So far, 2013 has proven to be quite successful for the local Harrisonburg real estate market. Sales, sales prices, and contracts have all risen this year, ramping up a strong year of growth and setting up 2014 for even more success. August typically takes a small dip each year in terms of sales because of folks busily getting ready for the fall season and getting in those last minute vacations, but this year is different in that buyers are still active and sellers are consistently getting more “bang for their buck.” Check out our Market Report for August:
Compared to year-to-date 2012, sales have increased by nearly 22% in Harrisonburg and Rockingham County, with an increase in average sales prices of 2.5%. Homes are not only selling for more money this year, but they are also sitting on the market for 13.1% less time — 29 days, to be exact! Good news for sellers: they are able to save both time and money when listing their homes.
The chart above shows a visual of how the local market has fared in terms of sales for the past 12 months. August is the strongest month over the past year!
Sticking to the topic of sales and prices, above we see that though the number of sales has fluctuated over the past few years, sales prices have stayed relatively steady, and have gradually increased (albeit, at a slow pace) as time has passed.
Average sold/list percentage is a helpful statistic for home sellers because it shows the difference between what price they list their home at and what it eventually sells for, but in a percentage format. In August YTD, this percentage was 95.6%. This means that so far this year, sellers are getting 95.6% of their home’s final asking price. Note: this is up 0.4% from last year at this time.
Moving on to contracts, which are the “promise of sales to come,” we see that 2013 YTD has 793 total contracts written, up 18.4% compared to last year at this time. The list prices of these homes are also up, and the average days on market for homes going under contract is down 31 days, or 14.0%! This is all very good news for sellers and our local real estate market in general.
Finally, the above chart lays out how contracts have trended since January 2010 through the present. Typically, contracts dip during the winter months and rise again during the spring and summer months, tapering off in the fall. Compared to the last few years, August fared quite well with number of contracts written at 101.
Overall, August was a strong month for our local Harrisonburg and Rockingham County real estate market, with sales up 21.9%, average sales prices up 2.5%, days on market down by a month, and contracts up 18.4%!
Stay tuned for more Market Trends, right here on Harrisonblog…