Real estate market begins to rebound

MINERAL COUNTY – The economy appears to be on the rebound in Mineral County.

Figures for 2013 and so far in 2014 indicate that real estate sales are stronger than when the economy was on the downfall five or six years ago, according to Judy Stang, real estate broker for Spangler Realty.

“Sales are up this year and also last year,” Stang said. “There is still a lot for sale so the prices have not went up.”

Stang said overall it is still a buyer’s market meaning that prospective home buyers may be able to find a steal from a seller who wants to get rid of their home or property that may have been on the market for months or years.

“A lot of the residential sales have appraised for more than the sale price so that is a good indicator things are on the rebound,” Stang said. “Most of our buyers come from the areas where they are rebounding and are able to sell their homes.”

Foreclosures have also leveled off, and are usually sold below market value because the banks are looking to only recover some of their money.

Although foreclosures are falling slightly, Stang said she still sees a few new ones pop-up from time to time.

Stang reports that at Spangler, 2014 has been huge so far mostly between January and March. Even though that is the case, sales have still been steady at this time of the year.

“Bare land is still taking forever to sell,” Stang said. “It is still cheaper to buy a place already built than to buy the land and pay for all of the improvements.”

However, she said that river lots are moving better than other empty lots, but are still selling at 40 percent lower than in 2006 and 2007.

Anita Bailey of Regent Realty concurred with Stang on a lot of the same instances that have been happening in her office.

“There have been more houses and land sales in Mineral County this year than the last several years at this time,” Bailey said. “The prices are not going up yet, but people are buying.”

The notorious high unemployment in the area has been one of the reasons for the amount of homes that are generally on the market. Along with this fact, the county hasn’t been the booming town it once was.

Many people living here are retired, or have died leaving the property to family members who often attempt to sell the unwanted homes, which saturates the market.

“I’m optimistic for real estate sales this year because summer is usually our busiest time,” Bailey said. “It’s still a buyers market here, and there are a lot of properties for sale.”