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Harrisonburg Real Estate Market Report - April 2011

By
Real Estate Broker/Owner with Kline May Realty
Click here to download April's Market Update charts.

Last month in this report we said the early signs for the Spring and Summer market looked good, and to stay tuned. After looking at April’s numbers, we continue to feel the market is in better shape than it has been in several years. While we are not experiencing a full-blown recovery, it appears the positive trends are continuing with regard to sales, contracts and overall buyer activity. Due to the continued presence of distressed properties in our market, prices continue to drop, however, despite what appears to be strengthening demand for homes.

In April, 99 residential units sold through the Harrisonburg-Rockingham Association of REALTORS Multiple Listing Service (HRAR MLS), a 12.5% increase over March’s 88 sales. There were not a disproportionate number of sub-$100,000 sales as in March, and the average sales price for the month recovered nicely to $188,353. Year to date, the HRAR MLS is 43 units behind last year’s sales pace, but another good months of contracts (123) in April bodes well for closed sales in May and June. Remember, last year’s January through June sales were accelerated by the Homebuyer Tax Credit deadline so 2010 must be viewed as a bit of an anomaly. When comparing 2011 sales through April 30 to 2009 sales at the same point in the year, we see the market is within 3 units of the 2009 totals.

Although the monthly average and median prices for April recovered from March’s lows, the 12 month trend for average sales price declined for the second month in a row to $193,027. The one and three year changes in the average and median prices of sold homes as of April 30, 2011 are:

Three year change:    Average Price down -14.22%, Median Price down -13.38%
One year change:       Average Price down -4.10%,   Median Price down -5.20%

Finally, this Spring’s inventory trend is encouraging also. Inventory increased in April, as it always does in the Spring, but is considerably lower than last April – another good sign for sellers and the hope of eventual market balance.

Click here to view or download our Market Activity Charts for April, 2011.

This original blog post can be found by clicking here

Comments (1)

Charles Hendricks
The Gaines Group, PLC Architecture and Design - Harrisonburg, VA

We have also seen a slow improvement so far this year. The competition is higher, the price points are tighter, and the clients are slower to pay, but the work load is back. Our first three months this year had more billable hours than any first quarter since 2005, but the invoices are slow to get paid now, so we have not seen the benefits from all the work yet. It will come as these are clients we have long relationships with, but everyone is working in a new reality.

May 15, 2011 02:29 AM