MEDIAN PRICE AND TIME ON MARKET ALSO DROP

The local real estate market remained sluggish during the past month, according to statistics released Monday, in the number of homes sold. The statistics for median price and average number of days on the market also decreased, according to data released by the Multiple Listing Service (MLS) of the Chattanooga Association of REALTORS®. In September of this year, Southeast Tennessee and the Northwest Georgia area saw the sale of 441 residential units, an 8.1% decrease compared to the previous month’s sales, and a drop of 14.2% from the same month in 2009.

Local REALTORS® Association President, Randy Durham said that the Greater Chattanooga area is holding its own, compared to the dire situation that confronts much of the rest of the U.S. market. “I agree with many of the experts that the rest of 2010 will not see any dramatic improvement here, or elsewhere,” he said. “Our attention is focused on seeing a gradual and incremental improvement that becomes apparent by late Spring of next year.” But he added, “What concerns me a great deal in this environment is the foreclosure picture that is very alarming. Almost a third of our existing home sales are from foreclosures, and it appears that they are continuing to trend upward in that respect. Obviously, that represents an issue that will have to be addressed by lawmakers and regulators very soon. However, I feel confident that we can continue to sell these homes on a free and open market, and the public should not fear that there will be a glut of unsold foreclosures as long as we can continue to find willing buyers”.

For the month of September, the local median home price was $125,000, representing a decrease of 6.2% from August, and 3.8% from the same period one year earlier.

In terms of the number of average days on the local market, September 2010 saw a small decrease of four days over figures from the previous month, and 22 days from August 2009.

©2010 Chattanooga Association of REALTORS® Used by permission.

Buyer activity remained above 2009 levels. There were 153 purchase agreements signed last week, representing a 10.9 percent increase over last year.

This combination of market activity helped to keep inventory levels lower than last year for the ninth consecutive week. The number of Active Listings for Sale was down 2.4 percent to 6,610 properties.

Based on July figures, sellers received an average of 90.6 percent of their original list price after about 114 days on the market. Median Sales Price stands at $130,000, and the Months Supply of Inventory metric remains fairly elevated at 12.8 months.

Buyer activity remained above 2009 levels, as it has for 29 out of the 33 full weeks this year. There were 146 purchase agreements signed last week, representing a whopping 36.4 percent increase over 2009.

This helped to keep inventory levels lower than last year for the eighth consecutive week. The number of Active Listings for Sale was down 3.6 percent to 6,559 properties. This marks the largest inventory decline in over a year (56 weeks to be exact).

Based on July figures, sellers received an average of 90.6 percent of their original list price after about 114 days on the market. Median Sales Price stands at $130,000, and the Months Supply of Inventory metric remains fairly elevated at 12.8 months.

Buyer activity remained above 2009 levels with 128 contracts written last week, representing a 7.6 percent increase.

This helped to keep inventory levels lower than last year for the seventh consecutive week. The number of Active Listings for Sale was down 3.5 percent to 6,553 properties.

Based on July figures, those sellers who are still waiting for an offer could expect to receive 90.8 percent of their list price and a market time of 114 days, though this number has been coming down in recent months. Median Sales Price remained at $132,000 taking into consideration overall market activity.

The current projections for residential mortgage interest rates have shown little change within the past few home sales reporting periods.

For the month of February, the local median home price was $121,750. That represents a decrease of 3.0% from the same period one year earlier and a slight gain of 1.9% from the median price reported the previous month. The adjusted median price remains one of the more attractive for U.S. regions of this size.

In terms of the number of average days on the local market, February 2010 saw a small increase over figures from the same month in 2009, but down somewhat from the previous month of January of 2010. Those swings do not seem to portend anything more extraordinary than the variety of factors that comprise the overall operational vagaries of a recovering market system.

A review of the historical sales activities during the month of February over the past ten years shows a remarkable consistency, with the often stated sole exception of the “boom” years of the past mid-decade.

In the fourth three month period of the year just ended, the Southeast Tennessee and Northwest Georgia area saw the sale of 1,527 residential units, a 19.8% increase over the same quarter’s sales in 2008, but a drop of 6.5% over the July through September sales of 2009.

Median price figures for the period witnessed a decrease to $128,500 – a drop of 4.8% from the 4th Quarter of 2008 and a statistically negligible decline of 1.2% from the previous quarter. While a positive sign, in terms of affordability, the price drop is often interpreted by some authorities as a sign of a continuing sluggish economic outlook. However, the index indicating the number of days on the market has remained remarkably consistent – from 120 a year ago to 120 in the 4th Quarter of 2009 – and only 5 days less than the 3rd Quarter.

For the month of December, the local median home price was $128,250. That represents a decrease of 5.2% from the same period one year earlier and a small decrease of 1.3% from the median price reported the previous month. REALTORS® are quick to point out that it continues to represent a continuing trend of real affordability, and that price sensitive buyers should strongly consider purchasing now, and avoiding the inevitable increases in an improving market.

The average number of days on the market showed a slight increase, attributed to the busy period of
any holiday season. From recent highs (above 130 days), the average is now showing 126 days, which
has not been interpreted as showing any significant trend.

Sales and Inventory History

Category – Residential