Fracking Threatens Home Sales in Upstate Region

Home sales for the Catskills region, NY, is going to need more than a strategic plan to help boost its real estate market.

The New York Times confirmed that one solution to their problem could be the banning of hydraulic fracturing.

The regions home sales market has been shook with fears over the proposal to drill for gas on Marcellus Shale, a natural-gas field that runs through 25 counties in the state, the Times reported.

Although home sales were up 6.7 percent in the second quarter nationwide, they were down by 4 percent in Sullivan County, which is part of the Marcellus Shale, according to the New York State Association of Realtors.

The Times reported that prospective buyers, sellers and real estate agents claim transactions have stalled because of the uncertainty over the fracking project.

The project will involve chemical injections that will force out the natural gas deposits from the land.

Property owners were paid by gas companies to lease land all over the region, but that comes at the expense of the number of homeowners, seeking to buy their second home in the region.

These second-home buyers fear their peaceful vacation home will somehow, be situated on an industrial site.

According to the Times, Governor Andrew Cuomo is taking his time making a decision, as state regulators study the environmental effect of the process.

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