A Tale of Two Markets

In his article, A Tale of Two Markets, Percy Montague IV, Chairman and CEO of Montague, Miller & Company, Percy says:

     “These are the best of times, these are the worst of times..depends on whether you are buying or selling.  After rocketing along in a crazy “Sellers’ market” for the first half of the decade, balance returned in the market briefly in 2006, before tipping into a definite “Buyers’ Market” in 2007.

     “DID The Bubble Burst?  Like the weather, all real estate is local and national perspective is often misleading.  To say that the national weather forcast for tomorrow is a high of 57 degrees is largely meaningless depending on whether you live in Bangor or Boca Raton.”  Mr. Montague goes on to describe the market results in Central Virginia as more moderate in ‘05 and ‘08.

     “The number of properties sold through the Charlottesville MLS which includes Albemarle, Fluvanna, Nelson, Greene, Madison, Louisa and Orange counties plus a few properties in Augusta, Buckingham, and Culpeper counties, was down 19% from 2006 to 2007…how did consumers fare?  Despite headlines touting collapsing prices, the facts paint a different picture.  Over the same time period, the average price declined slightly, about 3%, while the statistically relevant median price actually increased 2.6%.“    Stay tuned for future market reports.