SPRING IS HERE! Unbelievable that it is still April and the lakes have been open for several weeks already and the trees are beginning to bud!

My pier has been in for a couple weeks and the pontoon boat is going in today! This is the 1st time in 20 years that this has happened at our house in APRIL!

The Real Estate Market? Can you say "BUYER"S MARKET!"?

We are continuing to see property values & prices decline.

Last summer I thought that we had seen the bottom of our market and that a turnaround was in the cards.

Prices had seemed to stabilize, interest rates were at record lows and foreclosures were few and nothing to get excited about.

What has happened since? Not only have I NOT seen the turnaround that I had expected, the reality is:

• Prices are still contunuing to decline (although the decline has slowed a bit) as we move into the spring season
  
• Buyers are still aggressively out there and have an extensive inventory of properties to pick from
  
• Appraisers have become SUPER conservative
• Some lenders seem willing to lend if your credit score is approaching 800 and you have 20+% down
• Foreclosures and short sales are becoming all to common
• Our inventory of properties continues to swell
  
• I continue to see FAR MORE new listings and price reductions daily that new sales
• The new sales that I do see show a continuing decay in prices

The bottom line is that nothing has really changed from last Fall.  It remains an OUTSTANDING time to buy!! Great Values and affordable financing are BOTH here to be found right now!

Looking for a good investment that you can also enjoy? Buy some lake front property! Just give me a call and I will be happy to send you whatever properties are currently showing as available and block some time for you.

This is an excellent time to come up & look at properties. It is easy to get accommodations on short notice, and the pace is much less hectic than in the heart of summer time vacations.

If any of you are considering selling property or know of anyone else who is, PLEASE contact me ASAP!  Our real estate market remains VERY active!. Now is also a great time to list!

Thanks again for visiting my web site! Your comments and suggestions are always welcome. I look forward to hearing form you soon.

John