According to the National association of Realtors, September homes sales increased 5.5% compared to September 2007. It was in September 2007 when I noticed a significant decrease in traffic through my listings and to me this downturn seemed to hit in September last year - this is good news. I am convinced the reason for the increase is due to sellers decreasing their prices. In fact, in the Metro Area the average sales price for single family home was the lowest since 2001 according to Stevel Palm with Smart numbers (in his letter to the Directors of the Firm Multiple Listing Service). This is a sign that even under tough market conditions a home will sell if it is price right.
From a personal production standpoint we we have a total of 5 homes under contract (we being Lisa and I) - which is a pretty good November. Transactions are taking place.
From a sellers standpoint - homes are selling but they have two items in common:
- They have motivated sellers and
- Are in great shape.
What is a motivated Seller? I have met with many sellers recently and when I ask them how motivated they are to sell their home they say they are extremely motivated. Then I tell them the way that motivation is expressed is through the asking price of their home. In the article by Walter Molony, the median sales price is down 9% Nationwide and 16.9% in Metro Atlanta (September 07 to 08) - that is what separates motivated sellers from unmotivated sellers. A year ago when I showed 15-20 homes we may see 1-2 foreclosures or short sales - today it is closer to 6 or 8. All of these homes compete for the Buyers dollar.
Finally, it looks like the number of units sold in September will exceed those in August whereas in the past the August to September time period usually produced a decline. With the price of oil dropping it looks to me like me may be bottoming out. Time will tell.
Call John Foster at 770 722-7010 if you are looking to Buyer or Sell a home in Alpahretta, Cumming or Suwanee Ga. Also, stop by my open house this Sunday in Windward
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