Dear clients, friends, and neighbors:
We are pleased to share with you our “Snyder Donegan Real Estate Market Report” summarizing real estate market activity in the greater Woodstock, Vermont and Hanover, New Hampshire market area for the full year of 2024.
Click below to read our individual town market reports:
We want to take this moment to thank our clients (both loyal and newer clients) for our ongoing success and to express how proud we are of our incredible team of agents who have continued to meet the challenges and opportunities presented by this market. Snyder Donegan sold over $150 million again in 2024 and assisted over 200 buyers and sellers in sold/closed transactions. The firm also represented 29 buyers and/or sellers of properties sold/closed at prices over $1 million, including highest priced sales in Woodstock ($3.35 million), Lyme ($3.7 million), Norwich ($1.65 million), Pomfret ($1.85 million), Quechee ($1.5 million), and Reading ($899,000), with numerous other top sales in Woodstock, Hanover, Lyme, and Norwich. To our clients and our excellent team of agents, we are truly grateful.
GREATER WOODSTOCK MARKET AREA
The Greater Woodstock market area (Barnard, Bridgewater, Hartland, Plymouth, Pomfret, Quechee, Reading, West Windsor, Woodstock) saw 181 sold/closed transactions of single-family homes in 2024, up slightly from 171 sales in 2023. With sales hitting all-time highs during the 2020 and 2021 covid buying spree, the pace of closed transactions seems to be settling back into pre-pandemic normal levels. The average price of sold/closed homes remains high in many of the Greater Woodstock area towns, however, with the average price of all towns combined reaching $759,428 this past year, down from 2023’s high but still up over 44% from 2019.
Buying activity in the luxury market in the Greater Woodstock market area was again strong in 2024, with 36 sales of homes over $1 million. Our firm represented 13 of the buyers and/or sellers of the luxury properties sold in the Woodstock area. In 2024, Snyder Donegan was pleased to represent clients in the highest priced sales in Woodstock (486 Benedict Road - $3.35 million), Pomfret (433 Freeman Road - $1.85 million), Quechee (2346 Quechee Main Street - $1.5 million), and Reading (1849 N. Puckerbrush Road - $899,000).
Of the 181 homes sold in the GWA, buyers paid on average at or above a seller’s asking price in 74 of the transactions (i.e. 40% of the sales were sold at/over last listing price and 60% saw some negotiation off the last list price). Sellers who came on the market at too-high prices subsequently reduced their listing prices as they realized the market had normalized and prices were not continuing to rise in 2024 as they had in 2020-2022.
While inventory has been at historic lows over the last several years, early data and market trends seemed to point to a steady rebuild of inventory stores in 2024. As of December 31, 2024, there were 75 actively listed single-family homes in the Greater Woodstock area, up markedly from just 46 at the same time last year. Of those 75 active listings, however, 31 were priced over $1 million with the average price hitting $1,414,955, pointing to a need for moderately priced homes in the market to keep up with what we anticipate will be continued buyer demand in the year ahead.
GREATER HANOVER-LEBANON MARKET AREA
Overall sales in 2024 in the Greater Hanover-Lebanon market area (Hanover, Hartford, Lebanon, Lyme, Norwich, Plainfield, Strafford) continued pace and were consistent with 2022 and 2023 levels with 337 sold/closed transactions of single-family homes. Buyers paid either at or above a seller’s asking price in over half the sales (187 of sales that transacted over the year), with the average closing price of a home rising to a new record of $736,865.
Luxury sales in the 2024 GHLA market were once again at peak levels with a record-tying 64 sales of homes that sold/closed for $1 million or more. Our firm was pleased to represent 16 of the buyers and/or sellers of those luxury properties– 10 of which were in Hanover alone. Snyder Donegan represented the seller, buyer or both in the highest priced sales in Lyme (41 Davison Lane - $3.7 million, also the all-time highest sale in Lyme), and Norwich (395 Main Street - $1.65 million) and numerous other top sales in Hanover, Lyme, Norwich, and Lebanon.
While up slightly from 2023, inventory of single-family homes continues to fall well short of buyer demand in the Greater Hanover-Lebanon market, thus explaining the perennial increase in the average price of sold/closed homes. There were just 34 single-family homes actively listed in the GHLA on December 31, 2024, the average price of which reached just shy of $1 million ($983,368). With inventory stores down 60% from 2019, the market will need to see more listings, particularly in moderate price ranges, to keep up with a large pool of actively searching buyers.
OUR FORECAST FOR 2025
Barring unforeseen/exogenous events, we are optimistic about the real estate market in the Hanover-Woodstock "Upper Valley" area for 2025. The overall economic backdrop is solid. The US economy is in good shape and the stock market is at/near all-time peaks, even if mortgage rates are back near the recent highs. This part of Vermont and New Hampshire continues to attract buyers seeking a retreat from the increasingly uncertain global political environment and for those looking for a healthy, clean part of the world to which to escape, with clean water, clean air, and slower pace. In short, a very high-quality place to live, retreat, or retire.
As far as the local real estate market, supply demand remains tight in the Hanover-Lebanon markets but is normalizing in the Woodstock area as more listings come on and stay on for a normal amount of time before selling. Accordingly, prices remain higher/firmer in the Hanover-Lebanon market area and are normalized in the Woodstock area.
If you have been thinking of selling, we encourage you to reach out sooner than later to discuss further as the market is solid. Buyers still fall in love with this area, for good reason, but are generally keeping their thinking caps on. To achieve the best price vs. time-on-market, sellers again need to follow the standard playbook: 1) price homes competitively compared to properties that have recently sold. 2) freshen things up/take care of any deferred maintenance items. 3) stage homes, dress up the landscaping curb appeal, and clean out clutter.
As for our firm, we were pleased to recently welcome Bonnie Bergeron as our newest agent, a 20-year veteran of Upper Valley real estate, and are also very happy that Dail Frates, with over 20 years of experience, will be more full time in real estate sales after recently retiring from her amazing leadership at the Zack's Place non-profit in Woodstock. Behind a growing team of capable and dedicated agents, Snyder Donegan is proud to be the leading boutique, non-franchised real estate firm in the region. With new inquiries and additional listings every day, we remain optimistic about the future of the real estate market and excited for what’s to come in the year ahead.
We will be selectively adding one or two more experienced agents in the coming year. Snyder Donegan offers a cordial, professional working environment in a boutique firm with a shared floorday system for new leads, a dedicated marketing support team member, and millions worth of beautiful homes and luxury listings, both publicly (MLS) and privately listed. If you or your team are interested in joining our firm, please contact either of our partners, David Donegan and John Snyder.
Please see the accompanying charts and table for more historical context and data on our market areas.
We thank our many clients who have chosen Snyder Donegan Real Estate Group to represent them in their real estate matters and for helping make Snyder Donegan Real Estate Group the fastest growing real estate firm in the Upper Valley.
With warm regards,
The Snyder Donegan Team
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