Market Update
IT'S A BUYERS MARKET
SALES:
The multiple listing service reports 7 homes going under
contract over the last 30 days in Wickenburg. Three homes closed
escrow over the last 30 days, the average sales price was $250,000 with a high
of $305,000 and low of $195,000. The average time those homes spent on
the market was 490 days. the final sales price was on average
$16,000 less than the asking price.
inventory/
time on the market:
Currently we have 213 single family homes on the market which is 6
less than last
month.
The average time on the market is averaging 8 months which
is a little higher than the normal of 6 months. The interesting
thing is that there is a real shortage of some types of homes. For
example we have a real shortage of newer homes on larger subdivision lots say
between 1/4 and 1/2 acre, and also have a shortage of the more
affordable horse properties especially under $300K
PRICES:
More about calculating
values
Prices are definitely down. Statistically the drop
isn't showing yet, but I have seen asking prices drop drop such that we can be
confident that as these houses sell the prices will be down. My
guess at this point is that prices are down between 8% and 10%.
Expectations:
The new year is showing promise with a lot more buyer
activity. I don't think it is enough activity to counteract
falling prices however. I do still expect inventory levels to rise
at some point as news of increased buyer activity reaches sellers.
So if you are seller in the Wickenburg market the competition will remain tough, and there will be little chance of selling a home that is over priced. For buyers interested in Wickenburg, 2009 is fantastic year to buy. Both prices and interest rates are low.
Land:
The demand for land has been much lower than normal of late even
though the availability is quite good. I attribute that primarily to the asking prices of the land
that is on the market. The asking prices of land are beginning to soften
but most sellers are still clinging to prices that are in many cases
higher than 2005. It seems very obvious at this point that
asking prices are going to have to come down before buyers start looking
at land again.
Summary of data from past market updates
* When I mention an average I will exclude 2005 which was a most unusual year in Real Estate.
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