Wednesday, August 27, 2008

Cleveland Heights Sales Trends

Here is a summary of the absorption rates of homes for sale in Cleveland Heights for June, July, and August (up to August 24) These figures are based on data from the local MLS
JUNE
Less than $100,000- 53%
$100,000-200,000- 20%
$200,000-$300,000- 14%
$300,000+ 23%
JULY
Less than $100,000- 55%
$100,000-200,000- 14%
$200,000-$300,000- 11%
$300,000+ 18%
AUGUST
Less than $100,000- 52%
$100,000-200,000- 8%
$200,000-$300,000- 13%
$300,000+ 8%
Conclusion: the fastest selling homes are those under $100,000. June was the strongest month for sales, as expected, and then July and August saw a significant drop in the absorbtion rate for homes over $100,000, while homes under $100,000 continued to experience good sales into August. Sold price per sq. ft. declined significantly over the three summer months except in the $300,000+ category, meaning the more expensives home seem to be holding their value.
Days on Market
This changed very little over the three months and averaged as follows:
Under $100,000 - 89 days
$100,000-$200,000- 102 days
$200,000-$300,000- 116 days
$300,000+ 149 days


Scott Haigh, Realty One

Tuesday, August 26, 2008

Cleveland a smash at the Salzburg Festival!

The past 17 days here have been really special! Not only is this a beautiful city surrounding by picturesque mountains, the Cleveland Orchestra's performance here have been truly great. The critics have been united in their highest praise for the orchestra and it's Music Director, Franz-Welser Most. Simply put, we are the "hit" of the festival. The opera, Dvorak's "Rusalka", was exquisite with unbelievable singing. Last night a post-concert dinner reception was held in St. Peter's Keller, which is a restaurant founded in the 800's. It was quite lavish and the food delicious. You can imagine the sense of history here since Mozart and Herbert von Karajan were born here and you can tour their childhood homes. Johann Doppler of the famous Doppler Effect was also born here.

A few days ago I went on a very physical 5-hour hike on top of Untersberg Mountain, outside of town here. The next day my legs were SO SORE, but it was worth the views from 6000 feet up! Tomorrow we move on to Linz for a few days and then on to Lucerne. Make a special effort to visit Salzburg-- it's a really neat place.

More later....

Real Estate Time-Out in Salzburg

Back in Salzburg with the Cleveland Orchestra for a Real Estate Time-Out (Members Only) (edit/delete)
I am back in Salzburg with the Cleveland Orchestra for two weeks, then a week at the Lucerne Festival, and then concerts in Turin and Milan, Italy. It's great to be back in this beautiful city of music and today we had a six-hour rehearsal on Dvorak's opera "Rusalka". The singers are are world-class and acoustics of the renovated and redesigned Mozart Haus are fabulous. This is normally the summer home of the Vienna Philharmonic and rumor has it that they (or at least their fans) ARE NOT happy that we have such a long stay here, but I suppose the controversy about it will generate publicity, which is ALWAYS a good thing. It's been a long time since we played in Salzburg and this residency is A BIG DEAL for the Cleveland Orchestra. Of course this is good for the Cleveland real estate community because it proves what a good quality of life can be had in our area.
Although I have email over here, my real estate activities are mostly on hold for three and a half weeks, but a fellow agent is covering for me. These next few weeks are likely to be very slow anyway. It gives me a good chance to recharge my real estate "batteries"!
While on tour I've been reading the many responses to an AR blog about the value of broker's opens. It was good to read so many opinions and I've learned a lot. More opinions from the Cleveland area would be appreciated. I think they are great to get to know the inventory, but I'm not sure about the value to sellers, other than making them feel good. (They would feel REALLY good if I sold their homes for them!)
More posts from Europe to come......
Scott Haigh, Realty One, Shaker Office

Thursday, August 21, 2008

Back in Salzburg with the Cleveland Orchestra for a Real Estate Time-Out

I am back in Salzburg with the Cleveland Orchestra for two weeks, then a week at the Lucerne Festival, and then concerts in Turin and Milan, Italy. It's great to be back in this beautiful city of music and today we had a six-hour rehearsal on Dvorak's opera "Rusalka". The singers are are world-class and acoustics of the renovated and redesigned Mozart Haus are fabulous. This is normally the summer home of the Vienna Philharmonic and rumor has it that they (or at least their fans) ARE NOT happy that we have such a long stay here, but I suppose the controversy about it will generate publicity, which is ALWAYS a good thing. It's been a long time since we played in Salzburg and this residency is A BIG DEAL for the Cleveland Orchestra. Of course this is good for the Cleveland real estate community because it proves what a good quality of life can be had in our area.
Although I have email over here, my real estate activities are mostly on hold for three and a half weeks, but a fellow agent is covering for me. These next few weeks are likely to be very slow anyway. It gives me a good chance to recharge my real estate "batteries"!
While on tour I've been reading the many responses to an AR blog about the value of broker's opens. It was good to read so many opinions and I've learned a lot. More opinions from the Cleveland area would be appreciated. I think they are great to get to know the inventory, but I'm not sure about the value to sellers, other than making them feel good. (They would feel REALLY good if I sold their homes for them!)
More posts from Europe to come......
Scott Haigh, Realty One, Shaker Office