Are Home Sales And Prices Really Up?

George, we're seeing a very small move upward, but what we have seen is a stablizing of the prices.  They don't seem to be a soft as they were just a year ago. 

Georgia...

Home prices have become similar to a stock ticker .... up one day and then down the next. It is really hard to put your finger on it.

George - Connecticut made the news forl leading the nation in price declines for the second quarter.  While the nation average was up over 4% we were down about the same.  However, when I analyze the trends in each of the towns I track, only a few are still declining.  It looks to me like prices have leveled out here, inventory is low, and sales have increased. The law of Supply and Demand suggests that prices will be increasing unless a lot of foreclosures, short sales, and regular listings come on the market.  One statistic alone doesn't mean much, that's why in my market reports, I track prices over the past 12 months, 6 months, and 3 months as well as look at sales volume, sales prices, days on market, list price to sales price ratio, and inventory.  Then I can begin to say something meaningful about the market condition and trends.  Our MLS doesn't provide the type of breakdown the Collingwood group provides.  That's valuable information.

George, looks like first time buyers and investors are taking advantage of the low interest rates.

George, I have 6 sales in the flow and 5 are cash purchases and not all are cheap. The values are there and the shrewd buyers know how to find them.

George, I have had more first time homebuyers this year than probably the last six years!    They are seeing the value of purchasing versus paying more for rent.

The activity is hard to deny...What is causing it and how long it will last needs to be addressed. We just came out of a market with artificial supply and demand at work....Caution here

We have had an uptick in activity in our area. Median price was up 12% year over year in Sept. 

Less foreclosures are available, hence, less lower priced cash deals...maybe that's why the median is up.  It is very hard to break down as the market changes month to month. So much uncertainty yet so many people "want" to buy.

Hopefully we will all see some kind of sustained positive trend that will continue after the elections.

It depends on the area.  In the SF Bay Area, particular better markets in Silicon Valley sales are up, inventory is down (substantially) and the mix of sales run from first-timers to investors and high-end.

I can tell you they are definitely back up in Phoenix, Arizona.  In fact, some areas are way up.  We are a zip code driven market, meaning it looks like a checkerboard in our area as to communities that have had greater recovery than others.  I would imagine it is much the same in some other large cities.

The devil is in the details. It is best to break down the numbers like above to obtain a true picture of the local real estate market.

I think here in Utah the prices are started heating up and rising.  I've seen homes in my own neighborhood sale for quite a bit more than I bought mine for a year ago.

Every market in real estate is so different. Some rural markets did not spike up or down and many have had best year evers. Because so low priced, so plentiful a selection, supply of real estate property listings.

Thank you for shedding light on the truth!  Most activity is investor purchases in Arizona.

Sale Prices are certainly up in our area... maybe not because of natural forces but they are certainly up.

George, I would have to agree with most of those stats as well..generally.  While most all of my business is owner-occupants, I've been dealing with more investors than previous years.

Thanks for the information.  It was nice to see the breakdown and be able understand how it was calculated.

I predict as more and more people gain back some equity in their homes, there will be a whole new group of sellers and buyers out there.