Editor’s note: This “snapshot” of real estate activity in Southern Berkshire County is the first of three reports by Sandy Carroll, Chief Executive Officer of the Berkshire County Board of REALTORS. Central Berkshires will appear next week, followed by Northern Berkshires.
Asking prices in southern Berkshire county have long been unrealistically high. The proof is not only the number recited above (time needed to sell), but also seeing the same listings over and over again, month after month. I believe part of the problem is the high percentage of second home ownership. By definition, owners have sufficient wealth to own two houses. Many are from New York City or Boston, where home prices have often risen greater than the inflation rate. Perhaps owners expect that here and refuse to sell at a price which reflects the true value of the property. Often owners have the financial resources to keep the property thinking they won’t sell unless they get “their price”.
I had fully intended to buy a bigger home here to retire and reside full time, but it was difficult to find suitable properties priced to reflect their true value in a county with a declining population and few good job opportunities for young people. Instead, I moved to Saratoga County, New York, where the population is growing faster than any other upstate county, where buyers get more for their money than in Berkshire County, where there is lots of new construction, and where is much more to do, more restaurants and bars, an equal amount of cultural activities, and young people moving here from other places.
I wish I had a solution. I have a lifetime connection to the Berkshires and I’m sure I would be a full time resident if only asking prices reflected reality.