August rounded out the summer market with a strong showing, posting gains in volume of sales, median sold price, and units sold and seeing yet another year-over-year decrease in days on market. Total sold dollar volume was up over 6% over August of last year coming in at $177,669,921. Median price was $295,000 for August of 2017, increasing 5.36% over the $280,000 mark in August of 2016. There were 7 more units sold in August of this year than compared to 2016, coming in at 567 versus 560, representing a modest 1.25% increase. “The market continued strong through the summer and didn’t experience the typical slump that comes with vacations and back to school activities,” commented FAAR Board of Director Sandy Pearce.
Days on market, the amount of time it takes from when a listing enters the market until it has a ratified contract, decreased nearly 25%, going from 65 days in August of 2016 to just 49 days in August of 2017. Inventory continues to be a challenge in our market with yet another month of fewer listings than the previous year. August of 2016 saw 1,763 active listings on the market and August of 2017 had 2.5% less at 1,719. At the current time, there is a 3.54-month supply of available homes, which remains virtually unchanged from July of 2017. A healthy market generally has about a 5-month supply of homes.
A bright spot on the inventory side was the significant increase in new listings coming on to the market. August of 2017 saw a 16.14% increase in new listings, adding 878 new homes compared to 756 in August of 2016. “Inventory remains low but there seems to be a steady stream of listings coming on the market which is good news for buyers who aren’t facing a time crunch,” continued Pearce. “Homes that are priced well and in move-in condition are going under contract very quickly. With interest rates remaining low, it could be an active fall for both buyers and sellers.”
