Property Tax Payment Due June 15

This year my wife and I won't forget to ask each other whether one of us paid the first half property taxes! Judith and I did forget one year, and to our chagrin learned that the penalty is 10% of the payment amount, several hundred dollars in our case. There's interest on the unpaid amount, too.

Most people have their property taxes paid from their lender's escrow account, so no worries. But if you don't have an escrow, you have to remember to pay that first half tax bill with a check mailed by midnight next Thursday, June 15. (They don't have to receive it, just have it postmarked by then.)

If over the years you have built up a substantial equity in your property and there is still in place an escrow for taxes and insurance, consider asking your lender to excuse you from it. Assuming you are a good money manager, pay these bills yourself when they are due. Otherwise you are simply making your lender an interest-free loan of more than enough money to cover these expenses!

If you closed a purchase or sale this year it is likely that the taxes were paid for the year at that time. There would have been a proration between buyer and seller. Don't forget to write off your share when you do your taxes next year.

Don't bother with the options of paying by direct debit, or credit card. They charge 3%, more than the cost of just buying airline miles, if that's your motivation.

These and other FAQ's are on the MUNI's web site at this location.

For full property searches, virtual tours and many other Anchorage real estate resources, visit RealS8.com.

Niel's Web Resources Enhanced

I'm offering enhanced resources for sellers, as well as buyers, on my web site. "What's My Home Worth" is especially popular. Owners can get an EMail valuation. The Seller-oriented page is here.

The equivalent page for Buyers is here.

People tell me the Anchorage Real Estate Podcast, a short on-line radio interview on market conditions, is a first for Anchorage real estate information. And the push-to-talk-to-me button is popular: even my mother in Vermont uses it.

For full property searches, virtual tours and many other Anchorage real estate resources, visit RealS8.com.

Building Permits Hold Steady

The MOA Building Safety folks report 164 new home permits issued through April this year, the same as last year. In 2004 and 2003, however, the equivalent permit level was about 50% more, around 250 each year. Land use permits for Eagle River totaled 77, the same as last year.

The MOA's system for reporting remodeling permits was changed this year to include everything that requires a permit, such as replacing a water heater. Now it is not as easy from their reports to track whether larger-scale remodeling activity is up.

From industry contacts and conversations with contractors, however, it does appear that more people are undertaking to update and even expand their homes. This could be attributed in part to fewer new homes available. But also we have a large number of homes that are now 25 years old from the early 80's building boom that are in need of modernization.

For full property searches, virtual tours and many other Anchorage real estate resources, visit RealS8.com.

Anchorage Home Sale Prices Top $300,000

The average year-to-date selling price of a home in Anchorage has just topped $300,000. At the same time last year it was a little under $270,000. By contrast with the Lower 48, however, Anchorage homes are less costly. Average home values in many equivalent markets are closer to $400,000 at this time.

The year-to-date total of closed sale reports reaching Alaska MLS Inc. through April is lower this year: 822 vs. 899. These are reports of contracts agreed to a month or two earlier in most cases. The data through May should be available in about two weeks.

Meanwhile, the number of homes listed for sale at the end of every month this year has been higher than most years since 2002. For the past four years the springtime inventory has been around 500. This April the inventory rose to 622, higher than any late winter and spring inventory levels since 2001.

Given that prices are continuing to rise, I would say that inventories have not yet reached levels where supply exceeds demand.

For full property searches, virtual tours and many other Anchorage real estate resources, visit RealS8.com.

Homes by Email

No need to contact a real estate licensee to get daily reports of homes for any profile you specify, straight to your Email inbox. Use this link.

For full property searches, virtual tours and many other Anchorage real estate resources, visit RealS8.com.

Quick and Easy MLS Access

Find all the MLS listings in one place, no hassle access. The same database, the same listings, that all the real estate licensees work from. Use this link.

For full property searches, virtual tours and many other Anchorage real estate resources, visit RealS8.com.

Unrepresented Owner?

Trying to sell a property without professional representation? (FSBO) Please a free web ad, with no licensee involvement or representation. Buyers will contact you directly. Use this link.

For full property searches, virtual tours and many other Anchorage real estate resources, visit RealS8.com.

Free Home Sale Preparation

If you are planning a home sale anytime soon, get the free web-based presentation to prepare you for the process. You can also order the CD version, with many interactive features. Use the links at the top of this page at RealS8.com.

For full property searches, virtual tours and many other Anchorage real estate resources, visit RealS8.com.

What's My Home Worth?

Get an analysis of your home's worth e-mailed to your in-box, without even the need to call me, or any real estate licensee. Use this link.

For full property searches, virtual tours and many other Anchorage real estate resources, visit RealS8.com.

MLS Annual Statistics Posted

MLS came out with its annual market statistics for 2005 this week. While none of the market-wide reports carry any big surprises, there are some factoids deeper in the data I found interesting:

• The average selling price of the 132 new and existing homes in the south part of Hillside last year was almost $550,000. This represents a whopping 16.2% price increase over 2004 and 34.8% above the end of 2003.
• The average time on market for a resale home, or a condo, in Anchorage was only 32 days, the shortest in 11 years. (In 1994 the average was 71 days for houses, 106 days for condos.)
• Existing homes in Anchorage posted a 13.0% gain, compared with 17.3% for new construction. This reflects the increasing shortage of buildable home sites, and dramatic increases on the cost of construction materials. The blended rate of increase of both existing and new homes, 3261 sales, was 12.51%.
• There were 11 homes sale reports over $1 million, compared with seven in 2004. Three of the 2005 million dollar homes were new construction; only one was in 2004.
• Seven percent of the 3261 homes sold in 2005 were above $500,000. The year before the proporation of half-million dollar homes was only 4.52% of sales. Five years ago, in the year 2000, only 2.3% of homes sold were priced above even $400,000, the top price bracket that MLS tracked before 2004.
• New construction condo sales surged to an average selling price over $200,000 for the first time in history. The average was influenced by the construction and sale of 39 new condos in several projects downtown with an average selling price of nearly $354,000.
• With the advent of site condo construction in 2001, MLS has reported between 411 and 471 new construction condo sales per year until last year. Suddenly the total last year jumped to 577 new units.
• The gap between last price an existing home sold for and its listed price at the time last year was 1.0% compared with 1.5% in 2004.

For full property searches, virtual tours and many other Anchorage real estate resources, visit RealS8.com.