SHORT SALE SPECIALIST REALTOR – BALTIMORE MD PRE-FORECLOSURE HELP

We are at a historical moment of acute industry transformation, and there are billions of dollars in investment capital parked against the wall, skates on, patiently waiting for just the right market song to dance pairs to.  Private job growth figures strummed and uplifting tune for November skaters.  With interest rates maintaining at record lows and the 2010 tax credit now yesterday’s fashion, let’s look at the activity happening in our local, er, market.

The 8,707 Pending Sales in the MRIS region increased 21.1 percent since last November.  New Listings decreased 2.6 percent to 11,849 and the 63,645 active listings were up 0.5 percent.  Months Supply of Inventory – which should ideally fall between five and six – increased 5.0 percent to 7.2 months.

Price gained some ground last month.  Median Sales Price increased 5.9 percent versus last November, checking in at $270,000.  Market times increased 2.5 percent and are now at 86 days.

The national housing market continued to stablize on the heels of some of the most positive economic news since the Great Recession began in December 2007.  As foreclosures continue to unlace and exit the arena, the increased share of traditional sales coupled with greater consumer purchasing power should lift home prices and foster a balanced market place.

Market-Indicators-Nov-2010

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What can we say that we haven’t said before? Newspaper warn of possible foreclosure moratoria, job growth is just barely in the black ink and the midterm election cycle brought new leadership to Washington, D.C. Buyer are still armed with access to cheap loans and strong negotiating power.  Recovery continues to crawl forward nationally; let’s take a look at what’s happening locally.

Pending Sales in the Washington, D.C. region decreased by 7.8 percent from last October to arrive at 9,205.  New Listings decreased by 10.6 percent to land at 14,660 and the overall inventory of 65,810 increased by 1.3 percent.

Prices held their ground and even inched upwards.  Median Sales Price increased by 5.1 percent, registering in at $268,000.  Average Days on Market, at 84, decreased by 6.4 percent versus last year.  Negotiations moved toward buyers as Percent of Original List Price Received at Sale decreased by 1.5 percent to 92.7 percent.

Private companies added jobs for the first time since May but not enough to lower the stubbornly high 9.6 percent unemployement rate.  Our recovery is moving at a sloth’s pace, but at least it’s moving forward.  A stronger labor market will drive new household formations and instill the confidence needed for current homeowners to move up and for renters to consider ownership.

Market-Indicators-Oct-2010

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With this month’s report, be mindful of the fact that activity was uniquely strong last year at this time due to the approaching deadline for the 2009 tax credit.  This means that we’re entering an apples-to-oranges comparison period which may make this year’s activity look especially slow for the next few months.  Combine that with the fact that this time of year typically endures slowed sales activity and that buyers in 2010 were driven to enter contracts by April 30, 2010, and you’ll see that September 2010′s numbers should be taken with a grain of proverbial salt.

Pending Sales in the region decreased 7.2 percent from last September to arrive at 9,403.  New Listings fell 2.9 percent since last September and the overall inventory of 65,441 was near even with last year, up a slight 0.1 percent.

Median Sales Price was up 1.9 percent compared to last September, registering in at $265,000.  Average Days on Market, at 82, fell 9.6 percent versus last year.  Months Supply of Inventory decreased 3.5 percent to weigh in at 7.1 months, holding it close to the desired 6-month mark for a balance between supply and demand.

For the sake of long-term market stability, be wary of an overabundance of listing activity.  Although New Listings have been slowing down the recent months, should sales continue to fall behind last year’s levels, inventory could creep back up putting pressure on prices.  As mentioned, balanced supply and demand, as always, is the goal.

Market-Indicators-Sep-2010

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Your current outlook on the housing market depends on how you interpret the signs.  Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke’s “unusually uncertain” economic outlook underpinds the need for job growth before housing demand recovers across the nation.  But let’s focus on the local story before trying to fix the nationa malaise.

Pending Sales in the MRIS region increased by 1.9 percent from last August to arrive at 10,211.  This is the first time since April that pendings have surpassed the 10,000.  New Listings decreased by 1.6 percent since last August and the overall inventory of 65,790 decreased by 1.5 percent.

Median Sales Price increased by 2.7 percent compared to last August, registering in at $282,500.  Average Days on Market, at 77, decreased by 16.4 percent versus last year.  Months Supply of Inventory decreased by 7.5 percent to weigh in at 7.0 months.

In the coming months, keep an eye on Active Listings and Months Supply.  Currently the trends in both metrics are good, but if last month’s trends can continue, it could bring a better balance to the market by pushing Months Supply closer to teh 6-month mark.

Market-Indicators-Aug-2010

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“Recovery loses steam.” “House demand in a slump.” “Tax credit leaves mess in its wake.” We’re bombarded with headlines like these every day.  Some have merit, some don’t.  The truth is, the economy is now driving the housing market and not vice versa.

Pending Sales in the MRIS region dipped slightly by 4.6 percent from last July to arrive at 10,148.  That’s one of the stronger marks inthe nation.

New Listins dipped slightly by 0.6 percent since last July and overall inventory dipped slightly by 4.7 percent over last year.

Median Sales Price grew slightly by 3.2 percent over last July to arrive at $289,000.  Buyer willing to pay 94.3% of seller’s asking price and market times dropped by 20.1 percent over last year.

In sum, the housing market is trying to hold its ground until the job situation improves.  Only after widespread, private-sector hiring will demand be restored to the market and prices continue to stabilize.  Until then, it’s a hurry up and wait game.

Market-Indicators-July-2010

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After a big dip in activity last month, buyers slowly came back to the market in June as Pending Sales were nearly even with a year ago.  Inventory was down 8.2 percent compared to last year giving buyers fewer choices, and the reduced supply put upward pressure on prices.  The Median Sales Price for June of $282,995 was a 1.1 percent increase over June 2009.

Reduced competition helped sellers as negotiations moved back toward their favor by 1.9 percent to arrive at 94.7 Percent of Original List Price.  In addition, market times decreased 26.9 percent to 73 days, while Months Supply of Inventory fell 19.0 percent to 6.4 months.

Expect closings to receive a slight boost as Congress extended the closing date to September 30 for tax credit buyers, and expect the market to stay flat or post minor improvements over the near term.

Market-Indicators-June-2010

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May 2010 provided our first month of data after an extensive 18-month tax credit party.  And the hangover may have set in.  The tax credit clearly propped up sales, so they predictably took a substantial dip a month after it expired.  Pending Sales decreased 13.7 percent compared to last May, dropping to 9,527 purchase agreements signed, down a whopping 6,562 from last month.  This represents the largest month-to-month decline in actual units pended since we have had available comparative date in 2003.

Keep in mind that closed sales will remain strong through the end of the June as buyers wrap up before the June 30 closing date deadline.  In fact, they were up 11.7 percent over last year to 10.415 closed sales.

New Listings posted a decrease of 7.9 percent year-over-year, clocking in at 16,839 new homes on the market.  This has brought inventory down 12.6 percent to 60,535 Active Listings, which has kept it near a balanced 6-month mark so far this year.

It remains to be seen whether the dip in buyer activity is a short-term effect of the credit deadline passing or a result of long-term changes in demand.  Regardless, we expect a slow summer selling season.

Market-Indicators-May-2010

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Buyers in the MRIS region were even more active in March than in February, with a whopping 45.5 percent year-over-year increase in pending sales to bring the figure to 14,361 for this month.

Home prices are stabilizing.  The March median sales price of $250,000 was only a 1.2 percent decline from last March.  Percent of Original List Price Received also provides reason for cautious optimism as transactions slowly creep back toward the seller’s favor.  The 94.1 mark for March has consistently been inching upwards in 2010.

Low mortgage rates and the final days of the tax credit continue to create a favorable buying environment and affordability continues to soar.  This may change; but we’re on top of it.

Market-Indicators-Mar-2010

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Despite cold weather and heavy snow, buyers in the MRIS region were very active during February.  There were 8,841 purchase agreements signed during the month, an increase of 12.3 percent from a year ago.

Home prices are continuing to show early signs of stabilizing.  The February median sales price of $250,000 was an increase from a year ago of 1.7 percent.

Extremely low mortgage rates have combined with the price declines of recent years to create an attractive environment for buyers.  The Housing Affordability Index in February of 149 is another near-record, and is up dramatically from the low point seen a few years back.

Market-Indicators-Feb-2010

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Home sales in the MRIS region in January continued their hot streal at 9,290 purchase agreements signed – an increase of 32.1 percent from a year ago.

The increase in sales has led to stabilizing home prices.  January’s median sales price of $246,000 was 1.6 percent lower than a year ago.  While that’s still a decline, it’s a much smaller decline than we’ve seen in some time.

The Months Supply of Inventory in the region has dropped to 5.3, down 36.0 percent from the mark of 8.2 seen a year ago.

Market-Indicators-Jan-2010

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