Mt. Pleasant Real Estate Update – March 8th

chuckavera — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 21:01:23 +0000

Finally some good news! Through the first two months of 2010, Mt. Pleasant homes sold at a faster pace than the same period in 2009. A total of 147 homes sold in Mt. Pleasant in January and February, up from 115 sales in 2009. Single family home sales are up 31% while sales of condos are up 19%. Clearly, there are more buyers are in the market right now than we had last year. This is a very positive sign as we head into the traditional “spring selling season”.

Mt. Pleasant Home Sales in the $500K – $750K Range are up 42%

It is encouraging to note that the highest year-over-year growth rate was for homes sold in the $500K to $750K price range. Home sales in this price range were up 42% over 2009. This could be a sign that more high-end buyers are re-entering the market. However, Mt. Pleasant home sales above $1M were flat during the first two months of the year. This is the price range that is feeling the most impact from this buyer’s market. In fact, since my last report on January 20th, the months of available inventory for homes priced above $1M has risen to 66 months from 63 months.

What Was the Impact on Mt. Pleasant Home Prices in the First 2 Months?

The pressure on Mt. Pleasant home sellers to reduce prices continued in the first two months. This is supported by the fact that MLS price reductions outnumbered price increases by about 12 to 1 during the period. However, there was some positive news for sellers. The median selling price obtained for the 147 homes sold in the first two months was up 8.3% to $325,000. No matter how you look at the numbers, this is a good sign for sellers that the trend may be starting to change. As we get more sales data during the next few months, we will be able to determine if this is a real trend or just a “blip”.

If you have any questions about this post or if you have any real estate needs such as buying or selling your home, please contact us. All of us at The Chuck Avera Team will be happy to help you in any we can.

Mount Pleasant Condo Market – Showing Signs of Life?

chuckavera — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 16:40:20 +0000

Through most of 2009, sales of condos in the Mount Pleasant real estate market were down significantly. However, the 4th quarter of the year produced 97 condo sales, which is the highest number of sales since the 3rd quarter of 2008. It’s a little early to suggest that this signifies a major shift in the market, but it is a flicker of hope for sellers that have been trying to sell their condos. There is still a long way to go before we see a “balanced” market, but there are finally some signs of life for the condo market in Mt. Pleasant.

Mount Pleasant Condos – Price Trends

Pricing also showed a rebound in the 4th quarter as the median price for Mount Pleasant condos sold was $205,900. This is also the highest median price obtained since the 3rd quarter of 2008. One positive quarter does not necessarily define a trend, but it is positive news as we head into the spring selling season. We will be watching this metric very closely over the next few months and report back to you on further developments.

It’s Still a Buyer’s Market for Mount Pleasant Condos

While the recent “uptick” in sales and pricing is very positive news, it is likely that we will remain in a buyer’s market through 2010. Let me explain…..Typically, a balanced real estate market is 6 months of available inventory. Anything higher than 6 months of inventory represents a buyer’s market and anything less than 6 months represents a seller’s market. Based on recent sales activity and an active inventory above 400 units, we currently have a 13 month supply of inventory in Mt. Pleasant. So, this condo market is still very much favoring the buyer. It is highly unlikely that the current inventory can be absorbed quickly enough at the current rate of sales to achieve a balanced market this year. This will continue to put pressure on sellers to be very competitive with their pricing in order to have a good chance of selling in 2010.