Archive for October, 2009

Florin Real Estate Market Update: September 2009

We are beginning to see inventory dwindle but not as fast as some of us would like. And with foreclosure inventory at less than a month consistently, homebuyers everywhere are beginning to take more of an interest in short sales and non-distressed property. The real estate market needs this, of course, to recover. But short sales have 16.4 months of inventory in Florin based on the last year of sales and 14 months based on the last six months, so if anything is still going to be dragging down the market, it’s this!

Unit volume fell 31% year over year in sales from 169 homes sold to 117 homes. Perhaps the biggest gain was non-distressed property that rose 141.7% in sales year over year! Short sales also have gained in sales – 64.3% year over year. Foreclosure sales fell by 54.5% which comes as no surprise.

Sold price per square foot is now $100.87 in Florin, down 11.3% from a high of $113.72 from a year ago. Average sales price is at $165,199 down 8.8% from $181,084 a year ago. Median sales price is currently $150,000.

Natomas Real Estate Market Update: September 2009

Sales fell in Natomas recently – after the big push after foreclosures dominated the market. This month, just 161 homes closed escrow as compared with 199 last September. That’s a unit volume drop in sales of 19.1% year over year. Interestingly enough, both foreclosure sales show a decline year over year at 27% and non-distressed property as well shows a fall of 28% for the same period. Short sales gained 43.5% for the same period. I guess that’s where the bargains are, at least homebuyers seem to think so.

Average price per square foot may be a while recovering in Natomas. It is currently $108.75 which is a 15.7% decline year over year from a high (if you can call it that!) from last September’s price per square foot of $128.99. Average sales price has declined 12.6% from $230,891 last September to $201,887 currently. Median sales price is now under the $200,000 mark at $195,000.

Inventory in Natomas is at 3.7 months.

East Sacramento Real Estate Market Update: September 2009

No, I’m not imagining it. There really has been price appreciation in East Sacramento. And not just the month to month kind, but the year to year kind, the kind that is considered more dependable. East Sacramento functions pretty much like a textbook area in real estate – the number of foreclosures and short sales drop and we begin to see price appreciation.

There has been an 81% drop year over year in foreclosure sales and a 50% drop in short sales. On the other hand, homebuyers have pushed non-distressed sales up by 114.3% for the same period. Although this has dropped unit volume to 7.7% lower than it was a year ago, the difference in the number of homes sold (as compared with the stats) hasn’t been that remarkable: 36 sold this September as opposed to 39 last September.

And the prices! Average sold price per square foot is now $247.51 up 30% from $190.40 a year ago. Average sales price is now $357,828 a jump of 67% from a year ago’s price of $214,285. Median sales price is currently $327,250. Of course, homebuyers have also bought homes 28.5% bigger on average (go figure!) so the more accurate measure of home prices is the price per square foot. Even then, there seems cause to rejoice.

Inventory is at 3.9 months based on the last year of sales and 3.7 months based on the last six months of sales.

Downtown Sacramento Real Estate Market Update: September 2009

There are 2 foreclosures and 16 short sales on the active sales market of downtown Sacramento but they aren’t getting much attention. At least so it seems when of the 7 homes that sold in the area last month, there were no foreclosure sales and only one short sale. The rest were non-distressed homes. Overall, we see a unit volume decline in sales by 36.4% year over year.

The good news, if you can call it that, comes from the price data. Average sold price per square foot is about the same as it was last year at this time – $277.50 per square foot. (Last September it was $277.34) Still home buyers have bought homes on average 6.4% smaller than they did last year. Average sales price in downtown Sacramento is now $354,286 which is 6.4% lesser than last September and median sales price is now $335,000.

Inventory in downtown Sacramento is at 9.3 months based on the last year of sales and 8.9 months based on the last six months of sales. Foreclosure inventory is at 1.1 months and 1.7 months respectively.

Foothill Farms Real Estate Market Update: September 2009

With foreclosure sales drying up many homebuyers have begun to consider other areas of real estate that still offer discounts like short sales and some non-distressed property, but that doesn’t seem to be the case in Foothill Farms. Just 41 homes sold in the area, which is a unit volume decline of 34% year over year. Last September, 62 homes had sold. Foreclosure sales by themselves fell by 54% without any corresponding rise in short sales (that went from 5 sales to 8 sales) and non-distressed homes (that went from 7 to 10). Even so, now non-distressed home sales to distressed home sales are at a ratio of 1:4 as compared with 1:10 from a year ago.

Average price per square foot is now hovering around the $100 mark at $102.84, down 13.1% from a year ago when it was $118.30. Average sales price is at $124,676 down 13% as well from a high of $143,339 from a year ago. Median sales price is now $126,000.

Inventory is at 2.3 months based on the last year of sales and 2.5 months based on the last six months of sales.

Arden-Arcade Real Estate Market Update: September 2009

From a lackadaisical August in Arden-Arcade we come to a September that did better than expected by most in terms of real estate sales and prices. 90 homes sold in the area and we see a unit volume increase of 11.1% year over year. Not bad considering that foreclosure sales fell by 21.7% for the same period. Short sales gained 120% and non-distressed sales were also up by 43.3% however. This brings us closer to the balance between distressed and non-distressed property to about 50-50.

Average sold price per square foot is a little higher than it was last month at $144.95. Last month it was $141.84. Nothing to celebrate yet however because year over year it is still a decline of 13.6% from a high of $167.78. Interestingly enough, homebuyers also bought homes on average 15% bigger this September than they did the last. Average sales price thus shows only the smallest amount of decline year over year (falsely so) from $227,954 to $227,004. Median sales price currently rests at $181,500.

Inventory in Arden-Arcade is at 5.5 months based on the last year of sales and 5.1 months based on the last six months of sales.

Elder Creek / Fruitridge Real Estate Market Update: September 2009

If you’re looking to buy a home for five figures in the Sacramento area, you wouldn’t go wrong by looking in the Elder Creek / Fruitridge area. Prices have fallen and continue to fall here to unheard of numbers. Average price per square foot this month was $87.45 which was a decline again of 4.2% year over year from a high of $91.25. Average sale price is now $97,937 in the area down 7.2% from $105,586 last September. Median sales price currently rests at $76,000.

The clear winners in sales in the area are of course short sales. Foreclosure inventory is rapidly drying up and homebuyers are looking at well-priced short sales for bargains. Foreclosure sales fell by 45.9% year over year while short sales gained 433.3% for the same period! Non-distressed property sales remained the same almost with just a 5.6% increase for the same period. Overall unit volume fell year over year by 23.6% with just 81 homes selling this September as compared with 106 last September.

Inventory is at 2.4 months based on the last year of sales and 2.7 months based on the last six months of sales.

Land Park Real Estate Market Update: September 2009

Homeowners (and home sellers, I suppose as well) in the Land Park area have quite a bit to smile about and can afford to feel a little optimistic. Whereas in other areas of Sacramento county September has been a bit of a slow month, Land Park seems to be doing better than elsewhere. Unit volume was higher in Land Park by 28.6% year over year and it also included two short sales! Land Park has been in the past averse to getting rid of its short sale inventory so we hope this is a step in the right direction. 2 foreclosures and 14 non-distressed properties also sold. Homebuyers in the area have always seemed to prefer non-distressed homes over distressed, an important fact that gives Land Park its relative stability.

Speaking of stability, average price per square foot rose from last month’s $255.80 to $273.63. It is still 4% under last September’s $284.63 however. Average sales price is currently at $347,018 down 9.3% year over year from a high of $382,786 but since homebuyers bought homes 6% smaller on average this year over last year, the more accurate number here is the price per square foot. Median sales price is now at $319,062.50.

Inventory is at 4.9 months based on the last year of sales and 4.3 months based on the last six months of sales.

Rosemont Real Estate Market Update: September 2009

Rosemont saw a unit volume decline of 25.7% year over year! Not surprising considering distressed property seems to be losing favor with homebuyers in the area. Just 26 foreclosures sold this month as compared with 43 in September of 2008. Short sales also declined by 40% – from 10 to just 6 this month. Non-distressed property sales rose by 17.6% year over year. Perhaps the most important statistic is that non-distressed sales now make up 38.5% of all sales, as compared to just 24.3% from a year ago.

Average price per square foot though has yet to benefit from this turn of sales. It is currently $116.02 as compared with $134.67 from a year ago. That’s a decline of 13.8% year over year. Average sales price now rests at $165,081 down 12.1% year over year from a high of $187,754. Median sales price in Rosemont is now $160,275.

Inventory in Rosemont is at 3.4 months.

Greenhaven Real Estate Market Update: September 2009

The price declines – year over year anyway – continue, even in the Greenhaven or “pocket area” as it is lovingly called, albeit at a slower pace. Average price per square foot is now $167.70 which is a 2.7% decline since last September’s high of $172.31. Average sales price hasn’t fallen far from the $300,000 mark and currently rests at $279,833 which seems to be a 6.3% decline from last September’s $298,663. However, since the average home sold was 3.7% smaller than last September, the more accurate number here is the price per square foot. Median sales price remains at $268,500.

We are also seeing declines in actual sales, not just the price. Just 21 homes sold this September as compared with 24 in September of 2008, which points to a unit volume drop of 12.5%. We are also seeing declines in the categories of foreclosure sales (37.5% year over year) and non-distressed property sales (20% year over year). The only increase we see is in short sales which have risen by 300% for the same period. But that isn’t saying much based on the fact that just 4 short sales closed escrow this month.

Inventory in Greenhaven is at 5.5 months based on the last year of sales and 4.9 months based on the last six months of sales.

Fair Oaks Real Estate Market Update: September 2009

Just 31 homes sold in the Fair Oaks area this month leading to the question where are the homebuyers? Perhaps they are waiting for more price declines. With 4.9 months of overall inventory (based over the last year of sales) and 1.2 months of foreclosure inventory it isn’t lack of houses to look at that’s holding buyers back. 37 homes had sold last September. Unit volume thus is down 16.2% year over year. Foreclosure sales fell 45.5%, short sales gained 100% and there was no change in non-distressed property sales.

Average sold price per square foot is now $147.80 down 12.3% from a year ago when it used to be $168.51. Average sales price is now $269,474 down 12.7% from last September’s high of $308,785. Median sales price now rests at $225,000.

While foreclosure sales seem to have fallen we are seeing no corresponding gain in non-distressed property sales as we are seeing in other parts of Sacramento county. Based on the last six months of sales, there is 9.2 months of inventory for short sales and 5 months of inventory for non-distressed property alone!

Citrus Heights Real Estate Market Update: September 2009

103 homes sold in the city of Citrus Heights this month as compared with 101 last September keeping the unit volume almost the same. Within the individual categories though we see some marked differences that suggest this market might be heading toward some stabilization. For instance, foreclosure sales fell 29.4% year over year while both short sales and non-distressed property sales gained momentum. Non-distressed property sales rose by 135.7% brining the ratio of distressed to non-distressed home sales to 3:1 from almost 10:1 a year ago.

In terms of price data, the news is not as encouraging however. Current price per square foot is now $122.60, a drop of 12% year over year from a high of $138.96 a year ago. Average sales price in Citrus Heights is now $171,897 down 9% from $188,785 a year ago. Median sales price is now $165,000.

Inventory in Citrus Heights is at 2.1 months based on the last year of sales and 2 months based on the last six months of sales. Foreclosure inventory remains at 0.5 months.

Carmichael Real Estate Market Update: September 2009

September has been a slow month of real estate sales for Carmichael. Just 37 homes sold in the area which accounted for a unit volume drop of 24.5% year over year. In face, sales in every category fell except for non-distressed properties. Foreclosure sales fell 56.5% year over year while short sales fell 62.5% for the same period. Non-distressed sales rose by 33.3%. Perhaps the most marked change we see in the Carmichael real estate market is the market share that non-distressed property sales now take up as compared with last September – from being just over a third of all sales, these non-distressed homes are now 65% of all properties sold!

Average sold price per square foot sits at $166.26 which is a decline of 5.3% year over year from a high of $175.65. Average sales price rests now at $303,526 as compared with $305,023 from a year ago. Median sales price is now $260,000. Homebuyers also on average bought homes 5.3% bigger this September than the last.

Inventory in Carmichael based on the last twelve months of sales is at 6.2 months and based on the last six months of sales is 5.7 months.

Antelope Real Estate Market Update: September 2009

If you’re a homebuyer looking for a house in Antelope, you’re one of the (very) few buyers in the area, at least according to the sold statistics from last month. Year over year, monthly real estate sales in the Antelope area fell almost 47% – just 50 homes sold this September as compared with 94 in September of 2008! Add to that the fact that there was no change in the non-distressed property sales but short sales fell 27.8% year over year and foreclosures fell an even larger number of 62% for the same period.

Average sold price per square foot remains fairly consistent at $115.44 which is a drop of 10.3% year over year. Interestingly enough, homebuyers also bought houses 7% smaller than they did last September. Average sales price is now $183,930 which is 16% lower than it was a year ago from a high of $219,705. However, because homes sold were also smaller on average, the more accurate picture here is given by the average sold price per square foot.

Inventory is at 4.1 months based on the last year of sales and 4.4 months based on the last six months of sales, pointing to the slowdown.

Elk Grove Real Estate Market Update: September 2009

The Elk Grove real estate market has been fairly consistent with last month but the year over year changes are still quite pronounced. 247 homes sold in September of this year as compared with 283 last September. That’s a unit volume drop of 12.7% year over year. Here are the interesting details, however: within this unit volume drop we see REO sales fallen by 44.4% while short sales rose 51.3% and non-distressed homes also rose by 97.3% for the same period!

Even prices seem to have recovered slightly from last month. Average sold price per square foot is now $115.58 up slightly from last month. Year over year however, prices are still 8.7% lower. Average sales price is now $247,150 which is 7% under last September’s $265,796. Median sales price currently rests at $235,000.

Inventory in Elk Grove is now at 3.4 months based on the last year of sales and 3.3 months based on the last six months of sales. Foreclosure inventory is at 0.5 months and 0.6 months respectively.

Folsom Real Estate Market Update: September 2009

Although we see a drop of 40% in REO sales, unit volume in overall real estate has gone up by 13.5% in Folsom year over year, a good sign that homebuyers are beginning to explore other avenues of buying homes besides REOs. Short sales (up 100% year over year) and non-distressed sales (also up 37% for the same period) are still priced inexpensively as shown by the price data.

Average sold price per square foot is now at $173.09 which is 9.2% under average sold price from last September. The average home in Folsom now sells for $378,440 as compared with its average price in last September when it would have fetched $425,514. That is a drop of $11.1% year over year. Median sales price is Folsom currently rests at $375,000.

Inventory in Folsom points to the last six months of increasing sales. Based on the last six months, inventory has shrunk to 4.7 months. If we look at the average of the last twelve months though inventory is at 5.2 months. Foreclosure inventory is at 1.5 months no matter how you look at it.

El Dorado County Real Estate Market Update: September 2009

If sales were mostly unchanged last month, they are even more so this month. El Dorado county seems to be the perfect example of the phrase “the more things change, the more they remain the same.” 163 homes sold this month as compared with 162 homes last September. Yes, things don’t change very quickly in El Dorado county as I’ve mentioned before. Even within the REO and short sale and non-distressed categories, the numbers have remained pretty much in keeping with last September: 68 REOs this September as compared with 65 year over year, 22 short sales as compared with 19 and 73 non-distressed homes as compared with 78 for the same period.

Average sold price per square foot is now at $146.63 compared with $175.58 from a year ago. That’s a drop of 16.5% overall while the average sales price now hovers at $323,720 with a 15.5% fall for the same period. Median price has fallen 20.6% from a year ago to rest at $286,000.

Inventory in El Dorado county is not at 9.4 months based on the last year of sales. We have seen a small increase in sales over the last six months though as evidenced by inventory based on the last six months at 8.1 months. Foreclosure inventory is at 1.7 months and 1.6 months respectively.

Sacramento County Real Estate Market Update: September 2009

Sacramento county is a mixed bag of news this month. The bad news is that prices still show a decline year over year. The good news is that the price declines are a lot smaller than they were a few months ago. In another piece of good news, REO inventory seems to be drying up and homebuyers are beginning to get interested in the non-distressed market as well.

A total of 1667 homes sold in Sacramento county this month, which included 774 REOs, 310 short sales and 583 non-distressed homes. This brings the percentage of non-distressed sales to 35% as compared with barely 20% from a year ago. Bank-owned home sales have fallen 48.3% for the same period while short sales have risen inversely to that by about 39% year over year. These are all good signs for a recovering market. Unfortunately unit volume seems to have suffered a blow: 22.3% less homes sold this month as compared with last September.

Average price per square foot is now at $121.09 which is 7% lower than it was a year ago when it was $130.22. Average sales price is now under $200,000 at $199,489, also a fall of 4.1% from last September’s high of $208,117. Median sales price for Sacramento county now rests at $175,000.

Inventory is consistently at 3.4 months whether we consider the last six months of sales or twelve. Foreclosure inventory remains at 0.5 months.

Arden-Arcade Real Estate Market Update: August 2009

This has not been a fantastic month for Arden-Arcade on any count. Unit volume has fallen along with price. A total of 81 homes sold in the month of August in the area, which was a unit volume drop of about 21.4% year over year. Foreclosure sales fell by 34.1% and non-distressed property sales also fell by 31%. The only real winners were short sales which gained 250% year over year!

Average sold price per square foot is now $141.84 which is 27.2% under last August’s price per square foot measure. And other numbers aren’t comforting either: the average home that sold for $271,781 last August can today not even hit the $200,000 mark. Average sales price in the area today is $194,537, which is 28.4% lower year over year. Median sales price is now at $165,000.

Inventory in Arden-Arcade is now at 5.1 months based on the last year of sales and 5 months based on the last six months of sales. Foreclosure inventory is at 0.7 months and 0.8 months respectively.