Tuesday, February 5, 2013

January Home Sales Best in Five Years


January is typically the slowest month of the year for home sales in cold Cache Valley. It’s following the holiday season, when people don’t spend a lot of time house hunting. And lets face it, it’s not very motivating to shop for real estate on cold dark winter days. Nevertheless, home sales during January have started off well.
Sixty seven MLS listed homes sold during January, an increase of nearly 42% from January of 2012. This is the best January of home sales since the stimulus inflated sales of 2008.
Logan Home Sales for Last 5 Years
With the new year, more people have decided to put their homes on the market. For the first time since July, the number of active real estate listings has actually increased, Right now there are 522 residential homes in Cache County listed on the MLS, up twenty from this time a month ago. This is 54 less homes for sale than January of last year.


Home prices appear to be increasing. We’ve had four straight months, and ten of the last twelve, where year over year sales prices have been up. Depending on what happens with overall inventory, new construction, and purchase demand, we could see a significant impact in real estate appreciation in 2013.


Source: RealEstateLogan.com


Monday, January 7, 2013

Cache County Real Estate Inventory At 5 Year Low

If you've been looking for real estate in Cache County, and haven't been able to find that perfect home, you're not alone. Real estate inventory in the Logan area is the lowest it's been since January of 2008. December home sales were up nearly 7% compared with a year ago.

Right now there are 502 residential homes for sale in Cache County, Utah. During August of 2010, there were 906 residential homes listed on the MLS. The current inventory is down 45% from the peak.



What does this mean? It means the real estate market is shifting towards that of a "sellers market". When there is limited inventory (right now), multiple buyers compete for the same properties -- giving the negotiating advantage to sellers. During sellers markets, home prices rise.

If you're looking to buy, don't panic, but get serious. Home prices always lag behind sales, and most people don't want to go house hunting during bitter cold Cache Valley winters. Right now real estate prices are still very low. In fact, during December the median home sales price of $148,500, was one of the lowest we've seen in the last five years.

The other good thing is that mortgage interest rates are still at all time low levels. Thirty year fixed mortgage rates can be obtained for less than 3.5%, and 15 year fixed mortgages are available for less than 3%.

It's a great time to buy. View all active real estate listings online at UtahCornerstone.com



Wednesday, December 5, 2012

November Home Sales Rise

After a slight blip in the positive sales trends last month, once again Cache County home sales have improved.

 November home sales are up 15.38% compared with November of last year, and up 1.28% from October sales.
The average price of homes sold last month was $180,960 with a median price at $169,450. Logan real estate inventory continues to decline. Right now there are 545 residential properties listed for sale on the MLS. The median list price of these homes is $179,850.


At Novembers home sales pace, we have a "balanced" real estate market with 6.99 months of active inventory.

The positive real estate trends should continue in December and January as their are currently 164 under contract homes. The number was 110 at this time last year.

It doesn't look like real estate values will substantially rise any time soon, but it certainly doesn't look like we will see values drop any more.

If you can find a good property, it's a great time to buy Cache Valley Real Estate. Click this link to start your home search now.

Tuesday, November 6, 2012

Cache County Real Estate Inventory at 4 Year Low

Right now there are just 564 residential homes for sale in Cache County, Utah that are listed on the MLS. This is the lowest real estate inventory has been since March of 2008. There are more than a hundred less homes than were listed at this time last year, and 280 less homes listed than November of 2010.

As fall turns to winter it's common for real estate inventory to decline -- lets face it, nobody wants to move in the middle of a Cache County winter. But, the rate of decline is a big indicator of the recovering local real estate market.

While the real estate market is clearly recoverying, October wasn't exactly the strongest month for real estate sales. 77 residential homes sold, which is down 1.28% from last year and 2.53% from last month.

The average price of residential homes sold during October was $170,319, with a median price at $155,000.



It looks as if November and December real estate sales will be better than average. Right now there are 169 pending home sales. This is up from 148 under contract homes at this time last month.
Homes are still inexpensive, and real estate mortgage rates are still at all time lows. Start your home search by clicking this link.

Thursday, October 4, 2012

Great Home Sales Trend for Logan Doesn't Last Long

After the huge home sales numbers we saw in August, I was pretty sure the real estate market had completely turned around....

Well, September numbers put a damper on the optimism. Cache County home sales were down 39% compared with August; 79 residential homes sold compared with 129. Total residential home sales were even down 9.2% from September of 2011 when 87 homes sold.
While there were less homes that sold during September compared with August, the median price of these homes was substantially higher at $174,850. Just three months ago the median sales price was $152,500.

Real estate inventory in Cache County continues to decline. Right now there are 621 homes listed on the MLS, this is 83 less listings than at this time a year ago. Many potential home buyers can't find what they are looking for.
While home sales declined substantially compared with last month, October and November should still see above average real estate sales. Right now there are 148 residential homes listed on the MLS that have contracts pending.

 Mortgage interest rates are still incredibly favorable for buyers. 30 year fixed mortgages can be obtained for less than 3.5%. The trends are looking like home prices are going to be increasing. If you're on the fence about buying real estate, start now by searching real estate listings here:

Thursday, September 6, 2012

Monster Month for Cache County Real Estate - Home Sales up 33%

Wow. If August numbers are an indication of the current Cache County Housing market then the market has shifted a lot faster than anyone expected.

August was the best single month for home sales in 5 years. The last time there were more homes sold was August of 2007, the height of the housing bubble. Last month we saw 129 residential homes sell in Cache County, up 33.33% compared to August of last year, and up 30.23% compared with last month.



Not only are we seeing an increase in the number of home sales, but home prices are also rising. Of the homes that sold last month, prices were up 8.75% compared with July. The median sales price was $169,900 while the average price sold was $193,375. Overall, active listings are also priced higher than they were a month ago. The current average list price of Cache County homes is $227,573, up from $225,206 in July.



The numbers are indicating that home prices in Cache County will continue to increase in value. Real estate inventory is still declining, and the number of pending home sales continues to remain high. We haven't seen this few homes for sale during September since 2006.



Interest rates are still at historic lows, it's a great time to start shopping for real estate before home prices rise much more. Use this link to get started with your home search now.




Friday, August 3, 2012

July Annual Home Sales Numbers Improve in Cache County

Over the past few years July has been among the slower months for real estate sales in Cache County. Not sure if it's the holidays, or that many people are busy with family vacations during July, but home sales in June, August, and September are typically better than July; this year being no different.

Reported on the MLS so far, 90 residential homes in Cache County have sold. This is a 26.67% from July of last year, but a 3.23% decline from June Home Sales. The median price of these homes sold was $152,500 with an average at $176,247.

The good news is that under contract home sales are substantially up. Right now there are 186 under contract homes for sale. This is the highest number of pending home sales since the first time buyer tax credit in May of 2010. Home sales in August and September should be the best they've been in years.

Real Estate inventory is on the decline. The Logan area currently has 677 homes for sale listed on the MLS. This is down 22 from this time last month. At July's home sales pace, this represents 7.62 months of active inventory.

Mortgage interest rates hit a new all time low again this week. 30 year fixed mortgages can be obtained for less than 3.5%, 15 year fixed for less than 2.875%. The low cost of financing makes real estate in Logan Utah very affordable. It's a great time to buy, start your home search by clicking this link.