Contracts do not always result in closings


Contracts do not always result in closings
By Scott Rogers • February 14, 2012
During 2010, buyers wrote 820 contracts --- and during the same year, only 758 closings took place. Why the difference? Technically, some of the 2010 closings are based on 2009 contracts....and some of the 2010 contracts will be 2011 closings. I don't suspect, however, that this timing issue significantly effected the relationship between the number of contracts and closings during 2010. Looking back, there were 47 closings during 2010 that were under contract at least twice. That closes the gap most of the way: 758 closings + 47 contracts that fell through (but then were contracted on again) = 805 closings. That leaves just 15 properties (with this rough math) that were under contract but never sold. Interestingly, 2011 was even more disproportionate.... Again, let's pretend ignore the overlap between years -- yes, I know that late 2011 contracts will close in 2012, but in theory almost all of those will be offset by late 2010 contracts that closed in 2011. So, the math gets interesting here..... There were 64 closings during 2011 that were under contract at least twice. 791 closings + 64 contracts that fell through (but then were contracted on again) = 855 closings. That leaves 100 properties (as compared to 15 in 2010) that were under contract but never sold. Again, it's rough math, here is the probability that a contract on your house would result in a closing during the past two years: 87% of first contracts lead to a closing in 2010. 76% of first contracts lead to a closing in 2011. Don't get me wrong --- I like contracts, and houses going under contract -- however..... sellers must remember that some contracts will inevitably fall through we can't look at contract data in our market and assume that all of them will lead to closings Receive Updates by Email Recent Articles: There Are Plenty Of Types Of Houses That Exist That Just Are Not Available To Purchase Home Sales By Price Range In The City Of Harrisonburg Are You Compromising On Aspects Of Your Next Home That You Can Or Cannot Change Later? How Much Slower Are The Winter Months In Our Local Housing Market? Rockingham County and New Home Sales Drive Surge in Area Housing Market Find The Balance Between Optimistic And Realistic Home Pricing Room Size Is Difficult To Understand Solely From Real Estate Photos How Much Would You Value Not Having To Prepare Your Home For Showings? One Out Of Four Homes Is Taking Longer Than A Month To Sell Consider The Cost Of Your Planned Renovations When Planning Your Offer
Have any questions? Contact Scott Rogers at 540-578-0102 or scott@funkhousergroup.com
Based on information from the Harrisonburg-Rockingham Association of REALTORS® or its MLS, for the period Jan 1, 2000 through Nov 21, 2024 (unless otherwise noted).
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