Perfection Has An Address…

There are so many stunning scenic areas in Michigan.  Summer is definitely a great time to take a road trip.  This picture by the water was taken in Petoskey, MI.  It is said that in West Michigan, you are never more than six miles from a body of water.

Yikes…We’re Running Out of Homes to Sell! Real Estate Inventory Levels Reach Record Lows in West Michigan.

A few short years ago, very few real estate agents could envision a time in which the over-riding trend would be a LACK of housing inventory in the the Greater Grand Rapids, MI area.  In January of 2009, distress sales peaked at over 60% of the volume of sales in the area and inventory was very high.  In fact, some buyers were simply tossing out low ball offers to see which one would stick on a home which the seller was desperate to sell.

That was then.  This is now.  Today, recently released sales statistics from the Grand Rapids Association of REALTORS indicate that inventory levels based on Pending Home Sales is down to 3.7 months supply.  Less than 4 months of housing inventory available for sale.  We are definitely in a Seller’s Market.  This is how the landscape looks to local real estate agents.

Rental Market:

If you’re trying to rent a home in West Michigan right now, you may have found out that its challenging.  In fact, just to get a list of home to RENT, you may be asked to pay a FEE of up to $20 to see what’s available.  A situation which few of us could have imagined in the recent past.  The local MLS set up a RENTAL MLS last year which provides listings for sale through local REALTORS.  Listings for Rent tend to cycle through very quickly, however the good news is that if you’re working with a REALTOR, you are not likely to be charged simply to get a list of what’s available for rent.  Feel free to contact us at 616-791-0511 if you need assistance in this area.

Average number of homes available for rent during the month of April on local MLS:  Range between 5-14 homes and condos.

Resale Market:

It’s no surprise given the low inventory levels that housing prices continue to rise.  Over the past 6 months, there has been an increase of 7.1% in home prices from $115,640 in 2011 to an average sales price of $123,849.  The price range with the most activity right now is the middle of the market defined as $100,000 – $160,000.  This is a marked change from the past few years when we saw a huge volume of sales activity in the price brackets below $50,000.  This is an indication that the move up market is coming back.  If you’ve been thinking about putting your home on the market, now may be a good time.

Total Number of Homes for Sale as of date of publication: 6,023

Inventory Level Based on Pending Sales Activity for April:  3.7 Months

Days of the Market

I can remember a time in the not so distant past where some agents were compiling listing agreements with a 2 year listing period.  That’s almost 10X longer than the marriage of one well know Kardashian.  In 2008 and 2009,  the average listing was taking almost a year to sell.  Today, the Average Days on the Market (DOM) is down to 78 days for Residential Properties and 50 days for Multi-family (1-4 unit) properties.  In the month of April alone, there has been an increase of over 20% in sales activity.

Wondering what this might mean for you?

If you’ve been toying with the idea of placing your home on the market, you may want to look at your options again.  To determine what your price point should be, contact us for a free market trends analysis for your area.  This article about setting the right price from the beginning of your home listing is also worth reading.

Photo Credit courtesy of cc license by erix on flickr.

Review raw data on April Housing Stats from the Grand Rapids Association of REALTORS

Available for RENT! Grandville Schools. 2157 Palm Dale Dr. Southwest, Wyoming, MI 49519

Attention to detail is the standard in this former Builder’s home! Warm earth tones accented with crown molding provide an inviting ambiance. What a great place to call home in the Grandville school district. The interior of the home features 3 bedrooms and 3 baths. The home has a 3 stall garage. The yard is beautifully landscaped and the main level features an open floor plan with deck access through double sliders. The rental rate of $2,000 per month includes all appliances.  CLICK ON THE PICTURE OR THE LINK TO ENJOY A REAL ESTATE PRE-VIEW SHOW.

Paradigm Change…The Power of the 3 Yard Shift!

One of my favorite Bible stories is about a group of experienced fishermen who went out on a lake to fish on an inky black night.  As time wore on, it became depressingly apparent that no fish were going to be caught in the net that night.  The prospect of dragging the water logged net back to the shore was the only thing that separated the engulfing gloom from the faintly emerging rays of dawn.

As the three contemplated their misfortune, a voice emerged from the diminishing darkness and shouted out a question, “Gentlemen, did you catch anything last night?”  Although they could barely discern the form, they responded by yelling back one miserable syllable…”NO”!

Most people would have shut up, for although misery loves company, most of us would prefer to leave it alone.  But not this guy.  Instead he offered an unsolicited word of advice.  He told them to drag the heavy, soggy net out of the water and deposit in on the other side of the boat.

Amazing!  Unbelievable! The guy was on the shoreline.  Did he even know anything about catching fish?  You wonder what went through the minds of the fishermen.  Did they question the logic of a ridiculous command?  After all, would it not have made more sense to make a suggestion about the stuff that everyone knows can affect a catch like…the fish aren’t biting because it’s the wrong part of the lake or you simply chose a bad day?

But to their credit, the fishermen obeyed.  And the narration records an extraordinary moment!   The text says that the fish rushed into that net that had moved location a grand total of a FEW YARDS with such force and vigor that the huge number of fish began to break the net.  What a difference a 3 Yard Shift can make!

This story demonstrates the power of little shift.  More often than not, the truly impactful moments in my life can be traced to ‘just one little thing’,  a simple moment in time when I made a quality decision or took a deliberate action.  While not all these moments have been good ones, many have had monumental impact in my life.

I’ve learned to respect the dawn of awareness and recognize the fact that profound revelations rarely occur in the limelight.  In fact, some of the richest shifts have occurred in the dark nights when my life boat has found itself moored on a lake which seemed devoid of opportunity and reward for my efforts.

It is there that I’ve learned to value the voice of intuition and wisdom which comes from a place where my rules and limited perceptions failed to make sense. I found that they don’t matter.  And as the dark scales  lifted from my eyes, it  becomes increasingly clear that the solutions have often been simpler and closer than I imagined.

So today, I’m encouraging you to set aside a few moments in your life to be open to a 3 Yard Shift.  It will require humility.  The sort that allows you to be open to guidance from unexpected sources.   But, I promise you…if you will listen and obey the voice, guidance will come.  For the solution is rarely about what’s out there; it’s more about the shift that comes from inside you…in your heart.

*this story is my paraphrased version of event.  An exact rendering of the ancient text can be found here.

Image credits via Flickr

If Housing Market is Improving…Why Can’t I Get More Money For My Home?

The classic novel by Charles Dickens begins with the following quote:

“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times; it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness; it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity; it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness; it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair; we had everything before us, we had nothing before us; we were all going directly to Heaven, we were all going the other way.”

This could be a descriptive of the real estate marketplace in many quarters across the nation today.   The economic crisis which was predicated by unsound lending and investment practices has swung the pendulum almost 180 degrees in the reverse direction with tighter lending standards and much more over-sight to the process.  Sometimes, with unintended consequences with regard to programs that sometimes created more confusion than the problems they were designed to solve.

So, today in the West Michigan housing market, we are observing a unique situation in which  inventory levels are at the lowest level in a decade yet, home prices are rising at very modest levels after a free-fall in which we saw the average home price decrease 30-35% within the past five years.  So, when homeowners hear that the market is in recovery, the natural reaction is to assume that recovery means that home prices will return to the level they were in 2005 – 2007, the boom years.

The truth is:  they will not.  And this is why.  The increase in housing prices was artificial.  Grossly artificial.  Bolstered by poor economic policy and disastrous political mandates and pure greed and avarice, millions of Americans were put into the wrong mortgages or given access to mortgages before they had demonstrated the prerequisite financial acumen to sustain the rigors of home ownership.  To add to the inferno, liar loans simply created stories about who a borrower was.

So, prices for homes rose as demand for homes rose.  And since the process was largely based on unreality and unsound policies, the result was an artificial increase in what homes sold for which is demonstrated in this graph.  Of course, this was an unsustainable situation.  And in time, the bubble burst…hence the housing crisis.

The key thing to understand is that the market will NOT recover to those highs, nor should we wish that it would.  Why would we want to re-create the hell we’re trying desperately to climb out of?

So what is realistic?  Well, it we follow the healthy trajectory of steady, modest gains that an investment in housing has historically yielded, we are probably looking at prices which are in the range of what homes sold for between 2003 – 2004.  If you gasped and said…’Wow, a decade of equity was wiped out” you are right.  But, was the past decade truly reflective of healthy gains in equity…in my opinion, the answer is NO.

Housing is still a good investment.  The massive course correction has been painful, but it was necessary.  So, while you will not get an unrealistic price for your home, you can expect a fair return on your investment if you have owned your home for more than a decade or if you do not have a lien against your property.  If you’d like to know more about how your specific neighborhood has fared, please contact us for a free analysis.

Relevant Related Reading:

Updating the Case Shiller Housing Price Chart.

Related articles

• Experts: Home Prices To Bottom Out (news4jax.com)
• The Housing Market Continues. (isellerfinance.wordpress.com)

2012 National Open House Weekend – West Michigan Style!

Well, it worked so well for the past two years, that for the 3rd year in a row, the National Association of REALTORS in conjunction with Associations across the country will be holding Open thousands of homes across the nation.

West Michigan is no exception.  Audu Real Estate is pleased to present 3 lovely homes during the weekend for your viewing pleasure.  Visit our website:  www.auduhomes to view Open House Info and details for the following homes on 1400 Manton, 1505 Diamond and 2556 Evernia.  To view ALL homes which will be open this weekend, click here.

Also, feel free to contact us to view any home you find online.  We’re available to help you.

The Art of RE-Membering How to Be Human.

Pain demands a response.  An urgent messenger who will not be denied the access of a hearing.  Even if the witnessing acknowledger is merely an audience of one.  The message is always delivered.  But, not always heeded or understood.

As the keynote speaker got up to speak during the West Michigan Center for Fair Housing luncheon this week, a projection of a public lynching emerged on the screen. A jarring image in any setting.  One designed to provoke a  visceral response.  I wondered where he was going with this…

My gaze was drawn to the two figures who were hanging by nooses from the tree.  But the speaker drew the attention of the audience to the crowd underneath the tree.  A large group of well dressed citizens, some of them  with smiles on their faces.  Two young teenagers hanging dead from a tree was a community social event!

This gruesome chapter in American history is one many of us would prefer no to re-read.  But beyond the imagery preserved in historic photographs, prints and yes…even postcards, there is an on-going issue of pain and its consequences both for the perpetrator and the victim.

While the American story of opportunity and promise is a shining beacon of hope to many around the world, the underbelly of this story has a dark side.  One in which people struggled to get ahead, stay alive and manipulated power to their advantage at the expense of other human beings.  History reveals that  fear, rage and the desire to increase or maintain power were often the driving forces behind the most heinous acts of racial injustice.

Pain is something we prefer to avoid. We fight it, medicate it, sometimes ignore it, and often strike out and wound again because of it. However, the pain of the past has the capacity to serve as more than a stark reminder of our failings as individuals within community.  The fact that we recoil and want to move on indicates that we know that all is not yet well.  Pain is not sent to stay, it’s purpose is to deliver an injunction to initiate healing.

When we ignore the message, pain can do a number of things, the most insidious being to re-format itself in a way that can serve to spread the infection covertly.  This is sometimes referred to as Secondary Pain Syndrome.  A condition in which the initial onset of the pain has now been transferred to another part of the body.

This is the challenge we face as a country today.  The pain of racism has taken on camouflage.  It has spread in ways that are covert and harder to quantify or identify.  The refusal or inability to deal with the constraints which tempt us to devalue and deny the dignity of another human being now threaten to undermine our capacity to live as fully human. And to recognize the divine spark that exists in every ‘other’ who exists alongside us.

Because pain can do this to you.  It can make you forget who you are.  Pain can cause you act irrationally and to strike out with incredible viciousness and in the process create shame and guilt.  It can kill, literally depleting the life blood of hope and inspiration which sustains the body, soul and spirit.

The reason why we must examine issues of Fairness in Housing  and our explicit or implicit participation is that ultimately we cannot afford not to.  The key is Awareness.  We cannot afford to ignore the gift and extinguish the hope of others simply because they are not like us.  For in doing so, we are denying the basis of our own humanity. We hijack the promise which lies dormant within the potential of every human being.

Awareness is our hope.  It is awareness that brings understanding and compels action. Awareness  is what allows us to question WHY we respond the way we do, make certain types of assumptions and fail to react to the violation & denigration of human beings.  It is through awareness that we slowly begin to discover who we are and to see ourselves in the likeness of ‘the other’.  We re-awaken to the fact that we ARE the other.