A perfect day for dragons.
These are a few photos I took this afternoon. More will be posted tomorrow.
Who won? I have no idea.
The average sold price for a home in the city of Oshkosh in August was $133,098. It sold for 95.8% of its listed price and spent 135 days on the market. This was a reduction of 25 days on the market from 160 days in July. The total number of residential sales in the city for August was 114 a drop of 56 houses sold from August of 2007.
Homes selling under $100,000 made up 33.08% of the homes sold in August, with homes selling between $100,000 and $200,000 making up 47..05%. Homes selling over $200,000 made up 18.01% of all residential sold.
Of the 114 homes sold in August 60% had 3 bedrooms and 55% had 1 bathroom.
Looking ahead into September, the city of Oshkosh had 1176 homes currently for sale. That number is down from the 1237 homes in inventory at the beginning of August and an inventory decrease of 72 homes listed in September of 2007.
Analysis:
The great news in this report is the large drop in the number of days homes are sitting on the market before selling. We carved off 25 days while holding on to 95.8% of list price. Our inventory is still down which might account for the drop in days on market, the fewer properties available the lower the days on market, maybe.
Each month we are seeing fewer homes being listed and a drop of 72 listings over last year is large. Perhaps many home owners are just holding on for the market to turn around and prices to increase again. The concern over this plan is just how fast or even if the market will rebound. We are lucky in Oshkosh to have not seen a real boom and are not now suffering from a bust, but we do seem to have been stricken with concern.
Our real concern should be credit constriction. The real worry on main street is loan denial. Many average credit buyers are not getting a loan than just a month ago would have been no problem. Until the credit squeeze is over the odds of a rise in inventory and sales are dim.
Seven years ago today I left politics, a career that started when I was 18 years old in the summer of 1981 as the volunteer director for Jack Watson, a candidate for the Governor of Georgia.
For more than 20 years I served many candidates in many positions, from the state house to the White House. The one commonality among all the candidates I chose to support was their long term vision and plans. None of them was looking for the immediate gratification answers. They looked ahead ten, twenty, fifty years to grapple with how to best lay the ground work for where we as a nation needed to be then.
How would the 21st century economy be different, what would be required of our military, our intelligence, what would be the new vital industries, how would we be effecting our environment, our water, air, food supply, how could we become energy independent, what would the challenges be in the year 2000, what would be the threats?
Just by asking the questions, the candidates I worked for looked beyond the politics of that moment and the easy platitudes that accompanied the perpetual campaign. I was proud to be a "flack, an op" or the other pejoratives that now accompany my old profession. I am still proud of the candidates I worked for and their battles in office and out to persuade other elected officials to plan long term.
On September 11, 2001 a knot formed in my stomach and remains there today. I know the candidates I worked hard for and believed in could, did and would make a difference if they were in office. I know the candidates I did not work for could, did and would make a difference now they are in office. However, the saddest part to me and why I knew I could no longer participate in my chosen career is that I also know that candidates I didn't work for, but did support also could, did and would make a difference. I was angry and so disappointed in the careless way they had thrown away twenty years of opportunity that would have PREVENTED what happened that day.
In the following seven years I continue to be angry and disappointed at what has followed. I am glad of my decision to leave the profession but I still look back.
In the subsequent years I joined the the corporate side of politics working on NIMBY issues which drove my interest in returning to my home and my looking inward to my own life and community. As I became more involved in my neighborhood I noticed a troubling trend of denigration towards Oshkosh's downtown communities. Our homes, schools and businesses were/are treated as less than.
This was a natural progression to my becoming a Realtor, a promoter of our downtown, our neighborhoods and our beautiful older homes.
There is still a knot in my stomach and it has a name, Osama Bin Laden. I still ask where is he and why has he not be caught? There is no excuse.
Thursday, September 11 appears to be a showdown day at the city council for the Near East Neighborhood revitalization program.
Council member Paul Esslinger has offered up three different ways to eliminate the program. Several organizations are lining up to weigh in and encourage those opposed to the program to tell the council just how awful they think it is and how unfair the the city inspectors are being when evaluating their properties.
I have heard it said more than once that folks on the east side would move to the west side if they had money.
My question to all of you is - what do you think?
When someone recently told me folks on the east side live there because they don't have the money to live on the west side, I got really annoyed. This is not just offensive, but truly stupid. Why would someone want to pit different parts of this community against each other?
As most readers know I live on the east side and I love it here. There is no better place to live in Oshkosh than the east side, but I would never denigrate someone who lives on the south, west or north side of town.
Now, as to the Near East Project. I think it is a great step towards helping the neighbors and neighborhoods in that community. There are a few property owners (yes many of them landlords) who do not take an active interest in maintaining their houses. Is the project perfect? What first step ever is perfect? Is it better than nothing - absolutely, and better than most of us who supported it in the beginning thought it could be at this stage.
There are rumors of mass intimidation, threats and reprisals by city staff of anyone who dares speak out against this program or their property citations. Rumors are easily propagated but difficult to believe without evidence. If people are being intimidated I hope they show up at the city council meeting next Thursday and testify.
I also hope those neighbors in the whole east side show up to stand up for our selves, our neighbors and our neighborhoods. Let's fill the council to show our support for the city's efforts towards making every street a neighborhood.
In Sunday's Northwestern I was quoted as saying:
"I'd like to see some citywide preservation efforts," she said. "You can change a lot of things to make homes more comfortable, more modern, more efficient without changing the nature or soul of the house. You want to make sure what you put into it you will get out of it. And if your neighbor's not doing to the same thing, it's going to reflect on you, your property value and your resale value."
To expand on that quote, preserving our history, our neighborhoods and our older homes isn't just about real estate.
Yes, a historically intact home does have a higher resale value than one that has become a hodgepodge of renovation projects, but a historically intact home is a story of us as a community. Many people love going to the genealogy sites to learn about their families. An older/historic home is a physical manifestation of our family history. A church, a school, a downtown building tells us about our past as a community.
When we lose these our history goes with it. Think of all the wonderful buildings we have lost. How many of us look at the pictures of the Athearn Hotel and imagine it still standing in our grand downtown. How about that incredible William Waters designed building that occupied the 100 Block of N. Main and Otter? If the preservation efforts of our community hadn't been successful and The Grand had been lost, would we today feel a deep sadness and remorse?
We are in serious danger of losing our communities collective conscious.
The warehouse district on the south-side is disappearing. There was a request about 12 years ago by an investor to create residential space in one of the buildings on South Main. It was denied. Now gravel blights are littered throughout with more to come.
The light house is going, going, gone. A beacon for travelers and boaters to guide them safely to Oshkosh is turned off. The metaphor as reality.
Raze it and they will ignore it. An empty lot, so the myth goes, will attract a buyer. How many times does this painful line have to be proved wrong before we stop destroying what we have in hand? Retrofit and reuse are green and cost effective. If they don't build it who will come?
There are people in this community who are advocates and investors in our past as future.
The Waters lays out the planning guidelines for what we as the Oshkosh community must do to thrive. A grand example of how new meets history. This showcase will bring local and tourism monies to Oshkosh.
River Mill condominiums are a reuse project that proves a good investment in keeping our history. As manufacturing changes many older builds will be left vacant and some abandoned. As we consider plans for the space, our commissions must look to what has worked - River Mill and what hasn't.
There are small and grand examples of preservation throughout Oshkosh. Brooklyn Fire House, The Bent Building, Wagner Opera House and so many others show what can be done and will with a serious mindset change from our elected officials, city staff and most important, our business "leaders" in the Chamber, OCDC and BID.
As important as our historical commercial arena, our homes are the fibers that intertwine to keep Oshkosh history seamless. Each neighborhood - south, east, university, north - is important in telling the Oshkosh story. Who we are, where we came from, what we did is written in the wear of our of our homes.
Preserving our history isn't a death lock of regulation for homeowners. We are not and cannot be a covenant dictatorship. Our preservation must come from a collective will, a joint belief that this is important and good. The payoffs for our decisions can be enormous.
When we mention the Washington or Algoma neighborhoods, there is general agreement that these are desirable streets with beautiful homes. A place we would love to live. Why can't the same desire come from Parkway, Waugoo, Grand, South Park, Winchester, 18th, Idaho, etc.? Each of these streets have wonderful older homes that have been protected by generations of families. Each also have houses where the owners, usually landlords, have allowed the properties to lose their luster.
Why has Washington and Algoma maintained their grandeur while the others have not? There is a pressure, unspoken, when you live in a historic district. No one demands these homes are kept up, yet driving down the blocks shows the neighbors support each other and provide a communal spirit. The near east project is an attempt, with governmental prodding, to create that same sense. To get started is hard and sometimes irritating but for the homeowners and the neighborhood the results are tangible.
As a real estate agent specializing in older homes, I know a home in a preserved neighborhood brings in new owners excited to live here at a price to make all the neighbors very happy.
Preservation pays.
Today I am a client. I put in an offer on a 7800 SQ FT church in our town. After six months of waiting to hear from the diocese that the church would be sold, two months of investigation with contractors on the feasibility, and a month of wrestling with my husband on the price, I just faxed the offer. Now we wait ...
Tonight is the parish council finance committee meeting. Next week is the community meeting with the parish as a whole. Then we have all the city council meetings for use permits and plat changes.
Has any one out here ever worked on a project like this, taking a church or even a school and turning it into a single family residence?
Any advice?
Polly
The average sold price for a home in the city of Oshkosh in August was $128,234. It sold for 95.5% of its listed price and spent 160 days on the market. This was a reduction of three days on the market from 163 days in June. The total number of residential sales in the city for July was 102 a drop of 17 houses sold from July of 2007.
Homes selling under $100,000 made up 35.28% of the homes sold in July, with homes selling between $100,000 and $200,000 making up 47.13%. Homes selling about $200,000 made up 14.7% of all residential sold.
Of the 102 homes sold in July 60% had 3 bedrooms and 59% had 1 bathroom.
Looking ahead into August, the city of Oshkosh had 1,186 homes currently for sale. that number is down from the 1,215 homes in inventory at the beginning of July. That is an inventory decrease of 61 homes in August of 2007.
Did anyone know the Former Leader of the Wisconsin State Senate was a Real Estate Agent? Did you know he lost his license because he "forgot" to tell the licensing board he had been convicted in 2005 for FELONY misconduct in office? Ooops.
Well it seems all is well and good again because Mr. Chvala has gotten his license back after a six month suspension.
Do you think he has gotten his law license back?
Not a good day for the new ethics movement in real estate.
In the three county area (Winnebago, Outagamie and Calumet) real estate sales are up 14.1 percent in the second quarter of 2008 over 2007, according to a report on the WISINFO site.
Winnebago county sales are up 19.9 percent comparing 2008 with 2007. Outagamie sales were up 18.3 percent.
The report does not separate out commercial versus residential which can be wildly different. The report states the statistics are provided by the Realtor Association of Northeast Wisconsin. My attempts to find the report on our local board websites were unsuccessful. When the report is made available to the membership as opposed to the media, I will post the numbers.
Congress passed a new housing bill last week. This is a quick breakdown of how you might just get something out of it.
FIRST TIME HOMEBUYERS - You will be eligible for an interest-free loan from the government in the way of a new $7,500 or 10 percent of the purchase price, which ever is smaller. This is a tax credit, which you will subtract from the money you would pay to the IRS. There are income qualifications, at $75,000 or $150,000 for married filing jointly it begins to phase out.
The tax credit must be paid back over the next 15 years in equal amounts on your federal taxes. That is what makes this more like a loan. The credit is also retroactive to homes purchased since April 9th and will continue through June 30, 2009.
MORTGAGE RENEGOTIATIONS - Loans that were originated on or before Jan. 1, 2008 are eligible for renegotiation to a new fixed-rate loan that will last for at least 30 years. The loan can not be for more than 90 percent of what the property is worth today. Your monthly housing payment, including mortgage, interest, taxes and insurance, must be at least 31 percent of your monthly household income.
The catch on this is, lender are not required to give you this new deal, even if you qualify. It is expected to only effect 400,000 households in the country out of the estimated more than 2 million currently facing foreclosure.
There are a couple other doozy of catches on this one.
1. For the next five years you can not take out take out a home equity loan
2. You have to pay a fee of 1.5 percent each year on the remaining balance of your mortgage
3. You must give to the government no less than 50 percent of any appreciation your home has when you sell.
4. If you sell in under five years you will have to give over all of the appreciation gained.
This program begins October 1 and ends September 30, 2111.
ADDITIONAL TAX DEDUCTION - If you own a home and don't currently itemize your deductions, you can now take an additional federal tax deduction of $500 or $1,000 if you are married and filing jointly. This is in addition to the standard deduction.
This will be great for those folks who pay little or no interest on their current mortgage. However, you must report how much property taxes you paid and if it is less than $500, the deduction will be limited only to the actual property taxes paid.
CHANGES IN REVERSE MORTGAGES - Origination fees for new reverse mortgages would be limited to 2 percent of any loan up to $200,000 and 1% for loans more than that. The entire fee is capped on $6,000.
Lenders are forbidden from requiring additional financing or insurance products as a condition of making the loan. Also the maximum amount people can borrow has been raised to $625,600.
WHAT IS A JUMBO LOAN - The definition of a jumbo loan has changed in the higher cost areas of the country. Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac can now purchase loans up to 115 percent of the local median home price.
VETERANS BREATHING ROOM - Foreclosure proceedings will now be held off for nine months instead of 90 days for veterans returning from the military. Also, lenders must wait for one year to raise interest rates on a mortgage held by someone returning from military service.
These are some of the good provisions of the bill which will have an effect on many of us in Oshkosh. There were some not so good provisions as well. Those will wait for another update.
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