Anything but cold
The January edition of the North Idaho Business Journal illustrates predictions of a good local economy for this new year. Local prognosticators have projected continued improvement in our real estate and employment markets. Their estimates range from 6-8 percent improvement in Kootenai County home prices which, if accurate, will keep pace with recent trends.
If a cold, New Year's day was any indication, the market will indeed continue to be healthy. While many of you were snuggled in, safe from the cold weather and icy side streets and perhaps enjoying your favorite college football team, many local Realtors were at work.
Believe it or not, on a holiday with temperatures below 20 degrees, prospective buyers were out looking at homes. Members of the Coeur d'Alene Association of Realtors not only received inquiries on homes but heard from folks, local and elsewhere, about business opportunities and commercial listings. So much for the winter - especially the holidays - being a bad time to have your real estate on the market. Many Realtors agree that activity this winter so far, has been busier than in recent memory.
As the Journal explained, our local economy is outperforming our neighbor to the west - Spokane. Not only is our real estate moving better and at better prices, but our employment is better. With plenty of job openings and new businesses relocating it is justifiable to be optimistic. No doubt, as word spreads about the activity here, more will want to join in which bodes well for economic stimulus.
It will be next week before we have a complete recap of the 2014 real estate market. The Coeur d'Alene Multiple Listing Service staff will be working tomorrow on compiling those year-end sales that will give us the complete picture. You know from past columns though, that we have surpassed 2006 in our number of homes sold and that we have ended our second consecutive year of appreciating real estate prices and sales volume.
If our new Congress and the president can get along to avoid stalling the economy and if interest rates continue to remain low, the real estate market in North Idaho looks to be anything but cold.
Happy New Year!
Trust an expert...call a Realtor. Call your Realtor or visit www.cdarealtors.com to search properties on the Multiple Listing Service or to find a Realtor member who will represent your best interests.
Kim Cooper is a real estate broker and the spokesman for the Coeur d'Alene Association of Realtors. Kim and the association invite your feedback and input for this column. You may contact them by writing to the Coeur d'Alene Association of Realtors, 409 W. Neider, Coeur d'Alene, ID 83815 or by calling (208) 667-0664.