Delaware Beach Real Estate Blog - Sea Colony Real Estate Blog

Still Seller's Market in Sea Colony, Trend Changes Direction

As we head into what is typically a strong selling season for beach property, this is a time we like to calculate absorption rates to determine whether we are trending in the direction of a buyer’s or seller’s market. We compare the pace of sales over the previous 12 months to determine how many Months Supply of Inventory is for sale. Generally, a balanced market would have between 6 to 7 months of inventory. At this time, both Sea Colony East and West have 1 month of inventory. We are clearly still in a strong seller’s market due to inventory shortages, but as the chart illustrates, the trend has changed direction when compared to the same time last year.

This shift is a good representation of what we are currently experiencing in the marketplace.…

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Sea Colony Real Estate Market Remains Firm

Happy New Year! As we reflect on 2022, you might recall that the surge in real estate activity we felt in 2020 and 2021 carried into the first quarter of 2022 and then slowed in the second quarter. There was moderate activity in the second half of the year. However, rising interest rates coupled with the continuation of low inventory contributed to a slowdown in both sales and appreciation later in the year. While there is still plenty of uncertainty about what the state of the economy means for real estate in the short term, we are enthusiastic about the year ahead! Inventory remains at historically low levels which means that it is still an opportune time to capitalize as a seller.  

In 2022, we were fortunate to participate in more than 30% of…

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Sea Colony Property Values Continue to Rise in 2022

For the last few months, we have shared with you that the real estate market has been slowing at the beach, but as the graph illustrates, Sea Colony property values continued to appreciate during 2022.

If you are considering purchasing or selling, we welcome a conversation to strategize about how to ensure the best results in this shifting market! Please call Sea Colony Specialists Gail Phelan (302) 233-4909 and Chris Housman (302) 853-0192.

During this time of Thanksgiving, we are grateful for your continued confidence in our group. We all wish you and your loved ones a healthy and joyful holiday!

*Data was derived from the Sussex County MLS. Includes properties sold in Sea Colony, Bethany Beach. May not reflect all activity in the…

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Sea Colony Properties Continue to Sell Quickly, Inventory on the Rise

We all hear economic and financial data from multiple sources. At the end of the day, we feel it is important to share both the sales data in the chart provided and also some perspective on what we are experiencing first-hand.

 As we reflect on the last 6 months or so, we started to notice a difference in the temperature of the market in the March/April timeframe. None-the-less, through a rising interest rate environment and uncertainty in the financial markets, we continued to see, and we are still seeing properties sell very quickly. Three of the last 5 listings of ours that went under contract in Sea Colony did so in under 2 weeks. These properties ranged in price from $6350K to just under $1 million.

Given the state of the economy, we…

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Sales Slow in Sea Colony East, Median Price Continues to Rise

Warm sunny days, cool nights and light traffic make this our favorite time of the year at the beach and we hope that you are enjoying this season!  

We have been communicating for the last few months that the beach real estate market has slowed when compared to recent years and this trend continued through August. As the chart illustrates, sales in Sea Colony East are down 17% to-date while the continuation of extremely limited inventory has kept the median sales price up a significant 35%.

On a personal note, September is always a special month for me as it marks 33 years since starting a career in real estate at the beach. I feel extremely fortunate to have earned the trust of so many of you over the years and together with Christi, Gail,…

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Sales Slow in Sea Colony West, Median Price & Inventory Rise

Warm sunny days, cool nights and light traffic make this our favorite time of the year at the beach and we hope that you are enjoying this season! 

We have been communicating for the last few months that the beach real estate market has slowed when compared to recent years and this trend continued through August. As the chart illustrates, sales in Sea Colony West are down 36% to-date while the continuation of limited inventory has kept the median sales price up 18%. Properties are still selling quickly, with 7 days being the median amount of time to go under contract.

On a personal note, September is always a special month for me as it marks 33 years since starting a career in real estate at the beach. I feel extremely fortunate to have earned…

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Low Inventory Keeps Sea Colony Market Firm

We hope you are having a wonderful summer!  Its is hard to believe we are well into August already!

While total sales are down year-to-date in Sea Colony, the real estate market remains firm. In fact, the median price on the East is up 24% and up 18% on the West when compared to the first 7 months of last year. The median days to contract is still under one week and while there has been a slight rise in inventory, it is still at record lows.

As always, if we can offer you any real estate guidance, please call our Sea Colony Experts:Gail Phelan: 302-233-4909 and Chris Housman: 302-853-0192.

*Data was derived from the Sussex County MLS. Includes properties in Sea Colony. May not reflect all activity in the marketplace.

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Sea Colony Values Continue to Rise in 2022

The kick-off to summer has arrived and we have enjoyed seeing so many visitors over the last few weeks! The month of May was slower for real estate as 7 properties went under contract in Sea Colony compared to 12 at the same time last year.

While we are certainly experiencing a slow down in market activity, real estate remains a strong investment with appreciation over time. If you have any questions related to real estate, we are here for you. Please call Sea Colony Experts, Gail Phelan (302) 233-4909 and Chris Housman (302) 853-0192.

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Some Slowing in Sea Colony through April

Happy Spring!  As we look back on the first 4 months of the year, there was some slowdown in total sales, but the Sea Colony real estate market remains firm as we continue to experience very limited inventory amidst rising interest rates.     

A positive piece of news for real estate that we are watching closely is the Delaware legislation recently introduced that would reduce the transfer tax by 1%, effective for transactions recorded after July 1, 2022.  This would bring the total tax back to 3% vs. 4%.  Typically, this expense is split between the buyer and seller at closing.  While not yet in effect, we are encouraged that this bill will be passed and we will keep you informed.  

If you would like to discuss the market in more detail,…

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Market Conditions Remained Strong for Sea Colony Sellers in Q1

During the first quarter of the year, we continued to experience a strong market for sellers. As the chart illustrates, the number of properties sold in Sea Colony was down 50% when compared to the first quarter of last year while sales volume was down just 11%. Properties continued to go under contract very quickly as inventory was down 71% year-over-year and 89% compared to 2020!

As always, if we can offer you any real estate guidance during this time, we are here to help! Please call  Sea Colony Expert, Gail Phelan: 302-233-4909.

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