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Click here to view or print the entire January report compliments of the ACRE Corporate Cabinet.
Mobile Area residential sales totaling 262 units in January represent an increase in sales growth of 12.0 percent or 28 units above the same period last year. In addition, total sales represent a 52.3 percent improvement for the month's bottom experienced in 2009.
Forecast: Sales were 3 units or 1.2 percent about of our monthly forecast.The Center's 2014 sales forecast projected 3,936 closed transactions - while actual closings were 3,779 units representing a 3.9 percent cumulative variance.
View full sizeMobile Area residential sales improved 12% in January from last year. Housing Inventory has been favorably reduced by 26% from January 2010 peak. Infograph courtesy of ACRE. All rights reserved. Supply: The Mobile Area housing inventory in January was 2,527 units, a decrease of 2.6 percent from January 2013. Inventory has now declined 26.0% from the month of January peak (3,413 units) reached in 2010. There was 9.6 months of housing supply (8.5+/- months represents a balanced market for this time of year) in January 2015 versus 11.2 months of supply in January 2014, a favorable decline of 13.0 percent. The market continues to gradually move toward equilibrium which is encouraging news.
January inventory in the Mobile Area did increase 2.0 percent from the prior month. This movement contrast with historical data indicating that January inventory on average ('10-'14) decreases by .8 percent from the month of December. As seller confidence in the housing market continues to gradually strengthen, more listings for sale can be anticipated in the future including more new home construction. This is important because the "quality" of inventory has become a market impediment according to recent surveys.
Demand: Residential sales decreased 15.8 percent from the prior month. This direction is with seasonal transaction patterns and historical data indicating that January sales, on average ('10-'14), from the month of December by 9.1 percent.
Existing single family home sales accounted for 94 percent (up from 93% in Jan'14) of total sales while 5 percent (down from 6% in Jan'14) were new home sales and 1 percent (same as Jan'14) were condo transactions.
Pricing: The Mobile Area median sales price in January was $110,000, representing a 11.2 percent improvement from last January ($98,900). In addition, the January median sales price increased 3.8 percent when compared to the prior month. This direction favorably contrast with historical data ('10-'14) indicating that the January median sales price decreases from the month of December by 8.5 percent. Pricing can fluctuate from month-to-month as the sample size of data (closed transactions) is subject to seasonal buying patterns. The Center highly recommends consulting with a real estate professional to discuss prices as it can and will vary from neighborhood to neighborhood. The 2014 median sales price improved 5.7 percent from 2013.
Industry Perspective: "Consumers are as positive about their personal finances at the start of 2015 as they have been since we launched the National Housing Survey in 2010, and this optimism seems to be spilling over into housing market attitudes," said Doug Duncan, senior vice president and chief economist at Fannie Mae. "Consumers are more optimistic about the environment both for buying and for selling a home today, and the share who plan to own on their next move has jumped back up, reversing a three-month trend toward renting. These results are in line with lender optimism about future growth in their mortgage origination business, as shown in our Mortgage Lender Sentiment Survey™. Overall, these are good signs to start off 2015 and are consistent with our expectation that strengthening employment and economic activity will boost the speed of the housing recovery." For full report, go HERE.
PLEASE CONTACT US IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS OR WOULD LIKE TO VIEW HOMES FOR SALE IN THE MOBILE AREA.
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