March 2012 was a good month for buyers and sellers of real estate in the Des Moines area made up primarily of the cities of Altoona, Ankeny, Carlisle, Clive, Des Moines, Indianola, Johnston, Norwalk, Pleasant Hill, Urbandale, Waukee and West Des Moines and comprising a population of about 562,000 residents.
We were all pleasantly surprised to see sales leap appx. 25% in March 2012 from 580 units last year to 727 closed units this year. The icing on the cake though was a rise in prices which we had not been seeing, from $143,933 on average last March to $159,496 this March. Sales prices and closed units also rose month on month also. Inventory levels continue to remain below average as well with about 4,529 homes on the market on average in March 2012, or about 900 fewer than the year prior. What that means for sellers is that those who have homes on the market should get more showings all in all. The warm weather and rock bottom interest rates at about 3.88% likely fueled the uptick. Days on market fell YOY from 116 to 112, but rose month on month from 106 days in February.
Clive had the highest rise in unit sales clocking in a 70.6% increase over last year, while Indianola lagged the pack with a -30% decline yoy. Clive also saw the biggest average price increase at 27.4%, but Johnson prices sagged -2.8%, the only metro area seeing a decline.
The top five price categories were:
- $200,000~$249,999 83 units
- $120,000~$139,999 69 units
- $140,000~$159,999 69 units
- $110,000~$119,999 65 units
- $300,000~$399,999 36 units
Homes priced $400,000 and over logged 24 units out of an active inventory of appx. 300 units, continuing their upward trend. Closed units rose 60% month on month while inventory rose only about 36.6%
Condo/townhome units sold were 92, out of an inventory of appx. 875 units. Unit sales rise were outmatched with inventory outpacing unit gains.
The top three methods of financing were:
- Conventional 364 units
- FHA 166 units
- Cash 160 units
|
City
|
3/2012
Total Sold |
3/2011
Total Sold |
Total Sold
% Change |
2012
YTD Sold |
2011
YTD Sold |
YTD Sold
% Change |
|
21
|
18
|
+16.7%
|
46
|
40
|
+15.0%
|
|
|
92
|
62
|
+48.4%
|
206
|
154
|
+33.8%
|
|
|
29
|
17
|
+70.6%
|
64
|
40
|
+60.0%
|
|
|
220
|
183
|
+20.2%
|
539
|
433
|
+24.5%
|
|
|
14
|
20
|
-30.0%
|
39
|
44
|
-11.4%
|
|
|
22
|
15
|
+46.7%
|
51
|
45
|
+13.3%
|
|
|
15
|
13
|
+15.4%
|
25
|
21
|
+19.0%
|
|
|
56
|
44
|
+27.3%
|
117
|
93
|
+25.8%
|
|
|
21
|
17
|
+23.5%
|
53
|
47
|
+12.8%
|
|
|
71
|
61
|
+16.4%
|
152
|
149
|
+2.0%
|
|
| TOTAL - DMAAR MLS (all cities) |
727
|
580
|
+25.3%
|
1,675
|
1,392
|
+20.3%
|
|
City
|
3/2012
Avg Sale Price |
3/2011
Avg Sale Price |
Avg Sale Price
% Change |
3/2012
Median Sale Price |
3/2011
Median Sale Price |
Median Sale Price
% Change |
|
178,495
|
172,189
|
+3.7%
|
155,000
|
152,450
|
+1.7%
|
|
|
181,662
|
180,263
|
+0.8%
|
169,900
|
174,750
|
-2.8%
|
|
|
270,040
|
212,005
|
+27.4%
|
212,500
|
198,500
|
+7.1%
|
|
|
92,214
|
87,291
|
+5.6%
|
82,700
|
77,000
|
+7.4%
|
|
|
149,250
|
122,673
|
+21.7%
|
134,500
|
119,000
|
+13.0%
|
|
|
225,977
|
232,562
|
-2.8%
|
212,000
|
168,527
|
+25.8%
|
|
|
163,186
|
156,692
|
+4.1%
|
145,900
|
153,500
|
-5.0%
|
|
|
223,580
|
223,282
|
+0.1%
|
200,700
|
192,450
|
+4.3%
|
|
|
193,785
|
185,334
|
+4.6%
|
204,080
|
182,900
|
+11.6%
|
|
|
217,088
|
186,171
|
+16.6%
|
180,000
|
162,000
|
+11.1%
|
|
| TOTAL - DMAAR MLS (all cities) |
159,496
|
143,993
|
+10.8%
|
140,000
|
130,450
|
+7.3%
|
|
City
|
3/2012
Days on Market |
3/2011
Days on Market |
Days on Market
% Change |
|
83.0
|
109.2
|
-24.0%
|
|
|
120.1
|
132.0
|
-9.0%
|
|
|
168.9
|
116.3
|
+45.2%
|
|
|
99.7
|
109.5
|
-8.9%
|
|
|
99.6
|
120.1
|
-17.1%
|
|
|
122.5
|
188.1
|
-34.9%
|
|
|
50.9
|
73.7
|
-30.9%
|
|
|
103.2
|
96.2
|
+7.3%
|
|
|
123.7
|
156.0
|
-20.7%
|
|
|
124.8
|
99.4
|
+25.6%
|
|
| TOTAL - DMAAR MLS (all cities) |
112.0
|
116.0
|
-3.4%
|
Data courtesy of The Des Moines Area Association of REALTORS, DMAAR, The Iowa Association of REALTORS, IAR, and REMarketpulse.com owned and operated by Les Sulgrove REALTOR, for the period 03/01/2012~03/31/2012. All rights reserved. Data provided is believed to be accurate but should not be relied upon without verification.
Comments(2)