Happy May everyone! As we say “Goodbye!” to Spring, and “Hello!” to Summer, the market had a mixed bag of good news and not-so good news to report in April. Let’s break down some stats and see if we can see any trends building as we head into the (traditionally) busier Summer months.
The biggest take away from today’s post will be that “everything is relative.” First off, let’s look at everyone’s favorite number, “Median Home Sales Price.” Prices were down 1% vs. last April, which may trigger the question “does that mean the market is cooling off?” Unfortunately, I don’t have a magic market prediction ball (yet, it’s still in beta), but it is only one month of results over a long-term home investment. We’ve had such a steady growth in the market, that it’s strange to see a dip like this.
The biggest indicator of our market health is the low 2.5 months of inventory available in homes and 2.7 mos of condos. That means that if no other homes or condos came on the market ever again, our buying speed would only sustain that many months before we were out. With more and more properties being sold than are added to the market, inventories will continue to tighten moving forward.
The real interesting trend to watch will be the effect of the tightening inventory during rising prices. If prices continue to rise, and inventories continue to tighten, Buyers will eventually have to start looking for alternatives to their plans of homeownership. We may already be seeing that trend as condo prices rose 7% over last year. We might also be seeing Buyers get into the market with more patience, signaled by the lower number of homes sold in April vs. last year.
It’s an interesting and complicated market, but not an impossible one to sell or buy. If you, or someone you know would appreciate the level of service I provide, please call me with their name and number and I’ll be happy to follow-up and take great care of your referral. Please do me a great favor and don’t keep my services a secret. Remember, I’m never too busy for any of your referrals!
Aloha, Nick
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