January home sales increase again for the 9th year in a row
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact:
Don Martindell, President,
505-263-7618, president@gaar.com
Kent Cravens, Executive Vice President,
505-724-3481, kent@gaar.com
January home sales increase again for the 9th year in a row
Albuquerque, NM (February 10, 2017) – January brings out a rejuvenated crop of home buyers with a renewed enthusiasm in a new calendar year. This should jumpstart Greater Albuquerque home sales that are typically slow during the winter months. However, the continued decline in the number of homes available for sale may be an obstacle for some potential buyers who simply cannot compete for homes selling at higher price points in a low number of days, requiring them to act fast in decision making.
The new year brought a much-needed increase in new listings. Compared to January 2016, the 1,214 new listings of single-family detached home sales increased 4.9 percent while new single-family attached listings increased by 3.0 percent. The slight increase in new listings barely dented Greater Albuquerque’s current drought in inventory of homes for sale. Compared to 2016, January 2017’s detached home inventory is still down 20.3 percent, and townhome and condo inventory is 19.6 percent lower than last year.
The 662 detached homes sold in January 2017 marked a 5.6 percent increase over the same period last year, and the 58 townhomes and condos sold represented a 23.4 percent increase compared to January 2016. For the month, pending sales are up 16.8 percent for detached homes and 6.2 percent for townhomes and condos when compared to January 2016.
Compared to last January, the median sales price increased 7.2 percent to $185,000 for detached homes but decreased 4.9 percent to $125,500 for townhomes and condos. The comparative increase in the average sales price for detached homes was a more modest 3.1 percent to $218,488, while the average price of $137,097 represented a 2.2 percent increase for townhomes and condos.
“While the reversal of the 0.25 percentage point rate cut for loans backed by the Federal Housing Administration (FHA), caused some concern early in the new year,” said Don Martindell, 2017 President of the Greater Albuquerque Association of Realtors, “FHA loans continue to be a favorable option for those with limited financial resources.” He added, “On a brighter note, wages are on an uptick nationwide, while Albuquerque’s unemployment rate remains stable at 5.6 percent in December 2016. The Greater Albuquerque market is ripe for more home purchasing if there are more homes available to sell.”
To see the full market indicator report for January 2017 market statistics, go to GAAR.com and click on Market Statistics.
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About GAAR
The Greater Albuquerque Association of REALTORS® (GAAR) is the largest local professional trade association in Central New Mexico with over 3000 members pledged to a strict Code of Ethics and Standards of Practice. Established in 1921, GAAR is the Voice for Real Estate for the Greater Albuquerque Area and the trusted source for accurate real estate market data and trends.
REALTOR® is a registered collective membership mark that may be used only by real estate professionals who are members of the NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS® and subscribe to its strict Code of Ethics.
For media assistance, please contact Eva Medcroft at 505-724-3461 or eva@gaar.com.