The National Association of Realtors (NAR) recently released their latest Existing Home Sales Report for December. Sales of existing homes nationwide rose by the largest increase ever recorded as they rebounded 14.7% over November's numbers and now stand 7.7% higher than one year ago. One of the main factors that contributed to this increase were the delayed closings from the new TILA-RESPA Integrated Disclosure (TRID) initiative.
NAR's Chief Economist has this to say about the December surge:
"While the carryover of November's delayed transactions into December contributed greatly to the sharp increase, the overall pace taken together indicated sales these last two months maintains the healthy level of activity seen in most of 2015. Additionally, the prospect of higher mortgage rates in coming months and warm November and December weather allowed more homes to close before the end of the year."
Another point to make is that existing homes for sale inventory dropped dramatically from a 5.1 month supply in November to the lowest figure since January 2005, at a 3.9 month supply. If inventory levels remain at this level then this could present a challenge for sales going forward as buyer demand remains strong and competition for the homes on the market continue to rise.
Existing-home sales in the South increased 14.6% and are now 4.6% above December 2014. The median price in the South was $196,100, up 6.8% from one year ago.
Now is the time if you are considering listing your home for sale! With inventory levels low, listing your home for sale now will give you the most exposure to buyers and allow you to get the best price.
No comments:
Post a Comment