New Listing! Freestanding Condo with Views in Town!

Freestanding Condo with Views in Town!

Where do you get such gorgeous mountain views right in town! Right here with this one level, free standing condo. 1672 sq ft, 2 bdrm, 2 bath, oversized one car garage. Just past El Monte Sagrado, close to historic downtown, restaurants, shopping and galleries. Small, well maintained complex of 8 free standing units. This unit has an extra large private yard that frames the gorgeous setting and views. Welcoming front courtyard. Wonderful back patio with hot tub! Inside the views are captured by large picture windows. Dramatic stone fireplace. Brick floors. Cozy, open kitchen. Timeless finishes in the kitchen and baths. Walk in closet in master bedroom. Office nook in laundry area. MLS 93832  $378,500

New Listing! ONE LEVEL CONDO RIGHT IN TOWN!

ONE LEVEL CONDO RIGHT IN TOWN!

Sweet! One level condo in the heart of town. 1 bedroom, 1.5 baths. Lovely finishes throughout. Energy efficient RastraBlock construction. Nice back yard. Gas log kiva style fireplace in living room. Slate tile floors. Vigas, beams and corbel accents. Granite tile counter tops. Upgraded stainless appliances. Custom kitchen cabinets with pull out drawers. Smooth plaster walls. Master has a walk in closet with custom storage and a lovely full bath with walk in shower, nice shower doors & tile. Close to shopping. MLS 95322 $184,900

ATTENTION DEVELOPERS 1.37 ACRES! R-4!

ATTENTION DEVELOPERS 1.37 ACRES! R-4!

Attention Developers! 1.37 Acres. Good location, in town. Reasonable price! Zoned R-Four. Town of Taos ran the sewer line across the southern end of this property. Easy access off paved Town Road. Utilities close by! MLS 95317 $102,000

New Listing in Des Montes!

PASTORAL SETTING ~ HOUSE AND STUDIO

Located in glorious Des Montes, right off the Hondo-Seco Road. Home and studio on 2.48 acres in a with a beautiful pastoral setting with irrigation ditch. Wide open grass land with fantastic mountain views! 2958 sq ft, 3 bedroom, 2 bath home with a huge 628 sq ft studio space (formerly the garage). Large living room with big picture windows and kiva fireplace. Dining room is just off the living room. Big open kitchen. Light filled wide hall with doors to central, walled courtyard. Large master with walk in closet. 2 additional good sized bedrooms. Wood and tile floors. Fruit trees. Grass. Views! MLS 95260  $485,000

Forecast for Housing and the Economy Suggests Gradual Improvement through 2015

Forecast for Housing and the Economy Suggests Gradual Improvement through 2015

WASHINGTON (May 15, 2014) – Housing activity was sub-par in the first quarter of this year, dampened in part by severe weather patterns, but an uptrend is expected with healthy underlying demand over the balance of the year and through 2015, according to presentations at a residential real estate forum here during the Realtor® Party Convention & Trade Expo.

Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist, said the U.S. population has been growing steadily, but job creation has not. “When you look at the jobs-to-population ratio, the current period is weaker than it was from the late 1990s through 2007,” he said. “This explains why Main Street America does not fully feel the recovery.”
Yun said that growth in the Gross Domestic Product slowed in the first quarter, and possibly contracted. “There are no fresh signs of recession, and the second quarter could grow about 3 percent,” he added.
Yun said the home sales-to-population ratio also has been below normal since 2008. Despite a large pent-up demand from years of below-normal home sales, inventory constraints and tight credit conditions continue to impede the market, in combination with strongly rising home prices and higher mortgage interest rates.
Although existing-home sales rose more than 9 percent to nearly 5.1 million in 2013, sales activity retrenched during the past six months. Even with gradual improvement moving forward, they are projected to decline about 3 percent for the year to just over 4.9 million, but should trend up to more than 5.2 million in 2015.
Because of tight inventories and rising sales last year, the median existing-home price rose 11.5 percent to just over $197,000. Home price growth is likely to moderate from more new home construction, with the median price increasing about 6 percent in 2014 to $209,000 and reaching nearly $219,000 next year as market conditions begin to balance.

An upside of rising prices is a recovery in home equity. “Based on our forecast for this year, the median home equity gain over three years is expected to be $40,000,” Yun noted. “A gap between new and existing-home prices from rising construction costs shows that prices are well supported by fundamentals in most of the country.”

He expects the Federal Reserve to end tapering of monetary policy by the end of the year and to hike the Fed funds rates in the first quarter of 2015.

Although the pattern is uneven month-to-month, mortgage interest rates are forecast to gradually rise, with the 30-year fixed rate averaging 4.7 percent this year and 5.5 percent in 2015. “Inevitably, rising mortgage interest rates will hurt housing affordability,” Yun said.

Housing starts have stayed below 1 million a year for the past six years, but need to reach the long-term average of 1.5 million to balance the market. “Because of the prolonged slowdown in construction, we now need 1.7 million housing starts per year to catch up,” Yun said. While improving, housing construction is seen at nearly 1.1 million this year and approximately 1.4 million in 2015.

The sluggish recovery in housing starts is impacted by construction costs rising faster than inflation, labor shortages in the building trades, and the difficulty for small local home builders to obtain construction loans. “Onerous financial regulations are preventing small banks from originating construction loans,” Yun said.
Job growth, which is the key to overall economic health, has essentially recovered all of the eight million jobs lost since the great recession. Employment is expected to improve, with job growth rising 1.6 percent in 2014 and 1.9 percent next year, after growing 1.7 percent in 2013; consumer confidence should gradually rise.

The Gross Domestic Product should grow 2.2 percent this year and about 2.9 percent in 2015; GDP grew 1.9 percent in 2013. Inflation, as measured by the Consumer Price Index, was a tame 1.4 percent in 2013 but is projected to rise to 2.5 percent this year and 3.5 percent in 2015.

Eric Belsky, managing director of the Joint Center for Housing Studies at Harvard University, agreed we’re unlikely to see a back-up in GDP. “Growth in the stock market and the recovery in housing along with pent-up demand are major factors driving the economy,” he said.

“There are three federal surveys that measure household growth and that are inconsistent, but we had real growth in 2012 that fell back last year,” Belsky said.  “Even the survey with the strongest household growth shows we’re a million below where we should be, but we’re probably two million below. We could see a notable uptick in household formation later this year.”

Belsky noted there are nearly three million more young adults who lived with their parents in 2012 than in 2007, and the median incomes for all young adults have declined since the great recession.

According to the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, student loan default rates have soared from just over 6 percent in 2003 to nearly 12 percent last year. Student debt is hurting credit scores and hindering the ability of some young adults to qualify for a mortgage; it could be a problem for as many as one in 10 renters who are in their 20s.

The Joint Center for Housing Studies projects household growth to rival or top the annual average pace from 1995 to 2000, and projects 76 percent of the growth over the next decade will be from minority households. The greatest increase is expected to be among households age 65 and older.

According to Fannie Mae, roughly nine out of 10 people under the age of 45 expect to buy a home in the future, but Belsky said mortgage underwriting standards are dramatically tighter, which disproportionately impacts minorities and those with lower incomes.

Dennis McGill, director of research for Zelman & Associates in New York, also focused on trends in housing demand. “Our analysis of Census Data shows an average of only 720,000 housing starts annually from 2010 through 2013, but our projections over the next five years exceed an average of 1.9 million,” he said.

“We won’t ramp up to that level right away, but if you average housing starts for the entire period from 2010 to 2019, it would be about 1.44 million,” McGill said. “There is a strong tailwind to housing starts. We’re starting to see capital come back to single family construction, which is very favorable.”

McGill notes trends in residential electric consumption mirror the growth in households, and also young adult employment, which is driving the growth.

The percentage of 24 to 34 year old married couples has risen since the last recession, but they are delaying a transition to homeownership. Zelman believes that the majority of this recent change has been due to recessionary impacts that should start to unwind.

McGill said their analysis shows the existing-home inventory relative to the number of households in the first quarter of this year is 30 percent lower than the average of the past two decades. In addition, total sales closings in 2013 were 20 percent lower than the 25-year average. “If we don’t bring capacity back to the market, home prices will continue to rise strongly,” he said.

A Zelman consumer survey shows most young adults believe a lack of savings for a downpayment is their biggest hurdle to obtaining a mortgage, but most of them think they need a much larger downpayment than is actually required.

For example, 25 percent believe they need a downpayment of 16 to 20 percent, and another 15 percent believe they need a downpayment of more than 20 percent. However, the actual requirement for an FHA loan is 3.5 percent.

Even with the well-known debt issues, nearly one-quarter of people under the age of 35 are debt free, which is better than the historic average. In addition, the Zelman survey shows that contrary to fears, there is no correlation between student loan debt and household formation. “A lot of this is a recessionary impact that we think is overlooked,” McGill said.

The National Association of Realtors®, “The Voice for Real Estate,” is America’s largest trade association, representing 1 million members involved in all aspects of the residential and commercial real estate industries.

May/June 2014 Market Pulse from NAR

May/June 2014 Market Pulse

A look at the major economic indicators heading into the summer months.

May 2014

Spring is in the air and so is increased confidence in housing markets. But REALTORS® say tight inventories and hard-to-get credit remain drags on business. Two factors hurting credit availability are federal mortgage rules (qualified mortgage ability-to-repay rules) that took effect at the beginning of the year and increases in FHA premiums. On the plus side, fewer transactions are hitting snags because of appraisal problems.

Forecast for Housing and the Economy Suggests Gradual Improvement through 2015

WASHINGTON (May 15, 2014) – Housing activity was sub-par in the first quarter of this year, dampened in part by severe weather patterns, but an uptrend is expected with healthy underlying demand over the balance of the year and through 2015, according to presentations at a residential real estate forum here during the Realtor® Party Convention & Trade Expo.
Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist, said the U.S. population has been growing steadily, but job creation has not. “When you look at the jobs-to-population ratio, the current period is weaker than it was from the late 1990s through 2007,” he said. “This explains why Main Street America does not fully feel the recovery.”
Yun said that growth in the Gross Domestic Product slowed in the first quarter, and possibly contracted. “There are no fresh signs of recession, and the second quarter could grow about 3 percent,” he added.
Yun said the home sales-to-population ratio also has been below normal since 2008. Despite a large pent-up demand from years of below-normal home sales, inventory constraints and tight credit conditions continue to impede the market, in combination with strongly rising home prices and higher mortgage interest rates.
Although existing-home sales rose more than 9 percent to nearly 5.1 million in 2013, sales activity retrenched during the past six months. Even with gradual improvement moving forward, they are projected to decline about 3 percent for the year to just over 4.9 million, but should trend up to more than 5.2 million in 2015.
Because of tight inventories and rising sales last year, the median existing-home price rose 11.5 percent to just over $197,000. Home price growth is likely to moderate from more new home construction, with the median price increasing about 6 percent in 2014 to $209,000 and reaching nearly $219,000 next year as market conditions begin to balance.
An upside of rising prices is a recovery in home equity. “Based on our forecast for this year, the median home equity gain over three years is expected to be $40,000,” Yun noted. “A gap between new and existing-home prices from rising construction costs shows that prices are well supported by fundamentals in most of the country.”
He expects the Federal Reserve to end tapering of monetary policy by the end of the year and to hike the Fed funds rates in the first quarter of 2015.
Although the pattern is uneven month-to-month, mortgage interest rates are forecast to gradually rise, with the 30-year fixed rate averaging 4.7 percent this year and 5.5 percent in 2015. “Inevitably, rising mortgage interest rates will hurt housing affordability,” Yun said.
Housing starts have stayed below 1 million a year for the past six years, but need to reach the long-term average of 1.5 million to balance the market. “Because of the prolonged slowdown in construction, we now need 1.7 million housing starts per year to catch up,” Yun said. While improving, housing construction is seen at nearly 1.1 million this year and approximately 1.4 million in 2015.
The sluggish recovery in housing starts is impacted by construction costs rising faster than inflation, labor shortages in the building trades, and the difficulty for small local home builders to obtain construction loans. “Onerous financial regulations are preventing small banks from originating construction loans,” Yun said.
Job growth, which is the key to overall economic health, has essentially recovered all of the eight million jobs lost since the great recession. Employment is expected to improve, with job growth rising 1.6 percent in 2014 and 1.9 percent next year, after growing 1.7 percent in 2013; consumer confidence should gradually rise.
The Gross Domestic Product should grow 2.2 percent this year and about 2.9 percent in 2015; GDP grew 1.9 percent in 2013. Inflation, as measured by the Consumer Price Index, was a tame 1.4 percent in 2013 but is projected to rise to 2.5 percent this year and 3.5 percent in 2015.
Eric Belsky, managing director of the Joint Center for Housing Studies at Harvard University, agreed we’re unlikely to see a back-up in GDP. “Growth in the stock market and the recovery in housing along with pent-up demand are major factors driving the economy,” he said.
“There are three federal surveys that measure household growth and that are inconsistent, but we had real growth in 2012 that fell back last year,” Belsky said.  “Even the survey with the strongest household growth shows we’re a million below where we should be, but we’re probably two million below. We could see a notable uptick in household formation later this year.”
Belsky noted there are nearly three million more young adults who lived with their parents in 2012 than in 2007, and the median incomes for all young adults have declined since the great recession.
According to the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, student loan default rates have soared from just over 6 percent in 2003 to nearly 12 percent last year. Student debt is hurting credit scores and hindering the ability of some young adults to qualify for a mortgage; it could be a problem for as many as one in 10 renters who are in their 20s.
The Joint Center for Housing Studies projects household growth to rival or top the annual average pace from 1995 to 2000, and projects 76 percent of the growth over the next decade will be from minority households. The greatest increase is expected to be among households age 65 and older.
According to Fannie Mae, roughly nine out of 10 people under the age of 45 expect to buy a home in the future, but Belsky said mortgage underwriting standards are dramatically tighter, which disproportionately impacts minorities and those with lower incomes.
Dennis McGill, director of research for Zelman & Associates in New York, also focused on trends in housing demand. “Our analysis of Census Data shows an average of only 720,000 housing starts annually from 2010 through 2013, but our projections over the next five years exceed an average of 1.9 million,” he said.
“We won’t ramp up to that level right away, but if you average housing starts for the entire period from 2010 to 2019, it would be about 1.44 million,” McGill said. “There is a strong tailwind to housing starts. We’re starting to see capital come back to single family construction, which is very favorable.”
McGill notes trends in residential electric consumption mirror the growth in households, and also young adult employment, which is driving the growth.
The percentage of 24 to 34 year old married couples has risen since the last recession, but they are delaying a transition to homeownership. Zelman believes that the majority of this recent change has been due to recessionary impacts that should start to unwind.
McGill said their analysis shows the existing-home inventory relative to the number of households in the first quarter of this year is 30 percent lower than the average of the past two decades. In addition, total sales closings in 2013 were 20 percent lower than the 25-year average. “If we don’t bring capacity back to the market, home prices will continue to rise strongly,” he said.
A Zelman consumer survey shows most young adults believe a lack of savings for a downpayment is their biggest hurdle to obtaining a mortgage, but most of them think they need a much larger downpayment than is actually required.
For example, 25 percent believe they need a downpayment of 16 to 20 percent, and another 15 percent believe they need a downpayment of more than 20 percent. However, the actual requirement for an FHA loan is 3.5 percent.
Even with the well-known debt issues, nearly one-quarter of people under the age of 35 are debt free, which is better than the historic average. In addition, the Zelman survey shows that contrary to fears, there is no correlation between student loan debt and household formation. “A lot of this is a recessionary impact that we think is overlooked,” McGill said.
The National Association of Realtors®, “The Voice for Real Estate,” is America’s largest trade association, representing 1 million members involved in all aspects of the residential and commercial real estate industries.

Why List With a Real Estate Broker Vs Doing FSBO

NEW LISTING! WEIMER AREA!

HOUSE AND GUEST HOUSE! WEIMER AREA

Fantastic location for this Weimer area home! Close to the hospital and town. Solar orientated house on 1.5 acres with a beautiful setting and views! Main house is 1781 sf ft with 3 bedrooms, 2 baths, great room with built in dining area, spacious kitchen with work island, a wonderful solar patio room and cozy loft in living area. Super high efficiency radiant wood stove makes this home warm and snug in the colder months. The very charming guest cottage is 480 sq ft with one bedroom, kitchen and bath. The two are connected by a decorative wall and wonderful garden gate. Easy care xeriscape landscape with drip irrigation. Lots of possibilities here. MLS 95163  $399,000

NEW LISTING! AFFORDABLE AND CONVENIENT!

ROOM FOR EVERYONE! GREAT VIEWS TOO!

Wonderful 4 bedroom home conveniently located on the corner of Lower Las Colonias and Sugar Lane. 1.1 Acres. 1633 sq ft, 4 bedrooms, 2 baths. Great mountain views. Welcoming front porch and entry. Open living room and dining area. Galley style kitchen with wood cabinets, nice counter tops and stainless appliances. Laundry room off kitchen. One bedroom is at the front of the house and would make a great office. The master suite is spacious with a bonus room and full bath. Property includes storage shed, private well and septic system. MLS 95159  $239,900

Americans Believe...

NEW LISTING!

A PRIVATE PARADISE - GRACIOUS ADOBE HOME

Conveniently located between the Town of Taos and the charming Village of Arroyo Seco, on the way to the Taos Ski Valley! The surrounding fantastic views are captured in this gracious 3002 sq ft, 3 bedroom, 2 bath home. A southwest style gate greets you and leads you into a courtyard paradise with gardens and trees and flagstone paths. Dramatic, front, gallery style entry hall opens to the large living room with high ceilings, kiva fireplace and tall picture windows that frame the mountains perfectly. Open kitchen and dining area with access to the back walled patio and portal perfect for outdoor dining and grilling. The kitchen features a cook island, custom wood cabinets and gorgeous granite countertops. The master suite is quite spacious with great views, a dramatic kive fireplace, a sumptuous bath and walk in closet with built ins. The second bedroom also has a wonderful attached bath and walk in closet and could be a second master suite. The third bedroom is spacious and has fantastic windows and light. Additional features include: A functional laundry room. Skylights. Smooth plaster walls. Vigas. Easy care tile floors. Attached 2 car garage with storage. Ample guest parking. MLS 95125 $649,000

Gallup Poll: Real Estate Best Long Term Investment

The Gallup organization just released their April Economy and Personal Finances Poll which asked Americans to choose the best option for long term investment. It was no surprise to us that real estate returned to the top position over other investment categories (gold, stocks/mutual funds, savings accounts/CDs and bonds).

Back in 2011, gold was the most popular long-term investment among Americans. However, with the housing market improving across the U.S. and home prices rising, more Americans now consider real estate the best option for long-term investments.

The poll also revealed that real estate was considered to be the best long term investment by all four subgroups by age and two out of three by income:

The Latest News from NAR (National Association of Realtors:

Nationwide, Exisiting Home Sales Soft in March

WASHINGTON (April 22, 2014) – Existing-home sales were essentially flat in March, while the growth in home prices moderated, according to the National Association of Realtors®. Sales gains in the Northeast and Midwest were offset by declines in the West and South.

Total existing-home sales¹, which are completed transactions that include single-family homes, town homes, condominiums and co-ops, slipped 0.2 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.59 million in March from 4.60 million in February, and are 7.5 percent below the 4.96 million-unit pace in March 2013. Last month’s sales volume remained the slowest since July 2012, when it was 4.59 million.
Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist, said that current sales activity is under-performing by historical standards. “There really should be stronger levels of home sales given our population growth,” he said. “In contrast, price growth is rising faster than historical norms because of inventory shortages.”
Yun expects some improvement in the months ahead. “With ongoing job creation and some weather delayed shopping activity, home sales should pick up, especially if inventory continues to improve and mortgage interest rates rise only modestly.”
The median existing-home price² for all housing types in March was $198,500, up 7.9 percent from March 2013. Distressed homes³ – foreclosures and short sales – accounted for 14 percent of March sales, down from 16 percent in February and 21 percent in March 2013. “With rising home equity, we expect distressed homes to decline to a single-digit market share later this year,” Yun said.
Ten percent of March sales were foreclosures, and 4 percent were short sales. Foreclosures sold for an average discount of 18 percent below market value in March, while short sales were discounted 12 percent.
Total housing inventory⁴ at the end of March rose 4.7 percent to 1.99 million existing homes available for sale, which represents a 5.2-month supply at the current sales pace, up from 5.0 months in February. Unsold inventory is 3.1 percent above a year ago, when there was a 4.7-month supply.
The median time on market for all homes was 55 days in March, down from 62 days in February, and also 62 days on market in March 2013. Short sales were on the market for a median of 112 days in March, while foreclosures typically sold in 55 days and non-distressed homes took 53 days. Thirty-seven percent of homes sold in March were on the market for less than a month.
According to Freddie Mac, the national average commitment rate for a 30-year, conventional, fixed-rate mortgage rose to 4.34 percent in March from 4.30 percent in February; the rate was 3.57 percent in March 2013.
First-time buyers accounted for 30 percent of purchases in March, up from 28 percent in February; they were 30 percent in March 2013.
NAR President Steve Brown, co-owner of Irongate, Inc., Realtors® in Dayton, Ohio, said first-time buyers have been stuck in a rut. “There are indications that the stringent mortgage underwriting standards are beginning to ease a bit, particularly regarding credit score requirements, but they remain a headwind for entry-level and single-income home buyers,” he said.
“We also have tight inventory in the lower price ranges where many starter homes are found, but rising new-home construction means some owners will be trading up and more existing homes will be added to the inventory. Hopefully, this will create more opportunities for first-time buyers,” Brown said.
All-cash sales comprised 33 percent of transactions in March, compared with 35 percent in February and 30 percent in March 2013. Individual investors, who account for many cash sales, purchased 17 percent of homes in March, down from 21 percent in February and 19 percent in March 2013. Seventy-one percent of investors paid cash in March.
Single-family home sales were unchanged at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.04 million in March, the same as February, but are 7.3 percent below the 4.36 million pace a year ago. The median existing single-family home price was $198,200 in March, which is 7.4 percent above March 2013.
Existing condominium and co-op sales declined 1.8 percent to an annual rate of 550,000 units in March from 560,000 in February, and are 8.3 percent below the 600,000 level in March 2013. The median existing condo price was $200,800 in March, up 11.6 percent from a year ago.
Regionally, existing-home sales in the Northeast rose 9.1 percent to an annual rate of 600,000 in March, but are 4.8 percent below March 2013. The median price in the Northeast was $244,700, up 3.2 percent from a year ago.
Existing-home sales in the Midwest rose 4.0 percent in March to a pace of 1.04 million, but are 10.3 percent below a year ago. The median price in the Midwest was $149,600, which is 5.9 percent above March 2013.
In the South, existing-home sales declined 3.0 percent to an annual level of 1.92 million in March, and also are 3.0 percent below March 2013. The median price in the South was $173,000, up 6.7 percent from a year ago.
Existing-home sales in the West fell 3.7 percent to a pace of 1.03 million in March, and are 13.4 percent below a year ago. The median price in the West was $289,300, which is 12.6 percent higher than March 2013.
The National Association of Realtors®, “The Voice for Real Estate,” is America’s largest trade association, representing 1 million members involved in all aspects of the residential and commercial real estate industries.

###

NOTE:  For local information, please contact the local association of Realtors® for data from local multiple listing services. Local MLS data is the most accurate source of sales and price information in specific areas, although there may be differences in reporting methodology.
¹Existing-home sales, which include single-family, townhomes, condominiums and co-ops, are based on transaction closings from Multiple Listing Services. Changes in sales trends outside of MLSs are not captured in the monthly series. NAR rebenchmarks home sales periodically using other sources to assess overall home sales trends, including sales not reported by MLSs.
Existing-home sales, based on closings, differ from the U.S. Census Bureau’s series on new single-family home sales, which are based on contracts or the acceptance of a deposit. Because of these differences, it is not uncommon for each series to move in different directions in the same month. In addition, existing-home sales, which account for more than 90 percent of total home sales, are based on a much larger data sample – about 40 percent of multiple listing service data each month – and typically are not subject to large prior-month revisions.
The annual rate for a particular month represents what the total number of actual sales for a year would be if the relative pace for that month were maintained for 12 consecutive months. Seasonally adjusted annual rates are used in reporting monthly data to factor out seasonal variations in resale activity. For example, home sales volume is normally higher in the summer than in the winter, primarily because of differences in the weather and family buying patterns. However, seasonal factors cannot compensate for abnormal weather patterns.
Single-family data collection began monthly in 1968, while condo data collection began quarterly in 1981; the series were combined in 1999 when monthly collection of condo data began. Prior to this period, single-family homes accounted for more than nine out of 10 purchases. Historic comparisons for total home sales prior to 1999 are based on monthly single-family sales, combined with the corresponding quarterly sales rate for condos.
²The median price is where half sold for more and half sold for less; medians are more typical of market conditions than average prices, which are skewed higher by a relatively small share of upper-end transactions. The only valid comparisons for median prices are with the same period a year earlier due to a seasonality in buying patterns. Month-to-month comparisons do not compensate for seasonal changes, especially for the timing of family buying patterns. Changes in the composition of sales can distort median price data. Year-ago median and mean prices sometimes are revised in an automated process if additional data is received.
The national median condo/co-op price often is higher than the median single-family home price because condos are concentrated in higher-cost housing markets. However, in a given area, single-family homes typically sell for more than condos as seen in NAR’s quarterly metro area price reports.
³Distressed sales (foreclosures and short sales), days on market, first-time buyers, all-cash transactions and investors are from a monthly survey for the NAR’s Realtors® Confidence Index, posted at Realtor.org.
⁴Total inventory and month’s supply data are available back through 1999, while single-family inventory and month’s supply are available back to 1982 (prior to 1999, single-family sales accounted for more than 90 percent of transactions and condos were measured only on a quarterly basis).
Realtor.com®, NAR’s listing site, posts metro area median listing price and inventory data at: www.realtor.com/data-portal/Real-Estate-Statistics.aspx.
The Pending Home Sales Index for March will be released April 28, and existing-home sales for April is scheduled for May 22. First quarter metropolitan area home prices will be published May 12; all release times are 10:00 a.m. EDT.

Winter is Over!
10 Things to do to protect your home after a harsh winter.

1. Inspect your roof! Having a roofer do periodic checks, and repairs as needed, can save you costly repairs down the road.

2. Clean and Repair Gutters.

3. Check for leaks in hard to see places...under sinks, washing machine hoses, crawl spaces etc.

4. Inspect your siding - in the Taos area with the stucco, check for cracks measuring over 1/8" inch. This allows water to seep in and create damage inside your walls.

5. Clear out exterior drains, removing debris and make sure that water is draining easily.

6. Check window and door seals. Extreme changes in temperature can cause gaps around window and door seals.

7. Patch cracks in walkways.

8. Paint or seal exposed wood.

9. Inspect your heating system and have your fireplace chimney inspected and cleaned.

10. Check the grade around your home. Standing snow and water can pack down the earth creating a negative grade and allowing water to sit at or seep into your foundation. 

Remember...deferred maintenance equals loss of equity. Houses need to be maintained in order to retain their value! 

PRUDENTIAL TAOS REAL ESTATE NEWS

Nashville hosted the Prudential Real Estate Affiliate and Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices convention. Once again proving that those that take their business as a career, reap the benefits.  Diane Enright earned the Chairman's Circle Award, Joel Schantz achieved the President's Circle Award and walking away with the Legend Award was Lisa Davis, earning the Chairman's Circle Award for the 5th time.

We heard from our CEO, Earl Lee, reminding us that real estate is local and the housing market recovery is different in each part of the country.  With news about our new emerging brand Berkshire Hathaway Homes Services, new ideas for social media, and speakers who recharge the energy,  Prudential Taos Real Estate is poised for the next year and beyond for progressive real estate happenings.

NEW LISTING - IN TOWN AND AFFORDABLE!

FANTASTIC LOCATION IN TOWN! 206 Siler Street Unit #7 - Sonterra Condominiums

Wonderful in town location for this charming condo! 394 sq ft, 1 bedroom, 1 bath, Back patio. Lovely setting and grounds surround this development with a large interior lawn, mature trees, gardens and a central fountain. Bright, cheerful condo that is fully furnished and ready to go! Can be a rental or your own Taos get-away! Centrally located, close to shopping and downtown!

MLS 94994  $84,500