The light at the end of the tunnel may not be a train, after all. While real estate has had a rough few years and we now realize how much it is intertwined into our national economy, the three most important words in real estate are still true: Location, Location, Location. Our Location is wonderful.
GOOD NEWS - PART ONE
GAINESVILLE & HALL COUNTY real estate was great in 2010 compared to our neighbors and is predicted to get even better. Hall County outperformed the U.S., Georgia, and all of our neighbors in the percentage increase in the number of single family home sales from 2009 to 2010. The following data was retrieved from GAMLS, FMLS, and NAR. When researching the actual number of single family home sales in 2009 and in 2010 we found that the following areas saw declines: The United States declined 6.4%; Georgia declined 8%; the northern Atlanta counties of Gwinnett, Dekalb, Barrow, Jackson, Cobb, and Cherokee all saw declines ranging from .5% to 15.4%. The great news is that 4 northern Atlanta counties saw increases in the number of single family home sales: North Fulton increased 3.3%; Dawson County increased 3.9%; Forsyth County increased 4.5%; and, the brightest spot of all--Hall County-- increased 9.7%.
GOOD NEWS - PART TWO
An article published on February 10, 2011, by CBSMONEYWATCH.com contains even more good news for our area. This article lists the biggest year-over-year winners and losers in real estate in the United States for 2010. The data they used was from Zillow and included the percentage gain or loss in home values for the fourth quarter 2010 versus fourth quarter 2009.
This article is quoted as saying, “Despite the tough economy and struggling housing market, these cities managed to increase their home values. Travel and population hotspots like New York, California and Hawaii predictably did well, but there are quite a few surprising cities on the list.”
The Biggest Winners with the Highest Year-Over-Year Home Value Gain are:
1. Ann Arbor, MI (Gain: 11.3%); 2. Gainesville, GA (Gain: 8.4%); 3. Honolulu, HI (Gain: 4.0%); 4. Madera, CA (Gain: 3.8%); 5. Merced, CA (Gain: 2.6%); 6. Cape Cod, MA (Gain: 1.9%); 7. Cedar Rapids, IA (Gain: 1.0%); 8. Binghamton, NY (Gain: 1.0%); 9. Utica, NY (Gain: 0.7%); 10. Virginia Beach, VA (Gain: 0.6%).
The Biggest Losers: with the Highest Year-Over-Year Home Value Loss are:
1. Pueblo, CO (Loss: -23.7%); 2. Mobile, AL (Loss: -18.5%); 3. Ocala, FL (Loss: -18.2%); 4. Detroit, MI (Loss: -17.4%); 5. Lansing, MI (Loss: -16.6%); 6. Miami-Fort Lauderdale, FL (Loss: -15.4%); 7. Atlanta, GA (Loss: -15.3%); 8. Lakeland, FL (Loss: -14.8%); 9. Flagstaff, AZ (Loss: -14.7%); 10. Melbourne, FL (Loss: -14.5%).
Our Location is the home for our Governor, Lt Governor, and Chair of the GA Chamber of Commerce. Our location is now the real estate leader for our region, our state, and our nation. The best Location is here. Things are getting better. Spread the good news.
R. Brad Abernathy
Abernathy Cochran Group
The Norton Agency
