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Home About Us B2B Club Breaking News Contact Donate Events / Programs Feedback Ideas Incubator Industry Clusters Links / Resources Progess Funds Progress Teams Public Art / Murals Publications		Breaking News August 21, 2004 By Karen Madden, Daily Tribune Staff Local real estate agents were nervous about a glut of vacant homes after Stora Enso North America announced mass job cuts last year, but they now say the changes to the housing market have been minimal. "Last year, it was a bigger scare," said Jan Pagels, broker and owner of Pagels Real Estate. "But I don't see there being a huge impact." Wisconsin Rapids-area agents have sold 11 percent more homes priced at $100,000 or less during the first seven months of this year compared with the same period last year, according to the Central Wisconsin Multiple Listing Service. Zurfluh Realty has had a record year for volume and number of sales, said owner Mike Zurfluh. "There is an increase in the houses for sale," Zurfluh said. "It's definitely a buyer's market." Not all the news has been good. Sales of houses priced at more than $100,000 have dropped 12 percent from the first seven months of 2003 compared with the same time this year. The figures from the Multiple Listing Service do not include homes sold by owners. Meanwhile, both Pagels and Zurfluh said the number of foreclosures this year is up. "Any time you have significant job losses, it's a concern," Zurfluh said. "But I think the reason is not local. It's worldwide." There are 460 homes on the market in the Wisconsin Rapids area, according to the Central Wisconsin Multiple Listing Service. At this time last year, 301 homes were on the market. The average cost of a home has declined from $93,841 to $92,969 and it takes about three days longer, from an average of 142 days to 145 days, to sell a home. Sales of homes above the $150,000 price range have been affected the most, Zurfluh said. He believes a combination of the Stora Enso layoffs and the overall economy is the reason. The real estate market was positive in the 1990s but started to change in 2000, three years before last year's job cuts. The sale of the locally owned Consolidated Papers Inc. to the Finnish company Stora Enso, the downturn in the cranberry industry and a confluence of other factors contributed to the change in the housing market prior to the layoffs in 2003, Zurfluh said. However, he noted that Eighth Street is beginning to flourish with commercial construction. The economy is slowly starting to turn around, he said. "I'm optimistic," Zurfluh said. "I'm very optimistic, and the reason why is because of the great community we live in." Wisconsin Rapids and the surrounding communities continue to expand and offer plenty of positives, he said. Pagels also is optimistic about the future and she personally believes the economy is getting better. "I think it's improved," she said. " I think there's been a lot added to Rapids." You can reach reporter Karen Madden at 422-6729 or kmadden@wisconsinrapidstribune. com.
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