What happened in our region in 2014 Real Estate?? Let’s take a look by counties.
Carroll County’s average sold price in December 2014 was up 3.1% over the prior year. $310,983 was the average sold price in Carroll County.
In Frederick County, December revealed a 1.6% price decline over 2013 same period. Average sold price was $287,361.
Montgomery County registered a price decline of 2.4% in December compared to prior year. The average sold price was $491,031.
Howard County finished out the year with a 2.6% price gain over the 2013 end of year prices. $429,790 was the average price for homes sold in Howard County.
We have all been enjoying the downturn in living costs as indicated by prices at the gas pumps! Is there a relationship between gas prices and real estate activity? Maybe so. According to a recent Bloomberg Business article, “U.S. food retailers, pharmaceutical companies, makers of construction materials, banks and insurance companies have typically performed best in times of dollar strength.”
Areas where these business activities are strong should be growth areas in 2015.
Lower gas prices may enable an earlier payoff of student loans, perhaps prompting new graduates to get rid of their student loans more quickly and turn their attention to saving for a home purchase down payment. First time homebuyers paying high rents are more likely to compare the benefits of home ownership to rent slavery and spring for the extra bedroom for the baby.
Foreign investors with plenty of cash have sometimes crowded American investor purchasers out of the market. With the dollar in a strong position, buyer competition for attractive investment properties tends to level in favor of domestic investors, perhaps purchasing a condo for a student son or daughter instead of paying rent.
On all fronts, there’s no reason to gripe about lower gas prices, from our point of view!
Let us know if you have property-specific questions we may be able to answer. We'll be happy to hear from you.
Linda Odum, Associate Broker, REMAX 100
410-715-3206
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