Freddie Mac on Christmas Eve said the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage (FRM) averaged 5.14 percent for the week ending Dec. 24, 2008. That's the lowest the rate has been since Freddie Mac started the Primary Mortgage Market Survey in 1971. The 15-year rate averaged 4.91 percent. Five year hybrid adjustable rate mortgages (ARMs) were higher at 5.49 percent, but 1-year ARMs were below 5 percent at 4.95 percent nationwide and even lower 4.75 in the Northeast and Southwest
Mortgage Rates U.S. averages as of December 24, 2008:
Overview: The real estate market in the Charlottesville area continues to chug along at a moderate pace. If you look at it relative to the hot markets in recent years, you might say "sluggish" is a better word. From a historic perspective, the number of people buying a home in the area is at a fairly normal level, but missing from this market are the speculative investors that overheated the market a few years ago. These investors were buying and selling the same property in the same year and driving up statistics and prices. Today, the market seems to have stabilized, with median prices flat compared to the past two years and the pace of sales steady over the past two quarters. Even the inventory of properties for sale has eased a little, but the over-supply of houses on the market continues to be a major concern. Homes Sold: There were 1452 homes sold between January and June of 2008, which was down 551 (-27.5%) from the first half of 2007. That is the same percentage behind 2007 that we saw in the first quarter report. All local areas (Albemarle -39.4%, Charlottesville -12%, Fluvanna -24.3%, Greene -25.2%, Louisa -15.8%, and Nelson -21.9%) posted lower sales than the same period last year. This is the lowest number of sales reported in the MLS for the first quarter since 2001, but to help keep that in perspective you need to remember that 2001 was a record year for sales. New to the CAAR Market Report this year are numbers from the other side of Afton Mountain. The Staunton/Waynesboro real estate market, referred to as the Central Valley in the charts below, now overlaps with the Charlottesville area market to such an extent that we need to report separate numbers for that area. These numbers were generated from the Greater Augusta MLS, which has more complete data on the Valley market than the CAAR MLS. Based on the total number of sales, the Valley is the largest market area in the report. Sales were down in the Valley by 16.5% compared to last year.
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Location Characteristics: Location Characteristics: Albemarle County is centrally located in Virginia, 110 miles southwest of Washington,D.C.; 70 miles west of Richmond; 115 miles northeast of Roanoke. Albemarle County surrounds the City of Charlottesville, which has been cited as one of America's 100 best retirement towns, citing the Univeristy of Virginia, the Blue Ridge Mountains and the city's historic Downtown Mall among local attractions. Charlottesville has gained repeated recognition as one of Money Magazine's "Best Places in America". The climate (four seasons) is terrific. The topography, the environment, the charm, make this a most desirable area.
About Marina E. Ringstrom:
Marina Ringstrom knows Charlottesville ...."IT'S MY HOME!" ....my local market knowledge may very well be the Key to YOUR NEW HOME. As a former real estate marketing director and copy writer I know what attracts buyers..... in addition, I believe in creativity and hard work.
My family and I love the Charlottesville area and have called it home since 1996. Since relocating from Manhattan by way of Stockholm, Sweden, I understand the meaning of home and will be delighted to assist you in finding yours.
Whether it's New Construction, a previously owned property, golf course homesite , land with views, or a trendy condominium downtown, beautiful Charlottesville has it all!
These reports reflect the views and opinions of their authors and are not necessarily the views and opinions of Realty Times.
