Market experts: Home buying increased over last year
Home buying since the beginning of the year has increased, although slowly, over 2012, according to local market experts.
According to Scott Cavinee, president of the Fayette Board of Realtors, and Dianne Zinn, an associate broker, past president and director of Fayette County Multiple Listing Service (MLS), housing sales so far this year have surpassed the same period (January to September) in 2012.
鈥淥ur average price of an existing home in our county now is $118,000, which is good compared to last year when it was $110,000,鈥� said Zinn, a fulltime Realtor for 24 years, an associate broker and manager at the Uniontown Coldwell Banker office. 鈥淭he condition of the housing market is a lot better today,鈥� said Cavinee, SWC Properties broker in Uniontown. He added that, according to MLS figures, sales of homes in Fayette County to date this year totaled about $38.6 million.
Some of that resulted from an ample supply of homes on the market offered for a variety of prices.
鈥淭he supply of homes we have on the market is great,鈥� Cavinee said. 鈥淲e have homes in every price range right now. If we have a shortage it would be in the $100,000 to $150,000 price range,鈥� he added.
鈥淎s far as the market is concerned, it蘑菇视频 a sellers market in that price range. But in all other price ranges, I think it蘑菇视频 more of a buyers鈥� market,鈥� Cavinee said.
Volume of sales in terms of dollars and cents, he said, 鈥渋s about 10 percent more than it was for the same period last year. The average sale price has gone from about $110,000 to $118,000, which is a seven percent increase.鈥�
鈥淥ur market in Fayette County is pretty much a stable market with a slow but steady growth for our region,鈥� Zinn said.
鈥淭here are still foreclosures going on but not as severe as it has been across the nation,鈥� she added.
According to multi-list statistics Zinn provided, there were 862 active listings during the January to September period in 2012 and 856 so far this year. However, sales figures show 359 properties have sold this year while last year, during the same period, 339 properties sold.
In terms of dollars and cents, sales from January to September 2012 totaled $34,000,455 while this year sales have totaled $38,637,119.
The average sale price of a home so far this year is $118,883.
For comparison, the following statistics are from Fayette County MLS:
In 2012, 511 homes sold at a median price of $85,000 and an average price of $110,154 for a total of $56,288,802.
In 2011,506 homes sold for a median price of $80,000 and an average price of $101,952 for a total of $51,587,865.
In 2010,547 homes sold for a median price of $79,900 and an average price of $100,973 for a total of $55,232,533.
In 2009,520 homes sold for a median price of $80,000 and an average price of $103,609 for a total of $53,876,906.
In 2008,514 homes sold for a median price of $74,650 and an average price of $96,376 for a total of $49,537,668.
Ten years ago, in 2012, 486 homes sold for a median price of $62,000 and an average price of $75,391 for a total of $36,640,360.
What people look for in a house differs, Cavinee said.
鈥淭hey look at the school district. Schools are probably the number one thing they look for. I personally encourage them to find the information they are looking for online at 鈥楨ducation.com,鈥� which is excellent for finding information about a school district,鈥� Cavinee said.
Zinn said people also look for the amenities and real estate tax rates when buying a home. For example, she said sales in the City of Uniontown are hurting 鈥渂ecause the taxes are really extreme when you can go across the border into South Union or North Union Township where taxes are a lot lower.鈥�
鈥淚f the house is priced appropriately, we will sell it,鈥� said Cavinee. 鈥�(Buyers) all have wants and needs, but I think homes that are well maintained, clean and in move-in condition are the ones that sell best.鈥�
Zinn said one of the best parts of her profession is linking a buyer to their perfect home.
鈥淵ou get a sense of satisfaction when you find the house or sell the house for the customer,鈥� Zinn said. 鈥淚t is not the commission, it is the sense of happiness you see in the consumer蘑菇视频 face when they find that home of their dreams.鈥�