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'Bread and butter' as well as executive housing needed
McCOOK, Neb. -- Yes, there is need in McCook for housing, but not always for the high-end, $200,000 range, said a long-time real estate broker in McCook.
One of the needs right now for Melanie Goodenberger of Golden Plains Realty is what she calls the "bread and butter" of the industry, homes for middle-income families that sell in the McCook area for between $80,000 to $100,000
"Houses don't always have to be these grand, $200,000 houses, but something like a three-bedroom, two-bath, ranch-style home for a family," Goodenberger said. "In our market, it's usually families trying to buy."
As of July, there were 48 homes for sale in a 30-mile radius of McCook and 33 inside McCook. Of those, 13 were listed for under $50,000; 19 homes from $50,00 to $100,000 and six for $100,000 to $200,000, including homes in the Calabria subdivision.
The average time for a home in McCook to sell is about three months, Goodenberger said, with about 107 days on the market, that includes loan processing times. The average sale price for a home in McCook at $96,636 and for a 30-mile radius, $88,801, with 114 days on the market.
Goodenberger believes city officials have been doing what they can to help with the housing crunch, pointing to the newest developments built for seniors, such as East Ward Village and currently under construction, the Clary subdivision on West Q. Although both have income and age restrictions because government funds were used, both are options available to senior citizens who are ready to unload their homes and live nearly maintenance-free. This would allow their larger, well-kept homes to come on the market, she said, to relieve the dearth of family homes. For those wanting move-in ready new homes, there are also larger-than-average lots, almost an acreage apiece, available at North Pointe behind Clary Village, where homes in the $200,000 range can be built.
Nationally, the housing market bottomed out in 2008 but that didn't hurt McCook, Goodenberger said. "The common adage is that when it's bad on the coasts, it's good in the heartland," she said, with the strong rural economy helping to avoid the downturn.
Still, finding an executive home can be a real problem, said Randy Bauer of Gateway Realty. Bauer told of a couple who had jobs secured here, but couldn't find the right kind of housing they wanted and ended up in Kearney instead. "We're just not seeing the selection as in the larger markets," he said. And for now, there's just not enough growth in the city to justify a developer coming to town and building a housing development.
So what's the solution? "McCook is a stable market, so we don't see the big building booms," Bauer said. "But we also don't see the drastic downturns, either. Maybe we could use new construction across the board, some starter homes or move-up housing."
But it's definitely a time to buy, he added. "Interest rates are great right now, at 4 percent. If there was ever a time to buy, this it it."
According to the National Association of Realtors, which releases reports of home sales the 25th of each month, existing home sales increased in July by 2.0 percent. Sales in July remained at the highest pace since February 2007, but a chief economist with the association believed sales could dampen due to declining affordability. Some markets reported slower foot traffic in July due to low inventory and concerns that higher home prices would not keep pace with income.
In the Midwest region, existing home sales in July were at an annual rate of 1.32 million, 10.9 percent above July 2014.