"Folks will continue pursuing their dreams of owning apiece of our paradise."
- Wes Rhoades
"Properties with "unique dirt" will continue to maintain their value."
- Jean Odmark (see Jean's Website)
Home sales in the region were down by nearly half in the first three months of 2007 compared to the same period in 2006, according to a report from the Multiple Listing Service of the Mountain Central Board of Realtors.
Sales of vacant lots in the region were even lower, dropping to one-third the number sold from January to March of 2006, the report said.
The MLS report covers all of Valley County and the Meadows Valley area in Adams County.
The Donnelly area, which includes Tamarack Resort, took the brunt of the first-quarter downturn. Just seven homes were sold during the period, compared with 20 in the first three months of 2006.
A total of 22 lots were sold in the Donnelly area, a drop of 75 percent over 2006, when 90 lots were sold.
The Donnelly area is defined by the MLS as south of Lake Fork to north of Cascade.
Real estate agents surveyed were upbeat about the state of the real estate market despite the lower sales figures.
Correction, not collapse
"We have been experiencing a much needed market correction, not a market collapse," said Mike Anderson, owner of The McCall Real Estate Co. "The increase in prices and number of sales in late 2004 and throughout most of 2005 was unprecedented and not sustainable."
The market needs to be taken in perspective over the long term and not just sales figures from the prior quarter or even the prior year Anderson said.
"Business in our office in 2005 was double that of 2004; our business in 2006 was down, but still a very high percentage of 2005,"he said, "From a 2003 or 2004 perspective our level of business in 2006 was outstanding."
The national downtown has resulted in fewer people relocating to the McCall area with money gained from selling their former homes, Brundage Real Estate owner Michelle Basye said.
"We have also lost our buyers who were the speculators buying investments," Basye said "We have more true buyers, locals, looking to buy while the prices are down."
Prices need to come down more to whet the interest of buyers, but some properties will also fetch high prices, said Jean Odmark, an agent with The McCall Real Estate Co.
Unique dirt still sells
"Properties with 'unique dirt' will continue to maintain their value, Odmark said. " I mean by this view, water that are priced correctly for the market, will sell."
The asking price for entry level homes has fallen between $30,000 and $40,000, which is creating its own affordable housing market, said Wes Rhoades, associate broker of Mountain Lakes Realty.
The first-quarter figures are a reflection of the market three to four months ago, while recent activity "has been building noticeably over the past five to six weeks with buyers taking advantage of the lower pricing, continued low interest rates, and a large inventory of properties from which to chose," Rhoades said.
The balance of 2007 will see real estate sales greater than the pre-Tamarack era, but well below levels the past three years, he said.
"Folks will continue pursuing their dreams of owning a piece of our paradise," Rhoades said. "This climate change bodes well for most folks."
There is still a great deal of interest in real estate in the area, but buyers out there feel no great sense of urgency given the amount of inventory available to chose from, said Phil Yribar, associate broker with Re/Max High Mountain Country.
"Serious sellers need to be realistic with their pricing; then we might see an upswing in sales," Yribar said.
McCall sales drop 54%
Sales of homes in the McCall area dipped 54 percent, or from 50 in 2006 to 23 in the first quarter of this year. Lot sales in the McCall area fell by a similar percentage, 48 percent, or 37 lots sold in 2006 to 19 this year.
The McCall area is defined by the MLS as within the city limits of McCall and unincorporated areas of Valley County around McCall to south of Lake Fork.
The New Meadows area had the only gain in the MLS report, with the area seeing seven homes selling in the first three months of 2007 compared to five in 2006. However, lot sales in the New Meadows area fell 68 percent, from 35 to 11.
Home sales in the Cascade area fell from 13 to 10, while lot, sales in the Cascade area fell from 35 to 11.
There were no sales of commercial properties in the region in the first quarter of this year compared to four sales in the same period of 2006.
Dollar amounts for real estate sales were not released by the Realtors board because reporting of real estate sales prices is not required by state law.
As a result, prices on transactions are often under-reported or missing, so the figures that have been reported cannot be seen as a reliable indicator of the market, the board said.
