I was with other people from my office in a car caravan as we toured recently listed homes. One property was near White River north of Broad Ripple close to where the Monon Trail crosses. This section of the trail affords possibly some of the prettiest scenery it has to offer. Everyone in my car was very patient and gave me a minute to take a few shots.
Here’s a graphic representation of market activity in the nine county greater metropolitan Indianapolis area over the last 15 months, that compares the number of residential properties on the market to the number sold/closed and with a sale pending. There are a large number of homes on the market compared to the number that are actually being sold each month. What this tells me is there are a lot of people who want to move if they could…meaning pent-up demand. Looking at the numbers for March 2011 alone, 1990 homes have a sale pending compared to 14,872 homes still on the market…or about an 7.5 month supply of homes. If you do this same math for other months, that’s an improvement over recent months, but far less than levels seen last year at this time when the government stimulus program encouraged Buyers to move forward. When absorption rates (monthly supply) are between 4 to 7 months, analysts typically consider it a balanced market. Below a 4 month supply, it’s a Sellers market. So at 7.5 months, it’s still somewhat of a Buyers market, but not out of balance drastically.
Price and condition, which are always the key to success for selling, are more important than ever now if you are a Seller. Buyers tend to cherry pick the best listings, which is only natural. So pricing and condition have to be in balance with what else is available on the market if a Seller wants to sell their home.
Spotted this fellow and a couple dozen of his compadres as they combed over an open grassy area foraging for anything resembling a meal. Even though absorbed in what they were doing, they’re still aware enough that none of them would let me get too close to get a good shot…and they kept turning their backs to me, walking away. Finally one flew into the safety of a small tree 25 feet away and unknowingly posed for me for this photo. I don’t recall asking for his permission though. Zooms are especially helpful on occasions such as this. Robins and Spring…one is never here without the other.
The tall pedestal clock in the lobby of Conseco Fieldhouse near the Delaware Street entrance, a reminder that there is very little time remaining in the regular season…just three games left after tonight’s win over the Wizards. What started out as a season of hope for the Pacers, turned into a struggle mid-way, like always I guess. But this time the team worked through that, growing and evolving into one with spirit and passion who is very competitive and capable of beating the top teams in the league. Their play is still inconsistent on occasion, but nevertheless, this team IS going to make the Playoffs this year. That almost sounds funny to say that after five years, but it’s true.
Not that many years ago making the Playoffs for the Pacers was expected, it was just a matter of how many rounds they would advance. Even a shot at the championship was a possibility. But after this drought, fans will take it, even if they hold just the eighth and final spot. Pacer fans are more than ready.
Another Cinderella story in the making? Possibly. Maybe coach Frank Vogel should get some cool glasses like Brad Stevens wore during Butler’s playoff run? Doesn’t hurt to have a good luck charm.
Easily the most efficient design for a home is the traditional two-story. A one-level home with the same square footage costs a lot more to build, as the foundation and roof could be twice the size of it’s two-story version. The electric wiring, water lines and furnace runs needed for a one-level home are longer and therefore add more to building costs too. After being built, a two-story home usually is more efficient to heat and cool as well. But despite those logical reasons for a two-level home, the one-level home becomes the one that’s the most practical at a certain point for most people. The reason is simply the stairs. As people age, having to traverse the stairway over and over becomes less attractive and why they feel like making a change to a one-level home. It’s always been like that, but there is an increasing demand for one-level homes in recent years because the average age in the population is increasing. Some make the change at a younger age than others, but it’s inevitable for most people, that their two-story home will at some point become less attractive to them. The problem is, there really aren’t enough one-level homes around that have the modern amenities and features that people want nowadays. Builders aren’t really building very many spec homes these days, especially one-level varieties. So having a custom home designed and built is sometimes the only solution to get a home exactly like what they want. Even though existing home sales have always been the largest part of my business, helping people with building a new custom home occurs more often than it did before. I think it’s a sign of the times and the increasing popularity of the one-level home. Horizontal living…the idea gets better with age.
