Summary
Although sales have fallen since the bubble market of 2017, prices are increasing for vacant land in Prince Edward County.
Historical Sales
Sales of vacant properties in the County stagnated for six years following the financial crisis of 2007-8. Sales accelerated as the County real estate market took off in 2005 and vacant land sales in Prince Edward County reached an all-time high as the bubble market peaked in 2017.
Historical Prices
Even though sales of vacant properties are down by nearly half since 2017, the average selling prices for vacant properties have continued to increase.
There are two very distinct segments in the market for vacant land in the County depending on whether a property has waterfront or not. At times in the past, waterfront land sales have moved in different directions from other property. As a result, it’s important to look at what’s happening to both segments to understand today’s market.
Recent Sales
While the market for waterfront is much smaller than for other vacant land, both segments have moved together in recent years. Sales for both types peaked in 2017 and have declined by approximately 50% since then.
New Listings
While vacant land sales have fallen dramatically since 2017, the new listings for vacant land have declined only moderately.
Price Per Acre
Prices normally fall when property sales decline faster than the supply of listings. However, the opposite has occurred in vacant land sales in the County over the last three years. Despite the sales slowdown, the average price paid per acre has increased dramatically since then for both waterfront and other properties.
Detailed Price Analysis
In practical terms, the overall price per acre is not that helpful when considering specific properties. As the table (above) shows, the price per acre changes dramatically based on the size of the property.
Conclusion
The data show conclusively that prices are increasing for vacant land in the County.
Bear in mind that the market value of specific properties may differ a lot from these average per acre prices depending on things like the quality of soil, the view, proximity to amenities, etc.
Nevertheless, these average per acre rates are useful for planning purposes, especially for buyers coming from other markets.