to RE/MAX of 113.  Doesn’t sound like much, but 3 weeks can feel like a lifetime when your property is up for sale.

 

Overall, we are not expecting big jumps in values of properties, in fact I wouldn’t be surprised if a correction happened this year or in the very near future of 10-15% decrease (as reported on CBC May 1, 2012 as an overall national correction).  I also believe the stability in prices and the real estate market in Brooks is a sign of strength in our local economy.  2012 looks like it will be a great year and I am certainly looking forward to that.

 

As always, if you have any questions or comments about real estate in the Brooks market, never hesitate to contact me.

STAT PACK 2012 to date

Very productive start to the 2012 year to date.

 There have been 34 homes sold within the City of Brooks to date as of this posting.

RE/MAX Main Street Realty (MSR) currently has 43 active listings.  Compared to 25 for the Century 21 and 32 for Royal LePage.

Since January 1, Main Street Realty has listed 20 properties in Brooks alone and sold 12 homes listed by RE/MAX Main Street Realty.(MSR)

We have also completed 32 transactions (each sold home gets credit for 2 transactions - one for the buyer and one for the seller)

February 2012 for MSR has been absolutely spectacular with matching transactional numbers with the last two Aprils/Mays (traditionally the "hot" times for real estate)

With continuing numbers like this we would expect a huge year real estate wise, and of course low product and high demand is deemed to increase prices.

Real estate is my life, if you have any comments or suggestions regarding these numbers or other information you are receiving, please never hesitate to contact me directly.

Brad Stolson

Broker/Owner

RE/MAX main street realty

2011 - STABLE AS SHE GOES

An up and down year?  Not at all.  An up and down couple of years?  Nope.

 

Year end stats for RE/MAX Main Street Realty are in.  Sales wise we sold exactly as many as we did in 2011 as 2010 – 110 properties specifically in Brooks.  130 properties when we include the County of Newell.

This property sales translated into 206 transactions in 2011 (197 in 2010).  The average price for RMSR (RE/MAX Main Street Realty) went up approxiamately $3000. ($225,400-2010 to $228,300-2011).

 

These numbers scream stability.  Stability in a real estate market is very good.  The stability along with the fantastic mortgage rates that are available right now is excellent. 

 

So far in the early stages of 2012 there is a huge amounts of buyers.  They are scarfing up the properties that show value.  Bottom line is, if you have a property for sale and its not selling, it is price.  I personally am currently working with several buyers in a variety of price ranges.  They are all willing and waiting to buy a home.

 

As with the last two years of history, I am assuming that the Brooks real estate market will remain stable and as evident with the last two years – strong. 

STAT PACK

Just some numbers of interest.

2010 - UPLANDS - 52 Listings/32 Sales - Average Sale Price $283,600.

2011 - UPLANDS - 50 Listings/26 Sales - Average Sale Price $288,500

2010 - WESTEND - 52 Listings/29 Sales - Average Sale Price $210,500

2011 - WESTEND - 51 Listings/29 Sales - Average Sale Price $229,300

2010 - LAKEWOOD - 17 Listings/6 Sales - Average Sale Price $243,500

2011 - LAKEWOOD - 24 Listings/14 Sales - Average Sale Price $2425000

2010 - INGRAM PARK - 19 Listings/18 Sales - Average Sale Price $235,700

2011 - INGRAM PARK - 28 Listings/10 Sales - Average Sale Price $236,400

2010 - CENTRAL - 59 Listings/30 Sales - Average Sale Price $174,800

2011 - CENTRAL- 49 Listings/21 Sales - Average Sale Price $199,923

Conclusion - overall the Brooks real estate market has shown small growth in average sale price.  There have been virtually the same amount of listings in 2010 compared to 2011 (199 v 202) and a slight decrease in amount of sales (115 v 100).  This all translates into stability and that is good for the economy.

Not the Dog Days of Summer

The end of summer holidays is in sight.  The end is near!!  Recently summer has become a slow time for real estate agents, often we can take advantage of the slow days with golfing, beaching and otherwise just taking it easy.  In 2009 from June 1-Aug 25 there were only 41 sales in the City of Brooks.  In 2010 for the same period it remained stable at 44 sales.  2011 period has definately showed the signs of recovery and showing strength at 57 sales.

The question to many real estate agents in Brooks is "why so many signs" and the perception of the public is nothing is moving and the real estate market isn't doing well.  Obviously the numbers show something else.  I've tried to break down why so many signs - is it because their is more listings compared to the past? or because less is selling overall ? or a combination of both?

I've taken a look at the listings versus solds in 6 of the largest subdivisions in Brooks (Uplands, Westend, Lakewood, Ingram Park, Central and Meadowbrook).  In 2010 there were 158 properties listed in these subdivisions and 68 sold.  In 2011 there were 160 properties listed and 67 sold.

When broken down further Uplands seems to be the biggest culprit.  To date there have been 35 listings and only 12 sales, compared to last year of 36 listings and 18 sales.  It doesn't sound like a huge difference but it does translate to almost 20% less sales in one large subdivision.

So maybe the signs the public sees are just more visible and noticeable because they are on a more trafficked street?

I guess what I'm trying to say is.....I don't know.  In 2009 (time frame Jan 1-Aug 25) there were 107 sales, in 2010 (same time frame) there were 106 sales.  To date of 2011 there have been 130 sales - Now that is a huge increase in sales.  Yet, the amount of signs out in the town signify that nothing is moving

As a real estate broker, all I can say is that the properties that are sitting for a long period of time must be overpriced.  Because in an improving real estate market your property should sell - as long as it is priced properly.  Additionally, just because the real estate market is improving does not mean your properties are worth more money.  The competition is one of the most important aspects to the price of the property and obviously, with the amount of signs out - there is a lot of competition.

Most importantly, if you would like to have a real conversation about the actual value of your home and the marketability and the saleability of it.  Please never hesitate to contact me directly.

1st Quarter Stats for 2011

At first glance of the quarter stats for RASCA (REAL ESTATE ASSOCIATION of SOUTH CENTRAL ALBERTA) shows a small stumble in February this year.  Oddly enough, the same thing happen for the 1st quarter last year in February.  The difference this year is we bounced right back to normalized numbers in March.  The number of homes sold in Brooks and the County of Newell shows a total of 51 homes sold (an increase of 11% over the same quarter in 2010.)

RMSR (RE/MAX Main Street Realty) was responsible for 56% of all the sales in the City of Brooks.  We can also be proud of the fact that our average selling price was just slightly over $10,000 over the rest of the real estate board for the City of Brooks.  Also comparing to the average, the RE/MAX agents for the City of Brooks negotiated 1% more  (that translates to $2300 on average more in the consumers pocket).  Overall with the City of Brooks and the County of Newell properties RMSR sold the homes on average 30 days faster than our competitors (a whole month!!)

These numbers translate into one thing - list with RE/MAX Main Street Realty and you will have the opportunity to sell your home quicker and for more money.

The average sale price in the 1st quarter of 2011 for Brooks and County of Newell in total (data provided by RASCA) was $205,430 (compared to $198,996 for the same quarter last year).  Days on market for these 51 properties sold was 111 days and the sellers were negotiating, on average, 5% of the list price.

All indicators seem to point to a strong consistent year. RE/MAX in Brooks, Alberta, feels and practises that the key to selling real estate is and will always be good customer service through education and regular contact. The properties will sell when price is right and when our clients effectively recieve the education on how the market has performed in relation to their property.


I look forward to the next quarter and feel the potential of a great year in respect to real estate.

As always, if any one has any questions or comments about the real estate market in general or how it will relate to them, please never hesitate to contact me.

Brad Stolson
Broker/Owner

http://www.homesbuybrooks.com/
bradstolson@remax.net

403-793-3776 - Direct

RE/MAX Main Street Realty
Brooks, Alberta

So Far...So Good.

The first 6 weeks of 2011 are in the books and real estate is accelerating.

Some early 2011 statistics…

·         There have been 19 homes in the first 6 weeks in the City of Brooks that have changed hands so far.

·         The lowest home sold was $12,000 and the highest being $399,000.

·         The average sale price of these 19 homes was $216,484.

·         There are currently 93 listed homes in the City of Brooks.

·         There are 20 homes listed between the prices of $200,000 and $250,000.

·         There are only 14 homes listed in the price range of $250,000 and $300,000.

·         There are 23 homes listed over the price of $300,000 in the City of Brooks.

 

In summary, looks like the makings of a great real estate year in 2011.  As the weather starts warming up more competitive listings will start popping up.  There are quite of few buyers out there right now and putting your home up for sale now may be a great idea and get a jump on the listings coming in spring.

Please don't be shy, contact me and I would be more than happy to discuss the real estate market with you and help you decide what to do with your real estate in Brooks

2010 Year End

THE END IS NEAR!!!

The end of 2010 anyway. 

 

3^rd Quarter Stats for RE/MAX Main Street Realty (MSR) is showing great stability in the Brooks real estate market.  Each of the quarters to date in 2010 reports approximately 30 homes sold each quarter.  In the 3^rd quarter MSR is responsible for 60% of the sales within the City of Brooks.

 

MSR has also reported we are selling the properties in Brooks a full 3 weeks quicker this quarter compared with the average of the rest of real estate board, additionally, properties sold by MSR are selling a full 2 months quicker compared to the same quarter in 2009.

 

MSR has been working diligently with their listings to educate them on the market in Brooks – we believe if the house is priced right – the house will sell.  The house price is dictated by the owner and our job is to guide and advise in the right direction.  My belief is this philosophy has attributed to our successes.

 

One other statistics – there were 160 homes sold in the City of Brooks to date of 2010 compared with 149 for the same period in 2009.

 

Brad Stolson
403.-793-3776
Broker

RE/MAX Main Street Realty
www.stolsonsells.com
www.homesbuybrooks.com
www.rentbrooks.com

bradstolson@remax.net

 

 

We're Back!! Not a "BAD" Market!?

Finally, back in our original building. It felt like it was longer than 3 months that's for sure.

The perception out in Brooks is a struggling market. The truth is that it hasn't been as exciting in years past but the market is still doing just fine. The unfortunate part of this type of market for a real estate agent tends to be the "bearer of bad news" syndrome. In the past we were able to give news of profits and built equity - now....not so much. This doesn't translate into less sales - it translates into a "I don't like this market" - which than translates to "this is a bad market".

Bottom line, price your home right and it will sell in a very reasonable amount of time.

So far in 2010 there have been 122 homes sold and just over 300 listed in the City of Brooks alone. That means when you list your home you have a 39% chance to actually sell it.

86 homes sold had garages. That means your chances to sell your home jump to 50% chance if you have a garage.

60% of the 122 homes sold were over 1100 square feet.

There is currently just over 150 homes for sale in the City of Brooks. 80 have garages and 93 are over 1100 square feet.

Sales are up 19% in the subdivision of Uplands year to date, compared to 2009.

Ingram Park sales are up over 60%, however, the average price in Ingram Park has fallen over $30,000.

After all that, its not a "bad" market, in fact, for RE/MAX Main Street Realty it is our 3rd best year transactional/volume wise in the last 10 years. There is, however, bad news in the market (ie "your house isn't worth as much as you had hoped")

Statistically, your home can sell - it must be priced right and I would recommend a real estate agent that understands the market and can use the statistics to their advantage.

....Did I mention - I'm a real estate agent? Give me a call I would love to talk real estate with you and show you how I can sell your home.

Brad Stolson
403.-793-3776
Broker

RE/MAX Main Street Realty
www.stolsonsells.com
www.homesbuybrooks.com
www.rentbrooks.com

bradstolson@remax.net

When it Rains....

Southern Alberta. A climatic treat for all. We get spring in winter, winter in summer, more summer in winter, and more winter in spring. The last few weeks for RE/MAX Main Street Realty has been a challenge. As you may or may not know, a portion of our neighbours wall came crashing down onto our building causing the insurance company to deem our office unsafe due to a potential doomed roof. In a whirlwind of activity we have officially opened our temporary office at 120-3rd Street West on the second floor of the Newell Community Action Centre. We went almost a full 2 weeks without a fullly functional phone system and a receptionist. Luckily, due to my diligent staff we made it work and within seconds of transferring the phone system to our new location the phone lines lit up like a Christmas Tree. Slowly but surely, all of our tenants and clients have begun to locate us.



To the statistics!! (why you guys read this blog)

The following statistics is for the period of January 1-May 28.

2007 - 196 Homes Sold - Average Sale price - $181,888 - RE/MAX participation in sale - 30%

2008 - 141 Homes Sold - Average Sale price - $210,535 - RE/MAX participation in sale - 39%

2009 - 86 Homes Sold - Average Sale price - $202,125 - RE/MAX participation in sale - 43%

2010 - 91 Homes Sold - Average Sale price - $204,908 - RE/MAX Participation in sale - 45%


A few things stand out here. First of all - there was a major jump in prices in Brooks in 2008 and somewhat stumbled in 2009. My prediction is that this number will continue to rise over the next few periods at a very steady but slow pace. Secondly, we are in a recovery and I personally still see good things happening in Brooks. Lastly, RE/MAX Main Street Realty has continued to work hard over the good times and more notably in the poor times.

I continually preach to my agents at the office that service must be continually and constantly maintained. Real estate is more than just a sign.

As always, if anyone has any questions or comments please do not ever hesitate to contact me.

Brad Stolson
Broker/Owner

RE/MAX Main Street Realty
Brooks, AB

Spring is in the Air.

I love spring.  Not only does it jumpstart the real estate sales but everyone is starting to emerge from their winter hibernation.  The bikes, rollerblades, skateboards, joggers and walkers come out in troves.  Everything starts to bloom and turn green – and let’s not forget – golf season is just around the corner.

It’s been a while since I posted – I think that’s a good thing because I’ve been busy running a busy brokerage and selling homes.  To date, 2010 has mimicked the first 3 months of 2009.  There is still the feeling out there that this is going to be a fantastic year.  The difference between a fantastic real estate year for agents and a fantastic real estate year for clients is the price of real estate.  There is a common misconception that a good year in real estate will translate into higher house prices.  The truth is that a fantastic year for real estate is there is a larger number of homes selling.  Prices will go up when there is a higher demand for houses in Brooks, so obviously, if the demand goes higher than prices will reflect that sooner than later.  Unfortunately, there are a lot of homes for sale in Brooks, so the demand remains low-stable.

Currently there are 102 single family detached homes for sale in Brooks.  Since January there have been only 25 single family detached homes sell. (Does not include mobiles, vacant land, condos, etc)

In total, however, there have been 43 properties that have changed hands in Brooks and County of Newell.

RE/MAX Main Street Realty has been involved in 46% of those transactions since January 1, 2010.  Our nearest (and largest) competitor has been involved in 33% of the transactions.

Another interesting statistic is the listings vs. solds of single family detached in Brooks.  Overall, since January 1, 2010, the Board has reported a 33% ratio (25/80). RE/MAX Main Street Realty has a ratio of 36% (14/39).  And our nearest (and largest) competitor has reported a dismal 17% (7/42).  33% is still a low ratio by my standards, however, our systems are almost twice as effective to get your home sold then are nearest (and largest) competitor.

RE/MAX strives for a high standard of customer service.  We believe that this attitude will help us to continue to rise “above the crowd”.  I train my agents to maintain communication with their clients throughout the listing/sale process and not leave the client guessing.

YEAR END STATS!!

What an up and down year.  Real Estate wise one week we would be twiddling our thumbs and the next week we wouldn't know up from down (because we were busy).

RE/MAX Main Street Realty thrives on goal setting and achieving/maintaining not only a high service standard but production values as well.  Going into 2009 the warning was put out there as a challenge that it was going to be a tough year, but Main Street Realty was up for the task.  By the end of the year we were involved in over 58% of the transactions in Brooks alone. 

The REALTORS Association of South Central Alberta (RASCA - Surrounding Areas of Brooks, Vulcan, Drumheller and Hanna) experienced another 15% decrease in transactional volume from 2008 (They also experienced the same 15% from 2007 to 2008).  That’s a whopping 30% decrease in transactional volume for RASCA in a 2 year period!!.  Main Street Realty also suffered a significant decrease in volume transaction of 19% in that same 2 year period.

There were 250 homes in Brooks & County of Newell that changed ownership in 2009.  The average price of those homes is $205,130.  It took 111 days on average for each of these homes to sell. In 2008 (for comparison - there were 321 homes sold that took 102 days and averaged $201,676 for a sale price).  This also shows that an increase of around 2% in sales price occurred over the year as well.

Another noteworthy statistic is that the Sellers also negotiated 2% less in 2009 compared to 2008 (94% vs. 96%).  This means the Sellers listed their homes at a higher price than the year before but negotiated more to net a slightly higher price.

RE/MAX Main Street Realty are preparing for a strong year.  As of January 1, 2010 we have already noticed an increase in website, listing and phone activity.  We believe that we the consistent service we offer, the experience we have and of course the results we produce this year will be a fantastic real estate year. 

In my opinion, the prices should remain fairly stable for the next few months in Brooks and it will "appear" as a buyers market. Expect the listing price to jump a little and the negotiating from the Sellers to give a little - but in the end - house prices should be more expensive this year than in 2009.

As always, if you ever have any questions or comments about the real estate market in Brooks, Alberta, please contact me.

Brad Stolson
Broker/Owner

RE/MAX Main Street Realty
Brooks, Alberta

 

Big Year Ahead?

Watching the news, reading the economist reports and other mediums all seems to point to a really big year in 2010.  In fact, most are predicting the biggest year in real estate ever.  Thats right -  ever.  What that means for Brooks we don't know yet - but in the past, a strong provincial and national economy has been good news for Brooks.  So everyone should be able to take a deep breath and be prepared for a busy year.

With saying all that I stumbled upon some interesting numbers.  Now that the recession has been reported to be over and it all seemed to begin in September 08 - its been just over 12 months - giving us more clarity on what it did to house prices in Brooks.  I am specifically looking at newer homes (less than 10 years) with garages.

NOVEMBER 1, 2007-SEPTEMBER 30, 2008

42 homes SOLD

Average Sale Price $336,572. 

Sale to List Price - 98%

Average Days on Market - 112 days

 

NOVEMBER 1, 2008-SEPTEMBER 30, 2009

36 Homes SOLD

Average Sale Price $301,817

Sale to List Price - 96%

Average Days on Market - 118 days

 

Most of the above details shows that the recession didn't effect us in many ways except the most important figure....price!  For a newer home in Brooks with a garage the numbers show the price dropped a staggering $35,000!  Thats well over 10%!!.  The other bothersome statistic I found is that this decrease has been a slow decrease over the course of the 12 months and hasn't seem to lost any of its steam in the last 6!!.  As I said in the beginning of this blog - all seems to point to a better year in 2010 and we can keep our fingers crossed that it will reverse the trend of house price in Brooks.

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