Mike’s Real Estate Show

We are finally getting off the snide, having moved off the perpetual sales numbe of 200-225 per month since September of ‘07! We now have 278 sales and still have a few days left in the month. This is a good thing as it represents a 20% increase over last month. However, year-to-date we are off 22% as last year at this time our sales hit 355. The median took a hit falling 17%.Last year at this time: $520,000, Today? $430,000.  But REMEMBER, this is indicative of where the action is in the marketplace. The rash of REO’s (Real Estate Owned–bank properties post-foreclosure) and Short-Sales (pre-foreclosure with Lender allowing reduction of loan amount to make a sale), are in the lower price points and keeping our median down.

  We now have increasing inventory with “Actives”, properties now for sale, at 2634. Average time on the market is 103 days but this is decieiving as some of these are homes which could have been lost to foreclosure and then relisted with another firm as a “REO”.  The ”Actives” are comprised of foreclosures,short-sales and the homeowner. This is the time of the year historically when most homeowners seeking to move put their homes on the market.  Since we are still not selling homes at a good clip, the inventory piles up.  We have a big “contingent” number at 714 but a much smaller “Pending” figure of 154. Why the big difference? “Contingent” means the property is in escrow. All contingencies of the contract now need to be fullfiled. One of the biggies is “lender approval” which means a “Short-Sale” which means these could be in escrow for months and “pile up” just as our “Actives”. The smaller “pending” number of 154 is indicative of the “true” market. Still a bit sluggish.