It depends on price, any market is a series of micro markets. It is reasonable however, to say the the Buford-Suwanee-Sugar Hill area has taken a bullet (as you likely know). The issue is too many homes and too few buyers; toss in the foreclosures, standing new inventory, traffic and $2.50/gal gas (watch it creep up)....you will be in the soup for a while.

As Mac points out, Case-Shiller is OK for the broad strokes, for tactical work I can easily pull stats using FMLS maps and appraisal software - email me your addy if you'd like, takes about 3 minutes.

Hank

Hi Cheryl:

Congrats!!!
Overall I feel that the market is finally heading in the right direction. Sales in July thru September for our area were similar to 2008 levels which means we were a minimum of 25% below our peak levels of 2005 thru 2007. Prices were down between 10 to 15 %during the last year in Gwinnett County with some areas in the county being better and some worse. In Buford prices depending on the pricepoint and location were down approximately 10% with sales for the area off 13% year to date.

Mac has a good point in regard to renting the home and waiting for values to come back up to where you can make a profit if you are interested in becoming a landlord. If not then put your home on the market and get it sold and move on with your new exciting life.

Chuck

Hi Cheryl. First off congratulations! I wish I had a crystal ball and could give you details on exactly where the real estate market in Lilburn, Buford and Gwinnett County was headed. Other than guessing, we should probably look to the pros for some guidance. The most recent Case-Shiller report for the Atlanta Metro area, issued on 9-29-09, shows a 2.44% increase over the previous month. While this is good news, we still have a way to go to reach a full recovery. Unfortunately the real estate fiasco that we all experienced was like a heart attack. Bad practices over a period of time caught up with the market and all of a sudden the attack hit. The recovery to where values were 24-36 months ago will happen, it will just take time. I think we have bounced off the bottom as far as home values go and will see a slow continued increase.

One alternative you may have is to wait out the market by renting your home until values reach the point where you break even or hopefully realize a return on your investment. I have several clients how have utilized this strategy and are pleased with their success. Let me know if I can help. Good Luck and again Congratulations!