This beautiful home is 2930 Brookstone Drive - check it out here!
Wow! March was a wild and crazy month in the real estate world in Harrisonburg and Rockingham County. Let's put it this way -- in the past three years, there have only been three months when more buyers have signed contracts than in March 2017! But I'm getting ahead of myself -- read on....
As you'd guess from the header image above, I have published my monthly market report, which you can download as a PDF, or read online. For the abridged version of the most important things for you to know, read on....
First -- for those that would rather listen/watch than read -- tune in to my monthly video overview of our local housing market....
And now, some general indicators of market performance....
Some basic notes from this general market overview:
- There were 7% more home sales this March as compared to last March.
- YTD, we're seeing 4% more home sales in 2017 as compared to 2016.
- Home sales in the past 12 months are 14% higher than the previous 12 months.
- The median sales price increased 1.3% in March as compared to a year ago.
- The 2017-YTD median sales price is actually 1.6% lower than last year.
- The median sales price over the past 12 months ($192,000) is 2.95% higher than the previous 12 months when it was $186,500.
- Homes are selling 5.56% faster in the past 12 months as compared to the previous 12 months.
As shown above, each month of 2017 (so far!) has barely surpassed the same month of the previous year. That said, we may be about to see a significant change in that trend because....
As shown above, homes were flying off the shelf (buyers were signing contracts) faster (slightly) than I can eat donuts from Peace, Love and Little Donuts. No joking, though, as noted above, the 140 signed contracts in March 2017 exceeds all but three months from the past three years. So -- it seems likely that we'll see a pop in April 2017 home sales!
With all of these homes selling, are we running out of homes for folks to buy?
Why yes, we are! There has been a 30% decline in the number of homes for sale over the past year. And -- get this -- if we look solely at homes under $200K, there has been a 50% decline in housing inventory levels!
OK -- so, more homes are selling, at higher prices, more quickly -- sounds good for sellers, right?
Yes, but I would still remind all sellers that even in a seller's market it is still essential to focus on price, condition and marketing.
And what is a buyer to do in some crazy times as these? Be prepared! Know the market, know the process, know your buying power, and monitor new listings closely!
If you're interested in even more market data, read my full online market report, download the PDF, or click here to sign up to receive my real estate blog by email.
And -- as is always my encouragement -- if you will be buying or selling a home in the near future, start learning about our local housing market sooner rather than later! Being informed will allow you to make better real estate decisions.
Here are two handy references to prepare yourself to buy or sell a home....
