HOW STRONG IS THE STAR VALLEY MARKET?
The major factor weighing on everyone’s mind is “when is this recession going to end?” With only three Farm & Ranch sales in the entire valley and a 61% decline in number of vacant land transactions from 2008, sellers are facing a harsh reality. In 2009 Star Valley started to see an increase in the number of distressed properties. Three of the most common forms of distressed properties are REO’s (Bank Owned Properties), Foreclosures and Short Sales (properties that are selling for less than the loan amount). At the time of writing this report the MLS showed a total of 24 (11 REO’s and 13 short sales). As a result buyers are purchasing properties being sold at knockdown prices by owners struggling to sell. Homes in Northern Star Valley were surprisingly the only area in the valley that did not see a decline in average sales price in 2009. In fact, the average sale price went up 2%. However, we do not expect for this to continue in 2010 due to the number of distressed properties coming o
