Hyped Up

The media is certainly getting some mileage out of the idea that the housing industry is in recession. I am frequently asked about the housing bubble bursting, and many people comment on the well-publicized buyer's market.

My response is always the same. The media is blowing things out of proportion, at least here in the areas that make up Cheese Country - Monroe, Green County, Lafayette County and northern Illinois. Things are returning to normal after an incredible year in 2005. It would not be normal or healthy for the market to remain long term at 2005 rate of growth.

In 2004, 386 residential properties sold in Green County. In 2006, 378 residential properties were sold in Green County. This is not a huge drop. Even in 2005, the boom year, that number of residential properties sold only went up to 408. The fact that prices and home sales have not remained at the 2005 rates is a good thing for the long term health of the real estate market in our area.

In between 2000 and 2003, the number of residential properties sold in Green Country varied from 299 to 348. At the current rate of sale, 2007 should finish with 350 residential properties selling.

The market here has not done the drastic flip that it did in places like Minneapolis and San Francisco. It has not dropped off terribly; it is not depressed. Cheese Country still has a vibrant real estate market with something to suit everyone's taste and budget.