New Hampshire Housing Update

Bedford, NH - NOTE: While NAI Norwood Group focuses on commercial real estate, our affiliate firm Real Living The Norwood Group is a 100% residential real estate brokerage operation. As the two markets are so linked, we felt a midyear review of the housing market would be helpful to all property owners. – Editor.

Nationally the housing market is heaving through the challenges of a recovery. We all knew the upswing would not be an easy climb and we are seeing that now. CNN Money discussed on August 5th that home ownership dropped to its lowest levels since 1965. We are currently as a nation at 65.9% as opposed to 2004 when home ownership was at 69.2%. As more people nationally flock to the rental market, CNN Money also reported in July that the national foreclosure rate plummeted 29% compared to this same time last year. What are we to make of these conflicting reports locally?

New Hampshire has always been unique. Through this downturn, despite the State’s budget gap, there is positive news. The state’s unemployment numbers have been hovering around 5% in 2011 while the rate of the nation is nearly twice that. Along with our strong unemployment numbers the state’s residential market has stabilized. While the number of homes sold declined over the first two quarters of this year compared to last, the average sales price of these homes were up marginally. The numbers vary largely throughout the state. The Seacoast area is recovering quicker than the northern part of the State; the lower to mid range homes are recovering more quickly than larger homes.

On foreclosures the Granite State has given different results in 2011 than the national figures. While CNN was reporting national foreclosures being down, from 2010 to 2011, New Hampshire saw an increase of foreclosures in the first two quarters of 20%. Conversely the State also saw a decrease in the number of foreclosure notices dropped over that same period, giving thought that the system is working through and that the rest of the year will see a decline in these numbers.

In addition we have seen the number of conventional loans (versus, FHA, VA etc) increase, denoting that more people are tapping into traditional sources. This is encouraging because this means more people are “financeable” through traditional lending means which increases turnover time and helps with more buyers in the market.

The forecast moving forward appears to be the same to slightly positive. What the numbers do not describe are the number of people actively searching, attending open houses and putting offers in. As recently described by one Real Living The Norwood Group team member, “July was the busiest month we have had since 2006.” People are still out searching for homes at good prices with great interest rates, trying to capitalize now, versus the unknown of the future.

In the end only time will tell, Libya, the Debt Ceiling and the Tsunami have jittered a recovering national economy. However through this all, the New Hampshire market is stabilizing and as the NAI Norwood Group team will tell, there are job creators out there adding new space, which is a good sign moving forward.


Ed Buczynski
Senior Vice President
Real Living The Norwood Group