April 2017
The employment landscape and wages have both improved over the last few years,
allowing for more people to participate in the home-buying process. When the
economy is in good working order, as it is now, it creates opportunities in residential
real estate, and right now is a potentially lucrative time to sell a home. Houses that
show well and are priced correctly have been selling quickly, often at higher prices
than asking.
New Listings were up 9.0 percent to 1,610. Pending Sales decreased 2.9 percent to
1,192. Inventory grew 4.6 percent to 4,304 units.
Prices moved higher as Median Sales Price was up 2.2 percent to $158,975. Days
on Market decreased 23.0 percent to 67 days. Months Supply of Inventory was
down 4.7 percent to 4.1 months, indicating that demand increased relative to
supply.
Although there is a mounting amount of buyer competition during the annual spring
market cycle, buyer demand has not abated, nor is it expected to in the immediate
future unless something unpredictable occurs. While strong demand is generally
considered a good problem to have, it creates an affordability issue for some
buyers, especially first-time buyers. And yet, prices will continue to rise amidst
strong demand.
Information courtesy of CMLS*
