Here’s a snapshot of the Tucson Real Estate Market for the first 5 months of 2011.
Volume Up – Sales Prices Down
May saw increased volume and decreased sales prices. The average sale price has dropped back to levels saw in January. An increase in Feb. to the $186,000 level was probably driven by a few high end properties being sold that month.
So the Average floats around between $172,000 and $180,000 for the most part.
The median floats between $124,500 and and $137,500. Again with the high mark in Feb. and May back to the $127,250 level.
Short Sales and REO’s 50% of sales
Short Sales in Tucson hold steady around the 90 mark each month. While some markets are dominated by Short Sales Tucson has a much higher number of REO sales than we do short sales.
Combine the two and they constitute about 50% of our sales each month this year.
A Thousand Sales a Month
Since 2009 I’ve used a benchmark of 1000 transactions as a rule of thumb indicator on the strength of the market. Average and Median prices can be quickly influenced by the sale of a single million dollar sale. Getting 1000 transactions through the system in a month, in this economy indicates to me that the system is moving inventory. Granted a high number of those transactions are cash and don’t rely on Bank approval or mucking up the transaction at the last minute.
That said, there are still offers being written and accepted each month. Buyers are clearing out the inventory. Quite honestly, I’m glad to see cash buyers. We won’t be seeing those homes in foreclosure.
Tucson Still a Desirable Location
The real estate market in Tucson keeps slogging along. It isn’t by any means the worst RE market in Tucson. There are some better in the country than here, but we still have going for us what we have always had. Great weather, mountain views, NO, Hurricanes, NO, tornadoes, and you can’t really call those monsoon gully washers floods, at least not on the scale the rest of the country is experiencing this spring and into the summer.
Humidity that barely registers makes our 100 degree days at least feel cooler than they really are. When the sun sets, most days the temps drop rapidly and we all come out of hiding to enjoy the sunsets and evening.
