October 2020 Issue

The News East Coast Horse Owners Need To Know OUR TH YEAR 1993 - PRSRT STD U.S. POSTAGE PAID PERMIT 280 LANC., PA 17604 Vol. 27 No. 9 October 2020 Mid-Atlantic Horse Farms Are Selling Like Hot Cakes By Amy Worden The pandemic-era real estate boom is no secret, with houses selling at a rapid clip in most mar- kets. But low interest rates and a desire to live in the country is also fueling a surge in horse farm sales across the mid-Atlantic region. Real estate agents and private sellers report horse farms that can take a year or more to sell are moving more quickly and they are attracting a lot more attention from potential buyers as far away as California. Amy McKenna, an associate broker with BHHS Fox & Roach, specializes in horse farm prop- erties in the fox hunting country outside Philadelphia. “Definitely there’s an increase in activity in farm sales that’s gotten stronger since COVID,” she said. “Farms are of interest not just to horse people, but people who want the country life.” McKenna said some Philadel- phians are looking into the ex-urbs and beyond in Chester County and Lancaster County for “staycation” homes because of the general aver- sion to travel at the moment. Pre-COVID, she said, it was typical to have one person look at a farm. “Now we’re getting two or three and that’s forcing the prices up,” she said. Kathleen Kelly listed the 30- acre historic farm in Quakertown, Bucks County, where she spent much of her childhood, twice in the past three years without success. Then Kelly said she listed it again on July 1 – one last time before pursuing a subdivision - targeting horse farm shoppers and got interest from buyers in New York City and Philadelphia. By mid-August she had three offers on the secluded 1820 farmstead with its big Pennsylvania bank barn. “They were not necessarily horse people, but I couldn’t be- lieve how many were from New York City,” she said. Rural areas across Pennsyl- vania are experiencing high home sales – like less densely populated areas elsewhere – as people look to move to a less populated area or buy a second home, according to the Pennsylvania Association of Realtors. “Consumers do not expect to have to go into an office as fre- quently, so these rural buyers rely on home office spaces and places with good broadband internet to work remotely,” said Jessica Lautz, the National Association of Realtors® vice president of Demographics and Behavioral Insights in a press release. North Central Penn Board of Realtors® President Carol Hoke said in a press release that business was “crazy” in Potter and Tioga coun- ties following the June reopening of real estate sales after the almost three-month COVID shutdown. “We are seeing lot of people from out of the area, both buying as a secondary home, as well as relocation,” said Hoke. “They are realizing that maybe it’s safer to be here.” In the horse country of Southern Anne Arundel County, Maryland real estate agents are seeing higher-than-usual interest in properties with acreage. “We’ve had a lot of action,” said Jeanine Wayson, a real estate agent with Coldwell Banker in Annapolis. “Properties under $1.5 million with ten acres, including historic horse farms, are moving fast.” Earlier this summer she list- ed a 134-acre equestrian property in Edgewater called “Dove Hill,” with an 11-stall barn, riding and dressage arenas and a cross-coun- try course at $3.5 million. It was under contract this summer with a buyer from Connecticut, but because of COVID his employer closed the D.C. office so he de- cided to stay in Connecticut. But Wayson said the activity around Dove Hill is a good exam- ple of how much interest there is in large properties with horse ameni- ties, but without the main attrac- tion in the area - Chesapeake Bay waterfront - than in prior years. “We had a ton of showings,” she said. John LeCates, a real estate agent with Howard Hanna in York County, Pennsylvania said he is see- ing more people like renters looking to buy and those looking for more space, both groups trying to take advantage of low interest rates. LeCates had several horse farms for sale this spring and had inquiries from California and New Jersey. Potential buyers from Alabama came to look at farms in person. “Usually, you get a horse farm and it’s going to be tough [to sell],” he said. LeCates said he sold a nine- acre farm with a barn, six-acre fenced pasture and a refurbished mobile home for asking price. “Horse people, they want to make sure the barn is in good shape. That’s the first thing they look at.” LeCates said he sold another property in Felton to a buyer from Virginia who plans to keep retired racehorses there. The 25-acre farm, with its large barn and riding ring took just 67 days to sell, which said was “amazingly fast for a horse farm.” LeCates said the one thing slowing down sales he said is lack of high-speed internet in some rural areas, which is even more vital now with more people working and studying from home. Central Pennsylvania real estate broker Harold Burkholder, with Coldwell Banker, said the market is “absolutely crazy,” with houses selling for more than the asking price in a matter of days. He said he heard about a 35-acre historic farm in Franklin County that sold in an unheard of nine days. Real estate agents who said one of the biggest problems at the moment that is slowing the amount of inventory on the mar- ket is the inability of sellers to find their next home. Kelly said she decided to accept a lower offer on her family farm because the buyer is allow- ing her to stay and rent back. Kel- ly said she needed the extra time to find herself a smaller home in the area and was running up against the real estate explosion: less inventory and higher prices. “It works if you’re the seller, not the buyer,” she said. Emblematic of the hot real estate market for mid-Atlantic horse farms, John Lecates of How- ard Hanna Real Estate sold this 25 acre farm in Felton, York County, PA with an asking price of $625,000 in just 67 days. The buyer, from Virginia, plans to keep retired racehorses there. Inside... Pennsylvania Equine Council fall newsletter … pgs. 26-27 Equine Healthcare, Nutrition, Therapy feature … pgs. 9-17 More gorgeous horse farms you’ll want to make yours … pgs. 18-21 … and much more!