Home Sales and Contracts Surge in April 2019


Home Sales and Contracts Surge in April 2019
By Scott Rogers • May 10, 2019
After a somewhat slow start to 2019, the local real estate market has now picked up speed in April! But before we start looking at the data, two quick links for you... Check out the featured home above at 3712TaylorSpringLane.com. Download my full market report as a PDF here. Now, onward! Lots going on above...but here are the high points... There have been 1,289 home sales over the past year, which is just every-so-barely (0.7%) higher than the 1,280 sales seen in the year just prior to that. The median sales price of all residential properties has risen 5.89% over the past year to $214,900. The time it takes a home to go under contract (median of 24 days on market) has dropped 22.58% over the past year! While the pace of overall sales have been steady - sales of detached homes has increased 3.99% over the past year. The median price of detached homes has crept up just 0.44%, from $225K to $226K. Fewer and fewer attached homes (duplexes, townhomes, condos) are selling, with a 7.16% year-over-year drop in the pace of sales. The median sales price of attached homes has increased 6.17% over the past year from $162K to $172K! OK - here's what I was talking about earlier. January, February and March sales were simply nothing to write home about. This February was the slowest February out of the past four years. January and March were the 3rd slowest such months from the past four years. But April -- wow! Home sales surged in April, up to 112 home sales -- the best month of April seen in the past four years! Zooming out from the granular data, this graph looks at long term trends -- the slowly shifting 12-month trend line for the pace and price of home sales. As you can see, sales prices have been increasing despite somewhat slower sales. It shouldn't be too much of a surprise that stable sales, rising prices, low inventory levels and low days on market are leading to very little negotiating on price. Homes are selling at a median of 99% of their list price. This means that half of homes are selling for 99% or more of their list price. OK - this one was a bit surprising. And I squished all of the data down so far to fit a large context on the graph above that the image is not quite as crystal clear as I'd like it to be. But the message is quite clear - buyers came out in full force in April 2019 -- the 158 contracts signed last month was the second highest month of contracts seen in the past three years! That said - prepare yourself to be at least a bit disappointed next month. I think it's relatively unlikely that we'll be able to see a spike of contract activity all the way up to the showing 171 contracts that were signed last May!? Home buyers like choices, right? Well, right now, they don't have many. In all of Harrisonburg and Rockingham County there are only 270 properties listed for sale. This number has been steadily declining over the past few years -- and the supposedly busy Spring of plenty of listings has not been able to increase these inventory levels -- probably because buyers keep snapping the new listings up as soon as they hit the market. As some welcome news for buyers who are able to find a home to buy - they're able to finance that purchase at a relatively low interest rate! After having risen all the way up to 4.86% (it seemed like 5% was bound to be seen) mortgage interest rates have now dropped all the way back down to the low 4% range. This gives buyers the ability to lock in low monthly housing costs for the long term! OK - we'll cut it off there for now - though there is plenty more that you can scroll through in the PDF of my full market report. My guidance to local soon-to-be home buyers and sellers remains consistent... SELLERS -- even though it is a seller's market in just about every price ranges right now, you must still focus on price, condition and marketing. BUYERS -- it can be difficult and frustrating to buy right now -- make it a bit easier for yourself by knowing the market, knowing the process, knowing your buying power, and closely monitoring new listings! For further reading on buying or selling in this area, check out.... BuyingAHomeInHarrisonburg.com SellingAHomeInHarrisonburg.com And if 2019 will be the year when you buy or sell your home, feel free to contact me at 540-578-0102 or scott@HarrisonburgHousingToday.com so we can start talking about a game plan. Receive Updates by Email Recent Articles: Is There A Price You WOULD Pay For This House? 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? 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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 24, 2024 (unless otherwise noted).
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