Yates homes sales are down 16 percent; Schuyler down 10

YATES, SCHUYLER COUNTIES—Homes sales are down double digits in both Yates and Schuyler Counties for 2012.
According to the Greater Rochester Association of Realtors (GRAR), 210 homes were sold in Yates County during 2012. This is down 16 percent from the 251 homes sold in 2011.
Yates previously experienced a 3 percent increase in sales after the 2012 third quarter ended, January to September. However, the fourth quarter of 2012 was 50 percent less than the same quarter in 2011. This put the overall number of sales down 16 percent.
The total number of listings in Yates County is also down. The GRAR reports there were 384 homes for sale last year. In 2011, there were 463 listings, a 17 percent decrease.
At the same time, the median price increased 5 percent. In 2012, the price for a Yates County home was $126,000. In 2011 it was $119,900.
Realtor Mark Moon explained there are some areas with very few listings. He said a person looking for a home right now in Penn Yan would find almost no homes for sale. Moon also attributed the drop in sales to the economy. He said it “did slow down. It hasn’t made huge strides.”
Like Yates, Schuyler County’s home sales are down by double digits. According to the Elmira-Corning Regional Association of Realtors, 107 homes were sold in 2012. This is down 10 percent, from 119 homes, in 2011. The median home price experienced a 2 percent drop, to $122,500 in 2012 from $125,000 in 2011.
Elmira-Corning Regional Board of Realtors President Faye Guild-Nash pointed out the number of homes in the area is limited, which is the reason for the drop in sales. She explained “inventory being down is a contributing factor.”
However, Guild-Nash also said there are a number of homes selling at higher prices. She explained the average home sale price for Schuyler in 2012 was $159,273. The median price is the middle number in the full list of prices; the average is calculated by adding all home prices and dividing it by the total number of those sales. Guild-Nash said the limited number of homes helps keep up the cost of some houses. She added another contributing factor was the sale of lake properties.
“As long as the interest rate stays down and a huge influx comes in, I think (the market) will stay stable,” said Guild-Nash.
The GRAR also reports that regionally the number of homes sold is up 8 percent. The median sale price is also up 4 percent. GRAR includes data from Genesee, Livingston, Monroe, Ontario, Orleans and Wayne Counties.