Hempfield Township - Westmoreland County, PA - Real Estate Year In Review

Westmoreland County PA - Hempfield Township - 2010 Summary Real Estate Year In Review

The year in review for real estate activity in Hempfield Township, Westmoreland County PA, shows some interesting data that is just a bit counter-intuitive.

There were fewer homes sold in 2010, in all price segments, in Hempfield Township than in any of the last four years.  As with Westmoreland County as a whole, the decline has moderated from nearly double digits to just over 5% in 2010.

Also consistent with Westmoreland County as a whole, the two lower priced segments (82% of all sales in 2010) hit their low points in terms of homes sold in 2010.  The three segments above $250,000 all bottomed in 2009 and then saw exceptional growth in 2010.  The two segments from $250,000 to $500,000 combined to see growth of over 55% after 3 years of very substantial declines.

This is all somewhat counter-intuitive to the conventional wisdom that lower priced homes are moving better than higher priced homes.  This has not proven to be the case in Hempfield Township.  While homes priced under $250,000 continue to be the bulk of the market, homes priced over that level picked up nearly 8 points in market share to 18% of total market in 2010 - back to the 2008 level and approaching 2007.

The inventory of homes for sale in Hempfield Township as of the 31^st of each year has remained rather stable throughout the past four years however the current level is definitely the lowest in years.  Interestingly, in this case, the under $150,000 segment is at its highest level since before 2007.  It will be interesting to track the pace of sales in all segments this year and watch changes in Days On Market statistics.