November 1, 2009
On the following pages are sales statistics for the first ¾ of 2009 as well as those for the two previous years for the same time frame. We are providing you with specific area statistics this quarter just so you can get a broad, yet detailed idea of the Santa Fe real estate market. Although sale prices and the number of homes sold continue to be lower than last year, we are pleased to say that Sotheby’s “under contract” properties are surpassing last year. Historically, this represents a sign of a market that has reached, or is reaching, its bottom.
Sales in the county have decreased from 871 for the first 9 months of 2008 to 746 in 2009 with the median price decreasing from $400,000 to $370,200. In the city, sales decreased from 831 to 717 for 2009 with the median price decreasing from $410,000 to $375,000 for the same period. While we don’t look for a major rebound either in price or number of sales in the near term, barring further economic bad news such as a new wave of foreclosures, we look forward to a stable market in the next months.
Nationally, the market shows similar trends with a recent increase in sales resulting primarily from short sales and sales of foreclosed properties. While there have been a number of sales in both of these categories in Santa Fe, we don’t believe that these sales dominate our market.
Sales of residential lots continue to be very poor throughout the area. Again, we attribute this to the excellent prices buyers are able to achieve for purchases of existing homes, rather than building a new house, and to the fact that financing for builders wanting to build “spec” houses is virtually non-existent.
Inventory of homes remains very high, but now appears to have either leveled off or decreased slightly in a number of price ranges. We have some concern that sellers may be waiting for a sign of market stability, and that we may see a huge increase in spring inventory if the market continues to be stable through the winter. In the past, our team has experienced very robust sales through the winter months. We don’t believe that waiting until spring to sell property is necessarily a good strategy. The best strategy remains to be very realistic about pricing and to make sure your home “shines.”
The statistics on the following pages are area specific. If you would like a more detailed look at your area, or if there is any additional information we can give you, please call or e-mail us.