Entire-MLS-2012[1]

2011 central Ohio home sales missed outpacing 2010 by just 1.3 percent

Central Ohio saw 19,956 single family and condominium home sales during the year 2011. This market had 19,700 residential home sales the previous year which put 2011 just 1.3 percent behind 2010 according to the Columbus Board of REALTORS®.

“We were neck and neck with 2010 home sales going in to December,” said Jim Coridan, 2012 President of the Columbus Board of REALTORS®. “But sales fell flat during the holidays so we ended the year just over one percent below the previous year.”

“Considering 2010 included above average sales due to the last six months of the home buyer tax credits, we’re still pretty pleased.”

July through November showed healthy increases in sales, anywhere from seven to 23 percent more than the previous year. But December home sales dropped to 1,347 representing an 8.9 percent drop from the 1,479 sales in December of 2010 and ending hopes that 2011 would outsell 2010.

The number of homes for sale in the market continued to decline during 2011 helping to bring the local market back into balance. The total number of homes for sale at the end of the year (11,398) was 28.8 percent lower than the previous year (16,019).

“This is great news for central Ohio,” adds Coridan. “Inventory during the housing boom years escalated sometimes reaching over 30 percent more than is customary for the central Ohio housing market. Since then, REALTORS® have been struggling to sell the excess homes as buyers dwindled.”

The lower inventory brought the months supply under control. A healthy market has a 6.5 to 7-month supply of homes, meaning if no new homes were added to the market, it would take about 6.5 or 7 months to sell all the available homes.

The drop in listings and elevated sales during the second half of 2011 brought the year-end months supply down to 6.6, more in keeping with levels seen during 2005. During the last few years, the months supply has regularly been in the double digits and was as high as 12.5 in November 2008.

Homes spent an average of 100 days on the market during 2011, a reduction of four days from the average time to sell a home in 2010.

The average sale price of a home in 2011 was $156,428 which is 2.2 percent lower than the average price of homes sold in 2010 ($160,020).

School districts experiencing the highest home sales in 2011 included Columbus, South-Western (Grove City), Olentangy, Hilliard, Westerville, Dublin, Worthington, Groveport Madison and New Albany.

Cities averaging the highest home sale prices included New Albany, Dublin, Riverlea, Bexley, Upper Arlington, German Village, Grandview Heights and downtown Columbus.

Columbus Board of REALTORS®

Home sales remain elevated in central Ohio

November marks the fifth consecutive month of increased home sales in central Ohio this year after the first half of the year struggled to keep up with increased sales from 2010 due to the home buyer tax credits. According to the Columbus Board of REALTORS®, 1,406 homes sold in November which is seven percent more than the previous year.

Additionally, the number of residential homes scheduled to close was up over 37 percent, from 1,341 last year to 1,843 last month (November 2011).

“We’re finding that sellers recognize the challenges of today’s market and are realistically pricing their homes to sell,” says Rick Benjamin, 2011 President of the Columbus Board of REALTORS®. “Buyers are responding well to the pricing and, of course, the record low interest rates. It’s still a great time to buy a home.”

Homes in central Ohio this year have sold for an average of $157,032, down 2.5 percent from the average sale price in 2010, but up over five percent from the average sale price in the first quarter of 2011. The average price of a home sold in November was $153,673, up 3.1 percent from the previous month ($149,082).

The number of homes listed for sale last month (1,949) is 20 percent less than listings added to the market in November 2010 (2,439). The total inventory of homes available for sale in central Ohio was 12,675 at the end of November, which is down 27.5 percent from one year ago.

As a result, the month’s supply, a measure of inventory that estimates how many months it would take to sell the entire home inventory, fell 28.5 percent to 7.4, down from 10.3 last year. “

A healthy months supply for our market would be around 6.5. So the decrease in inventory is a positive sign of market recovery,” adds Benjamin. “Plus, based on the concept of supply and demand, when we have too many homes on the market, homes are more likely to sell for less.”

From the Columbus Board of Realtors…

Home  sales jump 23% in July

From the Columbus Board of Realtors…

Home  sales jump 23% in July

Housing contracts bloom in June

(July 20, 2011) The housing market in central Ohio took a turn for the better last month when 2,552 homes were successfully put in contract. This marks a 54.6 percent increase over homes put in contract during the same month one year ago according to the Columbus Board of REALTORS ®.

Home closings, however, continue to lag the previous year. The 1,989 homes closed during the month of June were 16.6 percent lower than closings during June of 2011.

œBoth the sales and in contracts are still strongly tied to the expiration of the home buyer tax credits last year, says Rick Benjamin, 2011 President of the Columbus Board of REALTORS ®. œJune 30, 2010 was the deadline for homes to close in order to take advantage of the tax credit so closings were exceedingly high last year during the months of May and June.

œThe deadline for homes to be in contract, however, was April 30, 2010 and the rush to get into contract caused a bit of a lag in the following couple months. That said, a 55 percent increase in homes going to into contract is exceptionally high – and a good indication that sales should be healthy in July and August.                                                                                                                                                                                            

The average price of a home sold last month was $172,512, which is 9.1 percent higher than the average home sale price during the previous month, and only 0.8 percent lower than the average sale price one year ago.

At the end of June, there were approximately 16,065 residential homes available for sale in the central Ohio area. School districts seeing the highest number of listings added to the market include Columbus, Olentangy, South-Western, Westerville, Hilliard and Dublin.

œThese school districts also saw the highest number of in contracts and closing last month, adds Benjamin. œAlthough this is due in great part to the fact that these areas are highest in population, it™s an ideal time for buyers interested in those areas to take a look at what™s on the market today.

Click here to view the June sortable housing market report by area.
Click here  to view the entire central Ohio Local Market Update.

The Columbus Board of REALTORS ® Multiple Listing Service (MLS) serves all of Franklin, Delaware, Fayette, Madison, Morrow, Pickaway and Union Counties and parts of Champagne, Clark, Hocking, Licking, Fairfield, Knox, Logan, Marion, Muskingham, Perry and Ross Counties.

For more information about the central Ohio housing market, visit www.ColumbusRealtors.com/stats
To view commercial properties for sale or lease in central Ohio, visit www.COCIE.org.
To view residential properties for sale, visit www.Realtor.com.

Article from the Columbus Board of realtors website: www.columbusrealtors.com

Fewer distressed homes for sale in central Ohio  The number of lender-mediated properties for sale in the Columbus region continued its sharp decline during Q2-2011. The 2,601 active listings decreased 27.1 percent from Q2-2010 and are now around late 2007 levels according to the Columbus Board of REALTORS ®.    The share of lender-mediated new listings declined 18.1 percent while their popularity among consumers has grown from 26.8 percent of all closings last year to 35.8 percent in Q2-2011. For the first six months of the year, 39 percent (3,655) of the 9,367 closings were distressed properties.    œThese numbers are providing some great insights into our local housing market, said Rick Benjamin, 2011 President of the Columbus Board of REALTORS ®. œFor example, even though distressed properties made up only 16.2 percent of the inventory last quarter, they made up 35.8 percent of the sales. During the first quarter, 45 percent of sales in central Ohio were lender-mediated, yet these properties made up only 19 percent of the inventory.    œWhat this means is that we are selling a lot of shadow inventory that™s been on the market for quite some time.    The traditional segment is leading the charge toward recovery with a 3.6 percent price gain while distressed properties saw a 15.6 percent price decline. Traditional homes now take, on average, 110 days to sell while distressed homes take a shorter 78 days.    A property is considered to be œlender-mediated if it is listed as bank-owned/REO, HUD, short sale, VA, or foreclosure.    Click here to view the full Q2-2011 Lender-Mediated Properties Report.    The Columbus Board of REALTORS ® Multiple Listing Service (MLS) serves all of Franklin, Delaware, Fayette, Madison, Morrow, Pickaway and Union Counties and parts of Champagne, Clark, Hocking, Licking, Fairfield, Knox, Logan, Marion, Muskingham, Perry and Ross Counties.    For more information about the central Ohio housing market, visit our Housing Statistics page.To view commercial properties for sale or lease in central Ohio, visit COCIE.org.

To view residential properties for sale, visit www.Realtor.com.  

Article from the Columbus Board of Realtors website:  www.columbusrealtors.com

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