We've just received the August Iron County real estate market stats from the Utah Association of Realtors® and, once again, we are seeing strong confirmation of the present seller's market in the area.
There were significant increases in all key sales categories. Median price was up by 18.8% last month, compared with August 2015, while average sales price also showed a sizeable 12.7% year-on-year rise. Right now, median prices in Iron County are higher than they have been for well over six years!
These impressive figures very much reflect the current buyer enthusiasm in the market, as mortgage rates continue to be pinned at or near to multi-year lows.
There is a wide awareness that such rates cannot and will not last forever, with buyers keen to lock in low rates while they still can. Not surprisingly, therefore, August also showed a 12.5% rise in closed sales over the same period last year, as well as a 16.2% increase in pending sales, boding very well for September's figures, when they are produced.
With such sustained high demand, it's not surprising to learn that the average number of days a home is on the market before it sells has dropped by 7.1% in a year.
On the flip side of things, but still favoring the seller in many ways, inventory of available homes for sale in the area continues to be an issue, with a 1.1% decrease in numbers and another 1.6% fall in the months supply of inventory, compared with a year ago. Sellers are therefore still able to benefit from reduced competition and the consquential ability to robustly maintain asking price. This goes a long way to providing the answer as to why the average percentage of list price received remains very high, and slightly increased on last year, at 95.7%.
There was, however, positive news for inventory in that the number of new listings in August rose by 44% on the same month last year. If this continues, then it will help to address the shortages, which ultimately aren't good news, as poor availability of homes in specific sectors can cause buyers to lose motivation and hope that they will find the home they want.
In real terms, however, we can see that there is still an overall downward trend on inventory, so sellers who wisely choose to list now will still be able to derive a full range of benefits from this situation.
And if you are thinking of putting off your home sale until the New Year, please bear in mind that last fall and winter were unusually busy and there is no reason to imagine the situation will be any different in 2016. This is still a great time of year to sell, with exceptional buyer sentiment, low mortgage rates, and especially when you also consider the added uncertainties that a New Year and a new administration in Washington, irrespective of who wins the election, will bring.
Why not contact us today to explore your best options.
