After 30 years of real estate management and teaching the business to hundreds of agents, I now focus solely on helping my clients buy and sell homes. But now, I also have time to share my experiences, knowledge, and insight with the readers of Lowell’s First Look, on a monthly basis. I invite your ongoing questions, whether you are planning on purchasing your very first home or your next home, or your last home. Just email me your questions at [email protected].
March 2021 Edition
The Latest Statistics and The Value of a Property Survey
Average Sale Price Since 2011 – Lowell Schools (Green) vs. Entire MLS (Blue)
2021 Statistics Year-To-Date
Average Sale Prices – Year-To-Date Through February 2021
| School District | Average Sale Price |
| Forest Hills | $458,905 |
| Caledonia | $348,167 |
| Rockford | $338,581 |
| Lowell | $302,059 |
| Saranac | $219,411 |
| Lakewood | $182,156 |
| Belding | $177,952 |
Statistics courtesy of GRAR is the Greater Regional Alliance of Realtors.
The Lowell housing market remains swift, which is great for sellers and challenging for buyers. These averages are only through the first two months of 2021. However, they are relatively close to the twelve-month averages for 2020 for all the school district market areas. Interest rates spiked a bit a couple weeks ago due to fears of rising inflation. As of this writing, those fears have subsided and rates are expected to remain low, with mortgage demand expected to remain high.
Market Inventory – At the End of February 2021
| Location/School District | Homes Currently for Sale | Months of Supply |
| Entire MLS – GRAR* | 5,226 | 1.8 |
| Forest Hills | 121 | 1.8 |
| Rockford | 118 | 1.7 |
| Caledonia | 66 | 1.8 |
| Lowell | 28 | 1.0 |
| Lakewood | 18 | 1.5 |
| Belding | 15 | 1.9 |
| Saranac | 8 | 1.3 |
*MLS is Multiple Listing Service. GRAR is the Greater Regional Alliance of Realtors. Coverage area includes all of Kent and Ionia Counties, northern Barry County (inclusive of Gun Lake) and southeastern Ottawa County. Statistics courtesy of GRAR is the Greater Regional Alliance of Realtors.
“Months of Supply” refers to the number of months it would take for the current inventory of homes on the market to sell given the current sales pace. Historically, six months of supply is associated with moderate price appreciation, and a lower level of months’ supply tends to push prices up more rapidly. Lack of housing inventory continues to be the big question everywhere, especially in high demand areas. The Months of Supply has increased a bit recently, but remains very low, which provides for less choices for buyers.
As we enter the Spring Market, buyer demand in Lowell, Saranac and Lakewood continues to affect housing availability. Lowell has 1.0 Month of Supply, which is nearly half of the Months of Supply within the total MLS (1.8).
Days on the Market – At the End of February 2021
| Location/School District | Average Days On Market |
| Caledonia | 14 |
| Saranac | 13 |
| Entire MLS | 9 |
| Forest Hills | 9 |
| Lakewood | 9 |
| Rockford | 8 |
| Belding | 7 |
| Lowell | 6 |
Statistics courtesy of GRAR is the Greater Regional Alliance of Realtors.
Days on the Market is a measurement of the demand swiftness. This number shows how many days the average listing stays on the market before there is a binding agreement. As the above graph shows, homes in the Lowell School District are selling within a week after hitting the market, not leaving much time for many buyers to have an opportunity.
Why Do You Need A Property Survey?
Property boundary disputes are one of the more common real estate problems that can easily be avoided. A property survey verifies a property’s boundary lines and legal description. It also determines and notes other recorded land restrictions or easements included with the property. Any homeowner can certainly obtain a property survey at any time to confirm the boundaries of their land. However, those verifications are an important part of the home buying process before a buyer goes to the closing table.
Unfortunately, a property survey is not legally required in Michigan, and is rarely required by the buyer’s lender, and therefore is often bypassed during the negotiation process between buyer and seller. Since a survey cost can vary from $250-$500 for a small residential city lot; to $600-$1,200 (or more) for an acreage size lot, neither the buyer nor seller wants to incur the cost. Therefore, if a survey is not required or a survey is not addressed in the purchase agreement, then it does not happen.
An encroachment is when a property has an improvement that crosses the property line and “encroaches” on another property. Such an encroachment can be in the form of a home, outbuilding, driveway, fence, etc. An encroachment can happen either as a neighbor encroaching on the subject property that is for sale, or the subject property can be encroaching on a neighboring property. Many times, an encroachment is not obvious or apparent. A seller may not know of an encroachment, which complicates the problem further, as the Seller Disclosure Statement addresses the question of the seller’s knowledge but is limited to what the seller knows. The very best time to cure a problem is before a buyer completes a purchase. If the problem is too complicated or the neighbor denies working toward a resolution, the buyer may wish to terminate the agreement and not proceed and be the new owner of the problem.
Another benefit of a survey to a buyer is that all easements and other recorded land agreements contained in a Title Insurance policy may be able to be drawn in the sketch of the property diagram. Title Insurance is addressed in all purchase agreements anyway, so it is not an additional expense for the research.
Keep in mind, a real estate transfer of ownership is based on a legal description, not an address. If a seller refuses to pay for a survey and a buyer decides not to spend the money, then the buyer is taking on all the risks and boundary problems after the closing.
Rather than stop the negotiation pertaining to the cost responsibility of a survey, there should be a continuance of discussion by asking if there is an existing survey that may provide for a less expensive updated version. An existing survey may be complete enough to reduce the risk greatly or completely. Another potential consideration is to have the buyer and seller share the cost of the new property survey. Regardless, it is for the benefit of the buyer and the future use of the buyer, especially if there are plans to install a fence or storage building. Finally, if the buyer obtains a survey, they will know with confidence that there are no encroachment problems. Additionally, they can locate exactly where the boundary corners are. In the future, that newly obtained survey can come in handy, as it will carry some negotiation value when re-selling the property.
Rick Seese works with buyers and sellers of residential, commercial, and industrial real estate. He is an Associate Broker with Greenridge Realty, Inc. and has been licensed full-time for over 40 years. If you’re interested in reaching out to Rick for more information, or have a question for the monthly article, you can contact him via email ([email protected]), visit his website at www.rickseese.com or Facebook page at (www.facebook.com/Rick Seese), or call/text him at 616-437-2576.
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