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September sales skyrocket
Easing economic conditions and government stimulus programs, including the first-time buyers tax credit, helped the number of properties sold in the Houston area in September climb 30 percent higher this year than last, a strong indication we may be closer to emerging from a multi-year glut.
According to a report issued by the Houston Association of Realtors, total property sales in September reached 5,654 compared to 4,336 in the ninth month of 2008.
Though a 30 percent increase year-over-year is a tremendous boost, it comes with a caveat. In September 2008, the Houston area was reeling from the aftermath of Hurricane Ike, which decimated properties and slowed transactions to a crawl. Nevertheless, the area has bounced back a year later with more transactions for higher prices including recording the highest ever median price for single family homes for the month of September, which rose to $156,200.
The gradual increase in sales leads to a slow burn of months inventory, which dropped to 6.2 months in September, a far cry from the national average of 8.5 months. With the first time buyers home credit expiring at the end of November, expect sales numbers to climb even higher in the coming months.
| ALL CATEGORIES | September 2008 | September 2009 | PERCENT CHANGE | | Total property sales | 4,336 | 5,654 | 30.4% | | Total dollar volume | $877,574,919 | $1,102,879,419 | 25.7% | | Average single-family sales price | $209,273 | $205,925 | -1.6% | | Median single-family sales price | $155,920 | $156,200 | 0.2% | | Total active listings | 50,155 | 45,520 | -9.2% | | Total pending sales | 2,583 | 3,650 | 29.3% | | Months inventory* | 6.4 | 6.2 | -3.0% | | | * Months inventory estimates the number of months it will take to deplete current active inventory based on the prior 12 months sales activity. This figure is representative of the single-family homes market. |
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