Breaking a period of stagnation, the median sales price moved slightly in August, increasing 5.6% over July's median sales price. Sales volume, however, decreased month-over-month.
Single family home sales topped out at 1,683 in August, an 8.9% decrease from the 1,848 sales of July. Year-to-year, the current figure is 10% below the 1,871 sales last August. REO sales decreased 11.8% month-to-month, from 908 in July to 801 this month. REO sales made up 47.6% of the total sales with short sales (18.8%) and conventional sales (33.6%) making up the remainder of sales. Compared with last month, REO sales have decreased slightly while short sales and conventional sales showed slight increases.
The median sales price increased, for the first time since April, to $190,000. This is a 5.6% change from the $180,000 median price of July. Compared year-to-year, the current figure is 12.8% below the $218,000 of August 2008. The Total Listing Inventory declined from 5,327 to 4,987, a 6.4% change. The current Total Listing Inventory is 31% below the 7,225 listing in August 2008. The Housing Market Supply figure increased slightly from 2.9 months in July to 3 months. Compared with last year, this figure is down 23% from the 3.9 months of inventory in August 2008. This figure represents the amount of time - in months - it would take to deplete the total listing inventory given the current rate of sales. According to MetroList® MLS Data, the average home spent 47 days on market (from the time it was listed to the time escrow was opened) and was 1,714 square feet. Of the 1,683 sales this month, 158 (9.4%) had 2 bedrooms or fewer, 880 (52.3%) had 3 bedrooms, 506 (30.1%) were 4 bedroom properties and 136 (8.3%) boasted 5+ bedrooms.
2009 SAR President Charlene Singley stresses to on-the-fence buyers the importance of acting now. "Houses are more affordable now than they have been in many years and interest rates are at historic lows." According to SAR records, the last time the Sacramento showed a similar median price was in April 2002 ($190,000), just before the median price skyrocketed. "First-time buyers should be aware that new regulations are resulting in longer escrows," continues Singley, "and the $8,000 credit is scheduled to expire November 30th. Now is really the time to get going for anyone planning to buy a home."
Doug's Take: Well the stats for the county are continuing on pretty much the same trend since February of this year. The median sales price, which bottomed out in February, continued to slightly rise. Sales, while slightly down from last month, were still very high. The inventory still remains very low at 3 months (a seller's market). And, multiple offers, over list price are still very common. It will be interesting to watch what happens with the market in the next six months. There are a lot of factors coming into play right now. The federal tax credit is set to expire on December 1. Some politicians are trying to extend and expand it but that is still very much in the air. The banks are "supposed" to be trickling a few more homes onto the market. The colder winter months are approaching. All of these things will have an effect on the market. I will of course keep you updated on the state of the market.
Lastly, before i go, i wanted to share a recent story as an example of the current market and a common occurrence. As a lot of new buyers are finding out, the competition for the lower priced homes is extremely high right now. Also, the banks are listing most of their foreclosure properties below market value to drive up the competition, get multiple offers and be able to choose the best buyer. I recently had a client looking in the Natomas area. The bank listed the property around 170k. We wrote our first offer at 200k. The listing agent received 30 offers on the house. The bank countered back asking for all of the buyers "highest and best" offers. Recent sales in the are of comparable homes supported a purchase price between 220 and 225k. We went to 220 and barely beat out the next highest offer. My clients had to go 50k over list price to get the home. That doesn't mean, all houses you have to go that high. That shows what the banks are doing right now by listing homes low to drive up the competition. The appraisal for my buyer came in actually above our agreed on price of 220k. Things are crazy out there right now but that's my job. To guide my clients through the mess and advice them on good decisions and represent them in achieving their goal of getting into the home they want. We will be closing escrow near the end of the month.
Call or email if there is any real estate needs you have.
clear skies,
doug
Oh, by the way, i'm never too busy for any of your referrals.
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