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.
