Home prices headed up in central Ohio After following the rest of the country’s downward trend in housing values, home prices in central Ohio are back to post boom levels. The average sale price during the first nine months of 2012 was $169,413 which is 7.1 percent higher than one year ago and 25.1 percent higher than its lowest point in February 2009 according to the Columbus Board of REALTORS®. The average sale price during the month of September was $169,486 marking an 8.1 percent increase over September of 2011. The average sales price is the sum of all the prices for all closed sales in a given month, divided by the number of homes sold. Median prices are also up. The median sales price is a mathematical result that indicates that one half of the group is higher and one half lower. The median price of 101 sold homes would be that price which is lower than 50 of the prices and also higher than 50 of them. The median price of a home sold in September was $143,000 which is 12.6 percent higher than one year ago. Year to date, the median sales price of a home in central Ohio is $140,000 – 7.8 percent higher than last year. “Rising home values benefit all homeowners in central Ohio, but especially those who have been in a negative equity position,” said Jim Coridan, 2012 President of the Columbus Board of REALTORS®. Negative equity, often referred to as “underwater” or “upside down,” means that borrowers owe more on their mortgages than their homes are worth. Negative equity can occur due to a decline in value, an increase in mortgage debt or a combination of both. “A seven percent rise in home prices means that many homeowners may have already regained a state of positive equity,” adds Coridan. “It also means that homeowners who may not have been in a position to sell or refinance before, may be able to do so today.” Homes sales in September (1,859) were up 2.5 percent compared to last year and are up 11.4 percent for the year. At the end of September 2012, the greater Columbus Ohio area had 11,263 homes for sale which is 31.5 percent lower than last year. The combination of increased sales and lower inventory levels brought the months supply down to 5.9 percent, the lowest since August of 2005. Months of supply is defined as the number of properties for sale divided by the number of sales in the most recent month. “When months of supply gets below 6 months, we have a seller’s market, and in that market, we expect prices to climb more steadily, with stronger appreciation the shorter the supply gets,” said Coridan. “This means we’re back to a very healthy seller’s market in central Ohio.
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