Usually the market slows between July and August, but that was not the case this year with a rise in sales during that time-frame. Sales comparing August 2011 to August 2012 show considerable improvement. Among the 15 counties in Northeast Ohio, single family home sales are up 14.6% and condo sales are up 20.2%. In addition to the increase in sales activity, Northeast Ohio is showing a 4.9% increase in single family home prices and 3.3% increase for condos, compared to last August.
The key point here is that the market is starting to stabilize. Sellers are getting more for their homes than last year, with buyers paying a bit more to purchase a home to take advantage of the low interest rates. Buyers should note that interest rates have reached nearly as low as they can go, when deciding the best time to make a purchase. The data over the past several months indicates we have seen the bottom of the local real estate market.
By comparison, Northeast Ohio continues to outpace the national sales increase of 9.3%. Nationally, 4.82 million homes have sold, which is behind the 5-6 million home sales, considered to be a normal or healthy range.
