Real Estate Sales up 228%, Record Year for Red River, NM

What recession? 2011 was a record year in terms of total Real Estate sales and sold price per property in Red River. Total sale were 228 percent higher then the previous year topping out at just over 12 million dollars in total sales. The average "Sold" price also set a record with an increase of 54% with each property selling for  just over $287,000 on average.
So what is going on? 2010 did see a decrease in total sales volume, however, the properties that did sell in 2010 were definitely less expensive on average and in both years ended up selling at around 92% of asking price indicating that the sellers were not beaten down in price in either year in order to sell.  2011 saw a lot more money come into the market with buyers willing to buy the larger and more expensive properties.
Will the trend continue into 2012? No one know for sure but from my perspective I see the nicer well priced homes moving relatively quickly. The market is currently lacking inventory but that is relatively typical for mid winter. If you are in the market to buy keep an eye out in the next few months as more properties will come on the market for the summer season. If you are in the market to sell, give me a call so we can get a jump on marketing your property to summer buyers.

Rob Swan
Resort Realty
575-770-2958

Recap of 2009 Red River, NM. Real Estate market

Recap of 2009 Real Estate market in Red River, NM.

Red River has once again proven that this is a great place to invest or buy a vacation home. 

Heres some numbers from 2009:

Although Red River did experience a slight decrease, prices and volume held up remarkably well.

Volume went from 45 units sold in 2008 to 40 units sold in 2009  (11% decrease)

Total dollars sold went from 9.5 million to 7.7 million (9% decrease)

The average sale price did drop from 213,000 to 193,000. (9% decrease)

One interesting thing was the days on market actually dropped 10% meaning that the properties that sold were on the market 10% less time than they were in 2008. So the buyers are there.

So overall we had about a 10% decrease in activity but lets compare this with the stock market. From it's peak to the date of this writing the stock market has lost about 25% of it's value. Many real estate markets  have had up to 50% decreases in value. OK, I know we haven't kept up with Gold prices but we also aren't hawking Red River Real Estate on prime time TV and I can promise you having a vacation home in Red River is way more fun than the Gold or the Stock Market. 

In 2009 properties in Red River sold for an average of 90% of asking price, and remember they sold in 10% less time than they did in 2008. 

So is Red River the Shangri La of Real estate investment? 

mmmm, yes!, and right now it's snowing like crazy. I think I'll go skiing this afternoon.

Please call or stop by if you have any questions about buying or selling your Red River home.

Rob Swan

swan754@gmail.com

Resort Realty

575.770.2958

Red River, NM, October list of home price reductions

Here is the October list of selected homes that have had significant price reductions. If you are looking for a deal, use this list as a starting point.
Click here for a link to the MLS listings for more detailed information on each property listed below.

If you would like further information or would like to schedule a showing feel free to give me a call.

MLS #	Asking Price	Original Price	Type	Beds	Baths	Address
82349	$240,000	$325,000	House	3	1.5	20  Riverside Drive
86909	$249,000	$310,000	House	3	2	1  Sangre De Cristo Dri.
85597	$249,500	$299,500	House	3	2	720  E High Street
86527	$250,000	$299,500	House	2	1	212  Heartbreak Tr.
85102	$259,000	$285,000	House	3	2	62  Upper Valley
87351	$299,500	$329,500	Townhouse	3	2.5	1102B  East High St.
85219	$335,000	$415,000	House	2	2	35  Mt Shadows #1
84134	$375,000	$750,000	House	4	2	324 A  Stagecoach Bend
84186	$495,000	$675,000	House	3	3	1638  Bobcat Peak
83877	$990,000	$1,500,000	House	5	5	1533  Youngs Ranch Rd.

Don't give potential buyers a "To Do" list

Selling your home? Don't give buyers a "To Do" list.
As soon as you put your home on the market, you are in the home selling business. Most sellers want top dollar for their properties but then leave a lot to be desired in the condition of the home. Now nobody expect sellers to do a full remodel before selling, but how about cleaning the carpet if it's dirty, replacing rotten boards in a deck, touch up the landscaping a bit or just cutting down the weeds around the house. None of these things cost much but can go a long ways in making your house look better to a potential buyer.
It is a very normal occurrence for a buyer to walk into a house and start thinking about what they can do to make it better. Every time they mention an improvement, the more money they may attempt to discount from the asking price, or if the list gets too big they will just move on to the next house.
When you list your house, ask the Realtor what you should do to get the fastest sale at the best price. Then work with them to achieve your common goals and keep that potential buyers "To Do" list as small as possible.

What will you do to sell my home?

How exactly are you going to try and sell my home? This is the question that any potential seller should be asking, but far too many do not. It used to be that an ad in the paper and a Polaroid picture on a flyer would suffice as advertising. Those days are long gone.
Then there was a time when a seller would be impressed when the brokerage would tell them that their property would be on "The Internet", not knowing that even in it's infancy, the internet still had millions of pages and websites without an effective way to sort through them.
Now the seller needs to ask, exactly where and how do you advertise on the Internet. Internet advertising can and will vary widely between brokerages. Almost every brokerage these days has a website and some may only place your listing on their brokerage website. Then there's brokerages which not only have their own websites, but also use many Internet syndication techniques in order to maximize the exposure for their clients. This is the broker you want to look for.
So how can you tell who is doing what, and which brokerage should you use to list your property? The first step is to ask. Where on the internet do you advertise? If they mention their website and can't offer anything else, then you need to look for another broker. "The proof is in the pudding", if the brokerage is truly doing a great job of internet advertising then it will show up when you compare the listings sold with other brokerages. According to the National Real Estate Association, 80% of home buyers use the Internet to aid in their search so a potential buyer better be able to easily find your property.
The internet is a dynamic place that is always changing. Internet marketing is a lot of work and has to be continually managed. Ads expire and are automatically deleted from websites. Website traffic can change, making a formerly insignificant site very relevant, so you can see how important routine maintenance and diligence can be. What worked last month may have to be re-adjusted or changed to work this month.
Make sure you are comfortable with how your property is being marketed and be sure to ask a lot of questions. If you are thinking about listing your property, ask us how we advertise at Resort Realty, we have lots of answers.

Seller Financing, it never hurts to ask

Seller Financing, it never hurts to ask. The last piece I wrote consisted of a list of properties in Red River where the sellers had made it public knowledge that they were willing to seller finance. But what about all the other properties out there? Will those sellers finance? The only way to really find out is to ask.
Property owners may be more or less likely to be willing to owner finance depending upon their situation.
Situations that may be beneficial for the seller to finance:
1) The seller has title free and clear with no existing mortgage in place
2) The seller has an existing mortgage in place and the seller is willing to do a wraparound so that the payments received from the new buyer will eventually pay off the existing mortgage and possible make the seller some extra money also.
3) The seller would like to receive the interest income that would otherwise go to the bank.
Situations that may not be beneficial for the seller to finance:
1) The owner will need to receive all the money in one lump some in order to purchase a replacement house for themselves.
2) The property has been inherited by the heirs and now there are several people involved.
3) The owner plans on using the proceeds in a 1031 tax deferred exchange to purchase more property.
There is always the chance that you may want a piece of property and not know anything about the sellers situation. In this case just ask. The easiest way to ask is to have have me write up an offer with a "Seller Financing Addendum" attached to it. Your purchase agreement will now be contingent upon the owner agreeing to finance all or a portion depending upon what you specified in the addendum. If the seller doesn't agree, then you have no further commitments and the entire agreement is void.
The more enticing you make your offer, the more likely the seller will be interested. Make sure the terms of your offer are fair, and remember that all of this is negotiable. The more down payment you can come up with, the more comfortable this will make the seller. If you need lower payments then you can amortize over a longer period of time, but keep in mind, most sellers don't want to wait 20 or 30 years to be paid off. In this case you can still do a 30 year amortization to keep the payments low, but just add a balloon that will come due at an earlier time. This just means that you will have to refinance when the balloon comes due. If you have been prompt on payments, the original seller may even do the refinance for you. Again, all you can do is ask and everything is negotiable.
In the past year, I have sold one of my own properties with seller financing and have two more on the market, both with seller financing options. With banks asking for more and more from prospective buyers, seller financing has worked out well for me and the buyers.

National Georaphic Adventure Magazine article on Red River, NM

I have been in Red River, NM  for over 21 years and I have always known what a great place it is. Apparently now, so does National Geographic. The article below is a re-print from the Oct. 2009 issue.



Q: Just Graduated?
A: Wait out the worst job market in 20 years in...

RED RIVER, NEW MEXICO

Pop. 515

Carved into a sandstone canyon in the Sangre de Cristo Mountains, Red River is an ideal recessionary hideout: Lift tickets at the Red River Ski Area are almost half of what you’d pay in most Rockies resorts. Fat Tire drafts are $3. And when your parents (inevitably) come to check in, you can even pick up the tab—a night’s stay at the Alpine Lodge on Main Street is $83 in peak season. Bucky Thrash, 27, came to visit a college friend and liked the cheap, no-stoplight living so much that he quit his job as a marketing consultant in Fort Worth and relocated, quickly landing gigs as a bartender and ski instructor. “Nothing is corporate here,” he says. “Not even the ski area. You have to drive an hour just to find a McDonald’s.”
Red River began as a prospecting town, but powderhounds gave it new life after the mines went bust. Today the ski area has 57 trails and seven lifts connecting the mountain directly to Main Street’s hodgepodge of Old West and Swiss Alpine facades. Après ski season, Red River, at 8,750 feet, stays cooler than much of the Southwest (July temps rarely top 75&176;F) with easy access to the cottonwood-covered mountains of Carson National Forest. Hike eight-mile Wheeler Peak Trail to the state’s 13,161-foot high point. Or raft the Class III Rio Grande with New Mexico Adventure Company (bighornsports.us ).
Closer to home, Red River’s community center organizes free activities up to five times a day—outdoor movies, group hikes, BBQ cook-offs. Our advice: Take advantage of them; career options are limited. (The mayor not only sells real estate but owns the lone food market with her husband.) And when the economy picks up, be ready to get creative with your résumé: “Mixologist” has a much better ring to it than “barback.”
$400 monthly rent gets you: A one-bedroom apartment, ten minutes’ walk to the ski area.
Job market:Bartending and ski instructing pay the bills. Careers outside of tourism are hard to come by.
Know before you go: Red River is entirely surrounded by national forest—1.5 million acres of it.
BY THE NUMBERS:
$61:Lift ticket at Red River Ski Area
28: Hot springs within an hour’s drive
218: Inches of powder a year