A daily journal concerning Lake Vermilion and surrounding areas
Selected real estate, notes, stories, musings, and anecdotes
------------ Comments and links welcomed ------------
Monday, August 25, 2008
No Duh.
You catch a big fish. You catch a really big fish. Naturally, you take a photo.
On Lake Vermilion the Muskellunge has made this practice a fairly common occurrence. Big Musky fishing with big Musky catches are seen continually on the web and in the news.
And, although, we could be developing a trite attitude towards these images, it is still not uncommon for a new fish photo to produce a "That's a big fish!" response.
The Buyer Poll (see the post below) has affirmed the current low activity level in the local Lake Vermilion real estate market. The most popular response (perhaps predictably) was "When I find the right property at the right price".
No one indicated they were buying later this year. Urgency is certainly not a word to describe Buyer attitudes.
The inventory of lake shore property is at very high levels for this time of year. (This large selection of cabins and lots is a by-product of this sluggish market that Buyers might factor into their buying plans.)
And when it comes to Seller pricing pressure, the local MLS System can provide us some idea of what has happened to lake shore selling prices. It may also be true that urgency is absent on the Seller's side of the market.
This chart illustrates the trend:
"Amount of discount (in percent) allowed by Sellers from the asking price to the actual selling price"
The chart shows data over a four year period from today (August 2004-August 2008). These numbers reflect average price concessions by Sellers. Please note that there were certainly sales with deeper discounts, as well as sales, at or above asking price. (Of the approximately 250 sales included, the overall average concession for the previous 4 years was 7.1%.)
I believe the information would tell us that Sellers are, for the most part, holding firm. There is no large reduction in asking prices or selling prices.
It will be interesting to see if this trend continues. In the meantime, the selection of properties, in a market that typically does not offer a large selection, remains very high.
Here's a little poll that might give us a hint into when Lake Vermilion real estate Buyers might act on a property purchase. If there are a reasonable number of replies, maybe a trend or pattern will appear.
Let's see what the Buyer side of the market tells us!
(FYI, there is absolutely no way to track any response to this poll.)
The current Lake Vermilion real estate market has, over the past several months, accumulated an impressive number of Sellers.
I think it is fair to say that many Lake Vermilion real estate Buyers have maintained a patient attitude towards any plans to purchase. Sellers have, for the most part, also remained patient with their asking prices. Of course, some motivated Sellers have offered price adjustments but, for the most part, the downward reductions have not been significant.
There have been exceptions, of course.
For example, this west end Lake Vermilion home is an impressive property with numerous attributes that enhance it's value. In my opinion, that most recent price reduction of this property makes this lake home an attractive buy. If you are interested in a year round lake home with room for all your family and friends, you should see this Lake Vermilion home. (Note: An extensive (and negotiable) personal property list includes one of these. And one of these.)
For those of you who occasionally review current inventory via the links located in the upper right side column... I adjusted the search for the "Vacant Acreage" category to exclude waterfront parcels. This will eliminate duplication of properties already viewable in the "Lake lot" categories. (FYI, this change decreased the number of "Vacant Acreage" listings by more that 50%.)
I got invited to join a small group of local pickers the other day.
It had been a while since I was in the berry patch so this was going to be a treat.
We traveled a fair number of miles on roadways within two counties... and then, at an uncharted location, my pail and I were deposited into a Blueberry Patch that contained more juicy fruit than a Wrigley warehouse.
This remote location had berry bushes loaded with so many berries they buckled under their own weight. But the bushes were also tall enough to lift over and into your bucket so the berries could be stripped directly into the pail.
This website is due for an update. Work on a refreshed design and layout is underway and making good progress. Please stay tuned and very soon a new LVRE.com will appear on your favorite web browser.
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