Morristown NJ Real Estate Market Update MAY 2014

Morristown NJ Real Estate Market Update MAY 2014

by Bob Zorechak - GRI, ABR, e-PRO

The numbers for Morristown are mostly down across the board for MAY 2014 with the exception of the 12 month rolling sales volume:

• The rolling 12 month sales volume has increased by 22 units (13%) - Last year: May 2012 thru May 2013  (166 homes sold) as compared to the current period: May 2013 thru May 2014 with (178 homes sold).  This is a significant reversal from negative territory (last month was down 50 units (18%) to positive territory for May.

• The May year-to-date numbers are down by 35% or (28) units (very similar to last month) when you compare it to last year's year-to-date total (80 homes sold) to the current period with (52 homes sold).  This breaks a cycle of 3 consecutive years of increased sales YTD through May.

• The monthly volume for the number of sales occurring last May (18 homes sold), as compared  to this May (13 homes sold) is down by 28% or (5) units, which is also similar to the prior month's numbers.

• The volume of Pending Sales (Under Contract) as of the last day of May 2014 is also running significantly lower (16) units as compared to last year at this same time at (21) units, which is down by 24% or (5) units.

Read below to find out the very latest information on your local Morristown NJ Real Estate market!

While all real estate is local, there are many positive signs being seen all across the Northeast and in other major regional markets across the country. The next several months will be critical in determining if the recent upswing has any sustained staying power.  Most experts are anticipating a longer, more robust spring selling season mainly due to the harsh winter, which delayed a lot of buyers from starting their search as well as sellers who planned on getting their homes ready for the market.

In addition to the harsh winter, there is also a certain amount of "pent-up demand" on both the buying and selling side of this market as many buyers and sellers have been sitting on the fence for several years now and see that the pendulum is beginning to swing in the other direction and as a result, they are taking action.

The Morristown market seems to be holding it's own through May even though the monthly numbers are down, YTD numbers are ahead of last year's pace.  One concern however, is the drop in the number of homes Under Contract which is an indicator of future results. This will be something to keep an eye out moving forward.

Prices are expected to remain steady and interest rates continue to remain low.  There has rarely been a time where both prices AND interest rates were so low. Combine these two factors with a relatively high inventory of homes to choose from and you have the perfect conditions for a robust and steady housing recovery. The general state of the economy along with a high rate of foreclosures and distressed properties are expected to keep prices low for several more years as this inventory eventually gets cleared out.

Look below to see the individual homes that sold in Morristown NJ for the month of MAY in 2014.  Also shown below is a year to year comparison bar graph for homes SOLD in the month of MAY over the past 5 years, followed by another graph illustrating the amount of homes that have SOLD Year-to-Date through MAY through the same period.