Blue Ridge Real Estate

From time to time I find it helpful to compare counties and their respective real estate statistics. When counseling a client on price, location is a prime factor. When counseling a buyer, location becomes an even bigger factor. All REALTORS® that have access to the Northeast Georgia MLS have the ability to drill down into our data and break the counties into smaller sections for statistical purposes, but I have found that we can glean most of our data through the county by county breakdown. For instance:

When looking for a bargain on land, we can easily look towards Union County, Georgia. Why? Union County, Georgia consistently has the highest land and lots inventory in North Georgia (893 units available), and of late, the lowest Median Sales Price, or $19,000 verses $25,000 in Towns County, Georgia. and $22,000 in Fannin County, Georgia.
When clients are seeking the area that represents the most stability, we may stay clear of Towns County in the current market. The statistics for Towns County real estate climbs and drops rapidly due to their low number of sales. For 2011 Year To Date, Towns County has a monthly low of 10 sales in January, and a monthly high of 21 sales in October. Contrasting that, Fannin County recorded a low of 44 sales in January/ a high of 69 sales in April and Union County has a low of 35 sales in January/ a high of 71 sales in June. This is not to say that Towns County doesn’t have great deals. On the contrary, they may have spectacular deals available. But it will be hard to determine stability considering the low amount of comparable properties sold.
Gilmer County, Georgia is one area that requires additional breakdown when counseling buyers and sellers. Coosawattee River Resort requires the division for buyers and sellers alike. Of the 523 sales in Gilmer County this Year To Date, 127 were within this one subdivision. This represents nearly one quarter of the countywide total. Because cabins and homes within this subdivision boundaries are treated so differently by buyers (they either love it or hate it!), we must differentiate to give an honest analysis of Gilmer County properties.

Statistical contrast does not always translate to the best deal when buying or the quickest sale when selling, but unlike Vegas, you are able to put the odds are in your favor.

I would like to take a week off of statistical analysis to discuss a common occurrence/problem for many of our part-time residents: Do we invite guest into our vacation cabin or politely ask them to rent their own cabin?
Here’s the scenario: You’ve just closed on your dream cabin. You’ve had to settle on a few items; the decks weren’t as wide as you wanted, the closets are not quite as big as you’d hoped, and some of the view is blocked by trees growing on your neighbors property. But when it’s all said and done, you feel like your cabin has almost everything you’ve wanted. After furnishing, shopping for linens, stocking the pantry, and several trips to the hardware store, you’re ready to invite company and celebrate your good fortune. You’ve told all of your friends and family that they’re welcome to visit any time – that’s why you have a cabin in the mountains, right?
But then… the calendar starts to fill up with family, friends, friends of friends, kids of friends of friends, etc. Some of the self-invited are subtle, some are bold. “Can we bring our Labrador Retriever? He’ll just love the mountains!”. “Are these sheets clean?”. “We’re just looking for a quiet girls trip – how many cabin your cabin hold?”. The request start coming in slowing, then more rapidly. You slowly become resentful towards your guest because you spend the first 4 hours taking inventory, cleaning, and fixing broken items. Resentment turns into confusion and confusion turns into frustration. “These are my friends!”, you exclaim! Why is this a problem!?
If this sounds familiar, it’s because we’ve heard this story played out many times. Allow me to pass on a few tips from some successful cabin owners. The first suggestion is to locate a nice, reputable cabin rental company or hotel. When the request comes, be quick with a number and location of your chosen alternate accommodations and let the guest know that they’re welcome to visit for the day. This provides a clean break and avoids any confusion, but might cause some awkward moments and hard feelings. If the first suggestion is not your style, some owners charge a $100 cleaning fee, regardless of the guest. Even the closest friend gets a bill. This gives the cabin visit a slightly more formal feel, with the hopes that the guest reciprocates this feeling. Another suggestion is a “Welcome Sheet” that provides the guest, in writing, your expectations. Feel free to go into great detail on your procedures. The brutal truth is that, as the cabin owner, you should be entitled to enjoy your cabin however you choose. If you’re experiencing these or similar issues, set up some policies that satisfy you first, then your guest. And if you’re a guest of a cabin this weekend and you’re reading this, please go and buy your cabin owner a very nice gift – they’ve earned it!

Last week I was invited to speak to the Fannin County Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors regarding the “State of Real Estate” in Fannin County. Although most of the report was driven by historical statistics on prices, one topic that was brought up related the current measure of Fannin County when compared to our neighboring counties. We briefly addressed this question, but after the meeting, I researched my database to get a better understanding of our place amongst our neighbors. As a Fannin County resident, I’m happy to report the following:

In the category of Median Sales Price for August 2011, the Northeast Georgia Multiple Listing Service reports Fannin County’s Median Sales Price of $161,000, compared to Gilmer’s Median Sales Price of $85,000, Union’s Median Sales Price of $118,250, Towns County’s Median Sales Price of $128,500, and Cherokee County, N.C. Median Sales Price of $115,250.

Digging a little deeper, we can explain Gilmer County’s significant Median Sales Price drop by looking at the number Lots sold in August and the Median Price of that particular sector. Gilmer County is reporting 18 Lot sales with a Median Sales Price of $6925, compared to 10 Lots sales in Fannin County with a Median Sales Price of $29,500. Union County’s Median Sales Price is low due to the 23 Foreclosures sold with Median Sales Price of $80,000, compared to the 12 Foreclosure units sold in Fannin County with a Median Sales Price of $123,000.

Our biggest sector, to no one’s surprise, is the Cabins sector. Fannin County is reporting 28 cabins sold in August with a Median Sales Price $186,500. This is compared to 10 cabins sold in Cherokee, NC, 2 cabins sold in Towns County, 16 cabins sold in Union County, and 21 cabins sold in Gilmer County. Fannin and Union County have comparable Median Sales Price in this Sector, with Union County reporting $190,750 Median Sales Price. Gilmer, Cherokee, and Towns are all report Median Sales Prices below $130,000 in the Cabins sector.

In digesting this data, it becomes apparent that Fannin County is currently outperforming it’s neighbors in nearly every sector of real estate. Next week, we will compare our local stats to regional and national real estate data.