The interest in historic home ownership continues to be robust. If we can get the lending institutions to cooperate, I expect 2009 to be a good year for hsitoric home sales, despite the predictions for the rest of the real estate market and the economy in general.

Though I have focused my Historic Home Team real estate business in the geographic areas in which I am licensed as a Realtor - Maryland, Virginia, Pennsylvania, and soon Washington, DC, I have received hundreds of communications from frustrated historic home owners from all over America requesting the specialized “niche” historic home marketing that we have developed. In places like Florida, Ohio & Illinois, these historic home owners know that their prospective buyer is not likely to be local and even less likely to be attracted by the traditional passive marketing that sells the townhouses and modern mcmansions nearby. We have designed an expert marketing system that can be partnered with the services of a local Realtor or utilized as standalone marketing for the historic home owner who wishes to go it alone.

As home values have declined, many home owners find they do not have enough equity in their homes to sell in a traditional way (with fees and commissions) and since traditional MLS real estate marketing does not necessarily enhance the prospects of a historic home sale, these home sellers are looking for an alternative. One that will allow them to price more competetively, increasing the prospects for success. It is here and the details can be reviewed at - HistoricPartnersUSA.com or jump to the details page. This is a Professional Historic Home Marketing Solution for historic home sellers nationwide.
It includes prominent placement on our high ranking HistoricHomeTeam.com website as well as:

Professional Historic Home Marketing Solution

These are powerful marketing tools designed to share the virtues and benefits of a historic home to those 6 out of 1,000 qualified buyers nationwide who may be considering a historic home purchase. For the cost of painting a living room or running a series of local classified ads, a historic home owner can have an effective professional marketing campaign.

I fell into my selling mode. I am sorry. I guess it goes with the territory. Please visit us at HistoricHomeTeam.com or HistoricParntersUSA.com to see who is selling their historic homes in America.

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PBS has produced several wonderful “reality” documentaries about living in the past in America. The one I always think about around Thanksgiving is called “The Colonial House” (website link) produced in 2004, recreating with volunteers, life in America in 1628. The documentary itself is very interesting, but the website is fabulous and highly interactive with many photos & videos. I highly recommend the video diaries of the colonists for insight in to how hard life was for these 21st century time travelling indentured servants.

This extraordnary DVD is available for purchase through Amazon at Colonial House DVD.

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There was a time when the unique “one of a kind” nature of a historic home would add value to its appraisal, now I am afraid that era appears to be passing. Though historic homes are rarely subject to distress sales and people traditionally have purchased historic homes as long term residences, not short-term investments, the market for the later in this area may have finally brought the appraisal values of these vintage beauties down.  In a real estate market battered by a year of short sales, foreclosures and forced sales - following 3 years of price deterioration, the credit strapped banks are not only scrutinizing customers more carefully, they are increasingly critical of the property to be purchased. Until recently, there were enough truly unique homes sold that, in my experience, a case for comparables could be made when a willing seller and a qualified buyer agreed on a sales price. Mortgage lenders never liked the term “unique” when applied to a home they were contemplating lending money to purchase and appraisers usually struggled with comparables, but in my 6 years of specializing in historic home sales, I have never had a home not appraise, until now.

Mortgage lenders must now use “fire sale” home values to support the sale price of a rarely traded historic home. This has worked against contemporary home sales for quite a while, finally, in my opinion unfairly, the problem has caught up to the historic home market. Historic homes have always occupied their own market with only a passing nod to their youthful neighbors and subject to a very special and knowledgeable clientele. The irony is that a seller and knowledgeable buyer can agree on the value of one of these unique homes, but a hyper-risk weary mortgage lender will ultimately decide the deal.

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