Property prices

My spouse builds houses, one at a time. He sells the house himself - he is there on Sunday afternoon, taking advantage of the open house advertising done by the realtors. Who knows the house better than he does? Why would we want to pay a person who has NOTHING vested in this house - no labor, no money? $17K for them is waayyy too much. He tells prospective buyers that no commission = equity for the buyer. And an agent isn't going to do extra work to get the seller $5K - only nets the realtor $250.

comparable sales are the only way they determine price. it's not just pulled out of the air.

neither are commissions on top of market value

In the long run, yes, they will mostly due to inflation and demand. BUT, with so many people having and getting interest only and adjustable rate mortgages, there will come a day, probably pretty soon (next few years) that the housing market will crash. Banks have a lot more to say about what a house is worth than do real estate agents. The price of a house will be determined by how much house people are "qualified" for. It used to be that the qualification for a loan was that your montly payment be no more than 28% of your monthly income to be used for your PITI (principle, interest, taxes and insurance), and your total montly debt service could be no more than 36% of your montly income. (this is still a good standard to go by even thoug bankers don't anymore) If you didn't meet those ratios, they would simply not give you the loan. Now days, they are offering loans for up to 50% in places. My sister qualified for a loan for over $300K in the Seattle area when they make probably less than $60K/year. They were smart though because they knew it would be stupid to get into that kind of debt when they really couldn't afford it, even though they were told they could.

The problem with all this is that one day this will catch up to people. When their adjustable rate mortgages changes rates, they're looking at probably at least $200/month increase in mortgage payments for the year. Then more the next! Same with the interest only mortgages. When that loan turns into an amortizing loan, lots of people are going to be singing sad tunes. Their payment could go up by maybe 50% easily. Many people will realize that they truly couldn't afford the house that they bought, and they will have to sell..... but will there be anyone to sell to? There will be a lot of people in this situation and there will be several foreclosures. The banks might decide that it was stupid of them to make these types of loans and decide not to make them any more. Then people will not be able to get loans to buy these houses that are on the market.

There is a balance that can be seen between the interest rates and the house prices. Generally speaking, if interest rates are low, house prices will go up (like we've seen the last few years), and if interest rates are high, house prices will drop. If people can't afford houses because interest rates are too high, the prices will have to drop. Interest rates have been kept artificially low for a long time now. They are slowly climbing, and will continue to do so until they reach the level that they should be at. When the interest rates get higher, more people will be needing to sell their property. This is good for people who have cash and are ready to purchase cheaper land/houses when this happens. These are the people who don't have to worry about interest rates and how much their montly payment will be, and how much house they can afford.

MD

I agree.

when I bought our last place, I paid a real estate lawyer, he charges $200 per transfer. Flat fee.

No escrow. nothing. Just one check to the seller, and one check to the lawyer for $200.

Every previous place that we have bought, had papges of lisitngs of fees and charges and taxes and blah blah blah, INSURANCE. We argued like hell over the various insurances we had to pay in California, insurances that list the bank as beneficiary and not me, but I have to pay for them? Yes it is law, there.

Too cool.

I love Maine.

they did have a regional office for LURC, back last eyar when I bought the property. But (un-known to me) they had some internal bickering going on, and poof! All regional offices were closed last winter (pronounced Win - Taah).

So now all LURC stuff goes through Augusta, and they have no field inspectors?

I have been told that if you insist and make them come out to inspect, then fine they will, but the inspection starts with how upset they are at you for forcing them to come out.

And living in an 'Un-organized Township' means that while some fees and stuff would normally go to the town, but now get waived.

It means that nobody is paid to plow the road. Everybody who owns a snow plow (about every third house owns one) they all get to drive up and down, following each dump.

LOL

It is easy to bypass LURC....

But really in order to protect your investment, you wouldnt put in a system or well that was going to work properly just to have to fix later or lose property value.....and if they are not working properly and you sell...real-estate disclosure laws will bite you in the ass.

I don't want my septic contaminating my well or running raw across my land....and no one wants to buy or live in such filth....just common sense....laws or otherwise...

Taxes are far cheaper in unorganized Maine....but also cheap in towns where abatements never happen.....mostly new construction...building permits catch the eye of tax officials and regulators.

The price of anything is determined by "a willing seller and a willing buyer" This includes taxes.

Taxes are not determined by "they", but by "us". Oh yes they are!

Folks, many of us think our vote does not count. Believe me, it does. Get to know the people who were elected to represent you . Most have offices nearby. Visit often. This goes from the highest offices (Congress) right down to county dog catcher. Get to know these people, or better yet, get them to know you. Be friendly.

Want to get the attention of a Congressperson? Have about 25 letters sent in on a given subject in a few day's span. One letter may never reach his/her desk, but believe me, 25 or more will. Go see these people at every opportunity. Stay civil and intelligent. If you have a hard time articulating, send referral materials. Keep your letters and visits brief and on one subject. Extend this activity down to each and every elected official. Read the local papers, including those weird notices at the beginning of the classified ads.

Initially, this takes time, but soon, you'll learn to skim and spot the items you are interested in. We are NOT helpless; we CAN do something about "it". We'd all better start NOW, as there are some things coming up that are really frightening. Watch for anything having to do with WHO and WTO. If you see the words, "Codex alimentarus" read every word. This particularly affects our ability to afford dietary supplements. Look at the regulations handed down by these two bodies and ask yourself, "Consent of the governed? Who elected these people? In fact, who are they, anyway?" What do you know about the World Court? Think this is just for war criminals? Look again. This sounds like one of those conspiracy nuts that hang out by the Post Office. Well, guess what? They are starting to make sense.

Back in the '60's I was worried about overthrow of the government as the threat to our Constitution. I also thought it was the "commie pinkos". I have come to realize that we are in grave danger of losing the whole thing from chipping off little bits at a time. Look at zoning laws and USDA for some examples. Check into the treaties we are signing. (they still need consent of the Senate.) Loss by attrition. Look at the "little" freedoms we lose one at a time for the "good of the many".

The ONLY way we can reverse this tide is to take part in our own little space, joining with the others who are doing the same thing. We will be starting to take back control. We can never get the USDA bureaucracy eliminated, but we can begin to chip back away from this end of the spectrum. Look at how 40,000 to 50,000 letters affected changes in the Organic controversy. 40-50K is miniscule to the size of the population. It doesn't take much to get attention. We are fortunate to have instant communication via the 'net. It's an incredible tool.
Use it! Persistance pays, and we have to go outside the "system". Please stay legal, but protest effectively those chips we are losing. You might ask how we can go up against those big lobbyists amd corporate giants. This is the way. Become a bigger lobby. Elected people have a close eye on the electorate.

"...of the people, by the people, for the people..." Become politically active in the way I describe above, or lose it.

__________________
Best wishes,

Sandi

"Anger is an acid that does more harm to the vessel in which it is stored than to the object on which it is poured." Corrie TenBoom

I can't speak for the rest of the country, but in my part of Missouri around the Lake of the Ozarks, land prices depend on the following qualities and characteristics:

1) depth of the lake in front of the property
2) desireability of that lake frontage, i.e., back of a secluded cove versus on the main channel had having whitecaps smashing your seawall
3) topography of your land (flat, gently sloping, mountain goat playground...)
4) lake front, lake view (second or third or more tier?) or no lake access at all
5) distance to asphalted road
6) size of the parcel
7) public and/or central utilities available or not
8) school district
9) structures on the property - even if there is a 100 year old fallen down barn that is unusable, the county assessor gives it a value until it doesn't exist at all
10) proximity and/or desirability of condominium/townhouse/McMansion development

In rural Morgan County, Missouri where I live, I used to be able to say that if you lived south of our county seat of Versailles and didn't even have lakeview property you could have a tract of land for a reasonable price. As of the beginning of this year, with the biannual reassessment cycle, property in my county has gone up in assessed valuation, which affects the real estate taxes here, between 20 and 200 percent depending on the previously mentioned list of qualities. The assessor has had to make "corrections" to property values because per Missouri Revised Statutes if he doesn't put the property values to within 95 percent of "fair market value" the state can cut the county off from tax payments.

Add in the fact that we have a "non-profit" Morgan County Development Corporation that wishes to create an Enhanced Enterprise Zone to encourage industrial and commercial development, the Gravois Arm Sewer District working on phasing in a central sewer system (and perhaps pushing for a future central water system), the Gravois Community Betterment Association wanting a citizens committee formed to look into forming a special zoning district for all land up to five miles from the 645 foot reservoir mark of the lake (that would be the southern quarter of the county) and the increasing number of urban/suburban transplants that scream about the backwards hillbilliness of the area, I think that within about five to ten years the property prices here will be totally unreasonable for most of the native born residents.

With all the "progress" and improvements in the form of sewer, water, roads, commercial and residential development and the growing risk of planning and zoning, the taxes here will skyrocket even more on real estate. They may not be the direct cause of the tax spike, but higher real estate assessments will be the result in the end. Everything you build, even down the smallest dog house is recorded by the county assessor here. However, your experiences may likely differ from mine. I already have said that I can only speak for my corner of the world.

The bright side of the coin, however, is that after doing an intensive search on the United Country web site, I found that property prices vary depending on the location to the generally most desireable aspects for property. The farther away from major areas of current development and major roadways, the less the property went for. Also, the larger the percentage of land devoted to national and state park/forest land a county had, the less the private land went for. Outside of Missouri, I found that the same trends held true for other states. The more remote and less improved the property, the lower the price per acre. I do admit that I was looking for the most secluded, remote, and lonely parcels I could find so that I wouldn't have to worry as much about being developed out of the area.

Once I noted down the areas where the real estate agents were pricing the land lower, I could then focus on looking for the "For Sale By Owner" possibilities in the general vecinity of those listed properties.

The process is not easy, but if you have dedication and patience, it can be done. Besides, if the economy drops and fuel prices continue to climb, the more desireable properties will be those closer to employment areas as it will be less expensive overall to live there rather than spend more money being more remote. Things balance out in the end.

__________________
I would challenge anyone here to think of a question upon which we once had a scientific answer, however inadequate, but for which now the best answer is a religious one. – Sam Harris

Our local Congressman was convicted yesterday of taking 2 million in bribes.Can see what gets HIS attention,LOL.

BooBoo

Good Grief!!

We still have to try to take it back.

You can have something to say for the selection of his replacement.

It's not too late is it?

__________________
Best wishes,

Sandi

"Anger is an acid that does more harm to the vessel in which it is stored than to the object on which it is poured." Corrie TenBoom

Less than 500 a acre.With nice house and very peaceful.Neighbors are 1 mile away...See above post.idontno

If we were ready at this time, we wouldn't hesitate to come look at it. Wow. Thanks for the offer. May I contact you in six years when we are closer to that stage? I do look at properties from time to time. It's just for fun right now. It will be at least six years before we are ready to seriously buy land. I was just lamenting that in six years, it might be more like ten years, and at ten years, it might be more like 15, etc. because the prices seem to be climbing faster than we can get there.