So now that the tax incentives have expired and the bulk of the settlements did make their original June settlement date goals, where are we today?
Overall it looks like the tax incentives shifted the timing of many purchases but did not create a large boost in traffic.
Looking at the statistics for 2010 year-to-date and comparing it to the same time frame last year, the numbers show several interesting trends. (The numbers are based on July 3 statistics to allow for delayed sales reporting.) In 2010, there were 620 pending home sales vs 852 pending in 2009 for a 27% drop. At the same time, properties that had closed rose from 2135 in 2009 to 2600 in 2010 for a 21% jump in closed properties. Combining both the pending and settled properties through July 3 for both years, we saw a 7.8% total jump in sales activity for the year through July 3.
We also saw a jump in homes currently available on the market. In 2009 at this time, there were 3275 homes listed as on the market in the TrendMLS System, while in 2010 there were 3618 for a 10% rise in overall inventory. This also marked an increase of 31% from the inventory low seen in January.
Bottom Line for a year-to-year comparison based on July 3rd numbers:
- Total Active Inventory: +10.5%
- Total Pending Inventory: -27.6%
- Total Sold Inventory: +21.8%
- Total Sales Activity (Pending + Sold): +7.8%
At best, the incentives increased overall activity by 7.8% over last year while largely simply shifting settlements to occur prior to the June 30 tax incentive expiration date. At the same time, there has been a significant increase in overall inventory which could continue an overall weak pricing environment. Looks like a great time to be a Buyer while Sellers will need to remain very close to the market to be sure to position their properties correctly.
David Henke
Long & Foster Real Estate Inc - Newtown Square,PA/Bear, DE
Office: 610-359-3853/Cell: 610-618-0808 www.DelawareCountyPennsylvaniaHomes.com
(All statistics per the TrendMLS System and believed accurate but not guaranteed)
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