Yates, Schuyler real estate sales are up

Yates, Schuyler real estate sales are up

YATES COUNTY--Home sales are up 9.2 percent in Yates County for sales that were finalized between Jan. 1 and Sept. 30 of 2016 compared to the same period for 2015.
According to the Greater Rochester Association of Realtors (GRAR), 189 homes were sold in Yates County during the first nine months. In the same period of time last year, 173 homes were sold, a 9.2 percent difference.
"There's no question that this year has been a very, very strong recovery year," said Mark Malcolm, Century 21 lakefront realtor for the region. "It's very, very positive. We haven't seen this many units sold since '07 and the year's not even complete."
At the start of the year, Malcolm attributed the good sales to the mild winter, which encouraged homebuyers to purchase homes outside of the regular season. He explained, "January was the busiest in 26 years." Malcolm added if the wild weather repeats this winter, buyers will continue to purchase homes.
The median price for Yates home sales has only gone up 1 percent. The GRAR reported the 2016 median price in Yates was $143,000 between Jan. 1 and Sept. 30. In 2015 during the same period, the median price was only $141,500. The median list price saw a similar increase of 2 percent. During the first three quarters of 2016, the median list price for a Yates home was $148,500. In 2015 it was $145,000.
"There's less inventory and more buyers," said Malcolm. "That to us signals values are ascending. Values are appreciating on the lake."
Looking to the end of the year, Malcolm said "there's a lot of pending sales. We'll have a strong year, no question."
Home sales in Schuyler County also increased: 16.8 percent in the first nine months of 2016.
The Elmira-Corning Regional Association of Realtors reported 97 homes were sold, Jan. 1 to Sept. 30, this year. This is compared to the 83 Schuyler homes sold in the same time of 2015, an 16.8 percent increase.
"There are tons of buyers looking, but with a real lack of availability," said Stacey Parrish, owner of Cabins to Castles on Seneca Real Estate.
While the number of homes sold went up, the median price of the home at the time of sale dropped 15.8 percent. According to the Elmira-Corning realtor's association, the median price from the first nine months of 2016 was $117,000. This is down from $139,000 in the same period of time in 2015.
"There's not a huge inventory," said Parrish, explaining that it "keeps [median] prices down." She added the higher priced homes that were available this year are no longer on the market.
However, she explained there are still some pending sales not yet closed. Looking ahead, Parrish said her office typically ends each year ahead of the previous one in sales. She said, "we will end up ahead. Our office have a few high priced (home sales pending). I'm sure other offices do too."