Second Home Purchases Decline Nationwide

In a reversal to 2005's trend to "buy first, and ask questions later", more and more prospective buyers are taking a cautious approach to buying their vacation home.

1 minute read

August 13, 2006, 11:00 AM PDT

By Matt Baumann

What's the blame here? To begin with, rising interest rates, higher energy costs, and a slowing economy have left many realtors with excessive inventories leading to several price reductions on once highly sought after properties.

These discretionary buyers can suddenly jar a market in a matter of months because of the limited population that can afford second homes, as compared to primary home buyers, where the market may take months to notice any difference. Places such as the New Jersey Shore and parts of Florida have been seen their second home median prices fall 8 percent or greater as compared to year earlier.

That's not to say that the upper tier market- homes exceeding $5 million or more- has softened. The market in this price range tends to be more durable.

FULL STORY: Hot Market for Second Homes Hits Slump

Wednesday, August 9, 2006 in The New York Times

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