Rochester area leads country in housing recovery

From lohud.com:

Rochester led the nation in the housing recovery, a report Monday said.

RealtyTrac, a national group that keeps track of housing data, listed Rochester as showing the strongest signs of recovery since the housing bubble started in 2008 and 2009. The company said Rochester benefited from below-average unemployment, a small percentage of distressed or underwater homes, as well as limited foreclosures. The area has also had an increase in home values.

Albany ranked third in the nation, behind the Fort Myers area in western Florida.

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Editor's note: People, for some reason, bad mouth New York State, Rochester, Brockport, etc. They like to complain that taxes are too high and say things like "no wonder everybody's leaving New York State". I wonder how well traveled these critics are or what they really know about the indicators of the quality of life in communities around the United States and around the world?

We are extremely blessed here in Brockport, Monroe County, New York State. We live in a veritable garden of Eden compared to other places. Not that everything's perfect, because there are always things we can improve, but we have life pretty darn good here, most of us, relatively speaking. And today, on the front page of the Democrat and Chronicle there is a report of further evidence of the good life in the Brockport area.

The median price for a house in the Rochester region is $129,000.00. There are many good homes in Brockport for $90,000 and $100,000.00 My daughter just closed on a deal in a run down neighborhood in Pasadena, CA on a 600 square foot "ranch" for $250,000.00 which she finally bought after a 2 1/2 year vetting process because the house had gone through foreclosure in one those "bundled" mortgage investment vehicles.

Isn't it interesting that Rochester, NY leads the country. You read that right, LEADS THE COUNTRY. There are many reasons for this achievement such as we have always sold and bought houses here sensibly qualifying buyers for mortgages in a realistic way. Our unemployment rate is 7% which is good compared to the rest of the country. And even though we love to complain about the winter weather we have good weather here for the most part and plenty of fresh water and good fertile soil for agriculture. We also are well educated thanks to our community colleges and State University and other private institutions of learning.

I'm proud of the community in which I live. I love paying my taxes and contributing to the common good, and it is very rewarding to see that, working together, at least on this indicator of housing recovery, we are the best in the nation. We all should be proud. Give your neighbor a pat on the back and tell him/her, "Thanks for helping make our community so great!"