It’s a seller’s market.
The trend of sharply rising home prices in the Mid-Hudson Valley driven by urban residents fleeing the misery of lockdown apartment life that began nearly a year ago is continuing into the 2021, according to data provided by the Ulster County Board of Realtors.
The average selling price for Ulster County homes jumped 44 percent from January 2020 to 2021, from $270,842 to $390,581.
In addition, more homes were sold — 186 in January 2021 vs 112 in January 2020 — and homes for sale spent less time on the market, declining from an average of 90 days in January 2020 to 52 days in January 2021.
The recent increases come as home prices were already on the rise. From 2013 to 2019, the average sale price of a single-family home increased by 17 percent in Ulster County, according to the Ulster County Housing Action Plan, released last week. That plan also emphasized the issue of affordability, noting that incomes in the county had remained stagnant over the last decade for all but the highest earners, and that approximately 13 percent of owners and 30 percent of renters in Ulster County spend more than half of their income on housing costs, an amount that makes them considered “severely cost burdened.”
This is good news for homeowners that are selling, but bad news for folks in the region that want to buy a home here. The inflated prices (and high taxes that inevitably go along with them) make it impossible for many to buy a home here. And, yet, some folks find themselves owning homes of far greater value than what they paid for them.
The people buying the houses locally aren’t scared of the high taxes, they are city people that are used to high taxes. The taxes in Saugerties are childs play compared to the city.
I agree that buyers from New York City are not scared of the high taxes here. Part of the reason is that many buyers from the city do not own homes there, so they are not paying property taxes there. In fact, 2/3 of NYC residents rent their homes. One other point, though, is that NYC property owners on average pay a significantly LOWER property tax rate than the statewide average, and shockingly less than those in Ulster County.
NYC property tax average is .88%
Statewide average is 1.69%
Ulster County average is 2.4%
Granted, NYC has a small local income tax that is added to the usual income tax burden of living in New York.
But my concern in the first post was more for the people who already live in Ulster County that wish to buy a home. As prices skyrocket (up 44% from last year), more and more people are being priced out.