Johnston County, NC Home Sales Up 45% in July!

Johnston County, NC Home Sales Up 45% in July!

Yikes! I had to read that twice, but that is the latest report from the Triangle Multiple Listing Service who reports that the Triangle’s housing market remains strong with most areas reporting positive numbers compared to July of 2011.

There are 16 counties in the greater Triangle Region and overall sales were up 23% in July of this year compared to last. The Triangle Region is the area surrounding Research Triangle Park and the cities of Raleigh, Durham and Chapel Hill although these days it encompasses much much more as townes such as Clayton, Knightdale, Fuquay-Varina have all grown to meet the needs of the many people moving to the area for jobs, retirement and for first time home buyers.

Orange County July sales were up 31%, Wake 23% and there were other  very positive figures in the report. Pending sales which are homes that are under contract but not closed were up 31%, this is important because it shows a continuing trend. The days on market dropped for the fourth straight month to 115 days. The average sales price did drop 1.7% in Johnston but is about the same YTD, in Wake County the average sales price rose 2% and overall the median sales price rose 1% to $191,900. Inventory levels shrank by 26%.

So what does this mean to the home seller who has their house on the market, well it depends on where the house is, what city/town what neighborhood, what street, what school district, you see all real estate is local and in some cases hyperlocal meaning one neighborhood can be knocking it out of the park and a mile down the road, nothing. Is the home priced correctly and ready to sell, some re-sale homes are now competing with new construction national builders who can afford to sell homes for less and have the resources to offer incentives.

What does Johnston County home sales rising by 45% mean for the home buyer? Well I probably wouldn't wait too long! There will still be homes available but as the market gathers steam and inventory drops, prices will start to edge upwards, interest rates simply can’t go much lower, this is when people can afford a home in a price range  that will become out of reach when interest rates start to rise. In Johnston County the USDA has a 100% no money down loan program that  used to cover the entire county, but there are changes coming that will eliminate certain areas like Clayton and Smithfield. Read what Eleanor Thorne has to say about the USDA here.