Lee County area residential sales up 14% in December; 2014 sales up 8%
Click here to view or print the entire December report compliments of the ACRE Corporate Cabinet.
Lee County area residential sales totaled 101 units in December, an increase in sales growth of 14.8 percent or 13 units above the same period last year. 2014 sales increased 7.7 percent from the prior year.Forecast: December sales were 19 units above our monthly forecast. The Center's 2014 sales forecast projected 1,344 closed transactions while the actual sales were 1,378 units, a favorable variance of 2.5 percent.
View full sizeLee County residential sales increase 15% in December from last year. Housing Inventory has been favorably reduced by 36% from the December 2010 peak. Infograph courtesy of ACRE. All rights reserved. December inventory in Lee County did increase 4.2 percent from the prior month. This direction contrast with historical data indicating that December inventory on average ('09-'13) decreases from the month of November by 3.3 percent.
The inventory-to-sales ratio in December was 7.9 months of housing supply. Restated, at the December sales pace, it would take 7.9 months to absorb the current inventory for sale. The market equilibrium (balance between supply and demand) is considered to be approximately 8.5 months during the month of December. Last month, the ratio stood at 11.2 months of supply so this month represents encouraging news as a result of the marked improvement toward a balanced market.
Demand: December residential sales increased by 46.4 percent from the prior month. This direction is consistent with seasonal buying patterns and historical data indicating that December sales on average ('09-'13) increase by 20.3 percent from the month of November. Existing single family home sales account for 56 percent (up from 50% in Dec'13) of total sales while 34 percent (down from 40% in Dec'13) were new home sales and 10 percent (same as Dec'13) were condo buyers.
Pricing: The Lee County median sales price in December was $189,700, a 3.5 percent decrease from last December. The December median sales price also slipped 4.2 percent compared to the prior month. Historical data ('09-'13) indicates that the December median sales price traditionally increases from the month of November by 10.1 percent. Pricing can fluctuate from month-to-month as the sample size of data (closed transactions) is subject to seasonal buying patterns so a broader lens as to pricing trends is appropriate and we recommend contacting a local real estate professional for additional market pricing information.
Industry Perspective: "The housing market is likely to continue its gradual climb upward next year after a sub-par 2014," according to Doug Duncan, senior vice president and chief economist at Fannie Mae. "We anticipate a fairly strong increase in housing starts in response to stronger employment and some improvement in related household incomes. As a result, that may help to unfold some of the suppressed household formation numbers and incent builders to meet some of that increased demand. For all of 2015, we expect total housing starts to increase by about 22 percent and total home sales to rise approximately 5 percent, with total mortgage originations ticking up slightly to $1.13 trillion." For full report, go HERE.
See how Lee County compares to other Alabama real estate markets.
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The Lee County Residential Monthly Report is work product developed in conjunction with the Lee County Association of REALTORS to better serve Opelika/Auburn consumers. The ACRE monthly report is provided to illustrate the "general" market direction & trends when comparing prior periods with the most current available data. Real estate is local and statistics will fluctuate between areas within a city including subdivisions. ACRE recommends that you consult a local real estate professional for "specific" advice associated with your market.The foundation of the Lee County Association of REALTORS is to promote and enhance the success of its members through education, professionalism, and ethical conduct.
The Alabama Center for Real Estate's core purpose is to advance the real estate industry in Alabama by providing relevant resources in the areas of research, education and outreach. ACRE was founded by legislative act in 1996 due to the efforts of the Alabama Real Estate Commission, the Alabama Association of REALTORS and the Office of the Dean, UA Culverhouse College of Commerce to serve the State of Alabama real estate industry and the consumers it serves. ACRE is not a state-funded entity, rather its operates in part because of the goodwill & generosity of the ACRE Corporate Cabinet, Alabama real estate licensees and our statewide ACRE Partners. For other Alabama real estate resources & news, please visit our website and our ACRE blog. You can also follow ACRE from our facebook page and on twitter @uaacre.
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