Special offer

How Much Is My House Worth Today? The 2009 2nd Quarter Statistics for Philadelphia are out, but what do they tell us?

By
Real Estate Agent with WEICHERT, REALTORS ® - McCarthy Associates

Philadelphia housing price statistics provided by the TREND Multiple Listing Service for housing sales are now available for the 2nd quarter of 2009. According to the report the housing market in Philadelphia peaked in the 3rd Quarter of 2007. Average prices citywide have declined by 12.3% since that quarter, with most of the decline ( 84.1%) coming within the past 12 months.

The statistics provide an interesting snapshot of what Northwest Philadelphia home sales looked like in the 2nd Quarter of the Year where there were two types of buyers. Leading the way were 1st time home buyers who could take advantage of the $8000 Federal Tax Credit. The 1st time buyers were purchasing homes that were good buys, mostly in good to very good condition priced between $100,000 and $400,000, with most sale being in the $200,000 to $300,000 range. The other group of buyers were investors buying the lowest priced 'as is' properties that could be renovated for use as rental properties.

Sales of Northwest Philadelphia homes over $400,000 were rare. Overall there were 18 homes sold in the price range between $400,000 and $1,000,000. There were 2 sales of homes over $1,000,000.

 The table below shows the Market Watch Statistics by zip code.

Northwest Philadelphia 2nd Quarter Home Sales Statistics*

Zip Code             Median Price              Avg Price                 Price Chg                 Ttl Sold               % Chg              DOM                S/A

                                                                                                             

19118

$332,000

$449,900

-10.38%

17

-46.88%

52

96.2%

19119

$239,000

$281,300

-1.19%

66

-18.52%

68

96.0%

19127

$230,000

$251,200

-4.78%

28

-28.21%

91

97.0%

19128

$232,500

$244,000

-0.77%

138

4.55%

70

96.9%

19129

$235,750

$225,800

-2.29%

36

-21.74%

67

95.3%

19126

$125,500

$133,100

-11.97%

33

43.48%

86

95.8%

19150

$130,000

$124,500

-20.24%

47

42.42%

80

96.3%

19144

$64,000

$112,500

-1.32%

53

-14.52%

59

96.6%

19141

$80,000

$89,700

9.12%

30

-21.05%

76

94.1%

19138

$65,000

$80,500

-2.66%

58

11.32%

58

94.7%

*Data Provided by TREND Multiple Listing Service

Roxborough (19128) led the way in number of sales and only .077% decline in prices. This is a neighborhood where most houses fall into the $200,000 - $400,000 price range.

Chestnut Hill (19118) with the highest valued homes in the area saw a low number of sales and an apparent decline in prices due to most sales being in the strongest $200,000 - $400,000 price range.

Mt Airy (19119) had the widest range of sales from $40,500 to $1,795,000 while ½ of the sales fell into the $200,000 - $400,000 price range.

Cedarbrook/E Mt Airy (19150) saw the greatest decline in average price while sales increased, because this popular neighborhood for 1st time buyers in the $100,000 to $200,000 price range was also popular with investors picking up distressed properties at low prices.

The other areas with low median prices (19138, 19141, and 19144) also saw strong sales of the lowest price houses.

One statistic that was consistent in all neighborhoods was the ratio of selling price to asking price. Overall, homes were selling at around 95% of the asking price when an offer was received.

In summary under market homes are selling well, but with many available prices are low. Mid priced homes are selling well when the are in good condition and prices are stable. Larger, higher priced homes may or may not be holding their value, few are on the market and fewer are selling. Buyers are looking for value and make below asking price offers.

Kathleen Sheridan

NW Philadelphia Home Sales, Investment Properties, Short Sales

 

 

Posted by

Kathleen Sheridan

Weichert, Realtors® - McCarthy Associates

6901 Gerrmantown Ave, Philadelphia, PA 19119

Office: 215-843-1414 ext 230

Cell: 215-740-3320

Email: ksheridanrelator@gmail.com

NWPhillyRealEstate

Jim & Cathy Wood Greater Nashville Area Real Estate
Crye-Leike Realtors, Inc. - Mount Juliet, TN

Interesting numbers Kathleen,

 

I will forward this article to my relatives living in Philadelphia.

 

Thanks

Aug 29, 2009 01:52 AM
Kathleen Sheridan
WEICHERT, REALTORS ® - McCarthy Associates - Philadelphia, PA

I had a nice looking table until I posted. I'll try to fix it.

Aug 29, 2009 02:08 AM
Sarah Sonke
AuctionFirst.com and TrianglePremierAuctions.com - Raleigh, NC
Auctioneer/Broker

Thanks for sharing.

The frustrating thing about stats is they give a good picture of the recent past.  One of the big challenges is that market is so volatile that things change just about the time the latest stats come out. Now that we're entering the Fall/Winter season, many of the stats from the summer buying season will change significantly - depending on the area you're in and how volatile the job situation is.  I don't think that residential RE has hit the low yet and probably won't until commercial RE, which is just starting a meltdown, finishes adjusting.  My guess is 18 months more of looking at stats and wondering where the bottom is.

Aug 29, 2009 02:09 AM
Jim & Cathy Wood Greater Nashville Area Real Estate
Crye-Leike Realtors, Inc. - Mount Juliet, TN

Kathleen-

 

My cousin in Philly asks "Do you have stats for 19134 (Port Richmond)?"

 

Aug 30, 2009 04:22 AM
Kathleen Sheridan
WEICHERT, REALTORS ® - McCarthy Associates - Philadelphia, PA

Jim, Port Richmond is one of those neighborhoods that is benefiting by having a quantity of low cost as is properties along with homes in good condition that are in demand for 1st time buyers. The lowest sale was $7,500, the highest $240,415The stats are as follows:

Zip Code 19134 - Includes Port Richmond and Kensington

Median $73,000

Average $82,900

% Change of Average Price from last year 7%

Total Sold 123

% Change of Total Sold -7.52%

Average DOM 65

Sold / Asking 92.48%

 

For Sarah and anyone wondering about where the bottom is: The job market in Philadelphia is pretty much stable. We have had our share of appraisers cutting appraisals below the most recent comparables. However, the big issue is financing which is great for some buyers and leaving many out of the market.

Aug 31, 2009 05:28 AM