Bauer reports hot home sales in move-up range | Inside Real Estate ...

Highlights:

• YTD, sales jump 50% from $400,000 to $499,999.
• Sales below $100,000 are down 55.6%.
• Condo sale prices are up 19.25% on a YTD basis.

The biggest percentage gains in home sales in the first two months of 2013, compared with the same period in 2012, occurred in the $400,000 to $499,999 price band, according to an analysis of Metrolist data released today by Gary Bauer.

There were 411 sales in that price band, generally considered a move-up buyer range, in January and February, compared with 274 during the same period last year, a 50 percent jump.

Overall, the average price of all homes closed in February increased by 11.2 percent, while the median price was up 15.9 percent on a comparison of year-to-date sales of 2013 to 2012. Single-home prices were up 14.8 percent, while condo prices rose by 19.25 percent, on a year-to-date basis, Bauer reports.

?My trends report shows why the median prices are up so much,? Bauer said. ?It is because of the mix of homes selling.?

In three price bands, starting at $200,000 going to $699,999, sales jumped by more than 42 percent in each price band.

There were 835 sales in the $300,000 to $399,99 level, a 43.2 percent increase; 1,565 sales of homes priced from $200,000 to $2999,999, a 42.7% gain; and there were 308 sales of homes priced from $500,000 to $699,999, a 42.6 percent increase.

The biggest percentage drop was for homes priced at $2 million and above, which dropped by 57.1 percent. However, the numbers were small. There were only three sales in that lofty price range year-to-date, compared with seven a year earlier.

However, homes priced below $100,000 showed almost as big of a percentage drop.

There were only 156 homes sold in that low price range, compared with 351 a year earlier, a 55.6 percent drop.

One reason is because it is more difficult to find a home priced below $100,000 in today?s market, according to Bauer and others.

Many first-time home buyers and investors have snapped up the lowest price homes in the Denver area since the Great Recession. Many homes that would have sold for less than $100,000 a few years ago, now would command much higher prices.

Homes priced from $100,000 to $199,999, also dropped, but not as much. There were 1,264 home sales through February in that price stratum, compared with 1,429 a year earlier, for a 11.6 percent drop.

As far as condos, the biggest percentage gain, on a year-to-date basis, was in the $500,000 to $699,999, but the numbers were small There were 18 sales in the price range through February, compared with 10 in the first two months of 2012.

The second biggest percentage gain on a year-to-date basis was in the $200,000 to $299,999 price range. There were 217 sales this year, compared with 129 last year, a 68.2 percent jump.

Bauer also reported that overall, there is a 2.33-month supply of homes on the market. A six-month supply is considered a market in equilibrium, balanced between buyers and sellers. Anything below that is a seller?s market and above it a buyer?s market. For homes under $100,000, there is only a 1.16-month supply of homes and about the same for homes priced from $200,000 to $299,999.

The biggest supply of homes occurs for those priced at $2 million and more. There is still a 93.5-month supply of homes in that price category, or almost eight years.

Have a story idea or real estate tip? Contact John Rebchook at? JRCHOOK@gmail.com. InsideRealEstateNews.com is sponsored by Universal Lending, Land Title Guarantee and 8z Real Estate. To read more articles by John Rebchook, subscribe to the Colorado Real Estate Journal.

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Source: http://insiderealestatenews.com/2013/03/home-sales-hot-between-400k-and-499999/

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