Durham Home Sales Report for December
Last month I predicted the market would sag in December due to both the normal market decline and the surge of people trying to close prior to the old tax credit deadline [on November 30]. The numbers are in, so let’s see how well my crystal ball worked.
For all of Durham County there were 1,774 homes listed for sale as the ball dropped – almost the same as at Thanksgiving. 179 sales closed in December meaning that it would take 9.9 months of Decembers to work through the current housing inventory. This is a big, if expected, step backward from last November’s 7.8 months of inventory.
For the 27713 zip code there were 286 homes listed at the end of December – a 12% decline. Only 36 homes sold during December leaving the
adsorption rate at 7.9 months. Again, this is a drop from November’s rate of 5.0 months. Apparently fewer people than NAR predicted fit a new home under their Christmas trees.
Here’s a look at the communities we’re tracking. If you would like to see data from your community, please let us know in the comments.
| Total Available Listings |
Total Closed Sales |
Adsorption Rate | Avg Sale Price | |
| Woodcroft |
39 |
4 |
9.8 [+7.1] | $184,100 97% of list price |
| Hope Valley Farms |
33 |
8 |
4.1 [unc] | $196,063 97% of list price |
| Woodlake |
4 |
0 |
∞ | N/A |
| Parkwood |
8 |
5 |
1.6 [-0.6] | $127,900 96% of list price |
| Chancellors Ridge |
8 |
1 |
8.0 [+4.7] | $210,156 100% of list price |
| Wynterfield | 13 | 0 | ∞ | N/A |
| Grandale | 7 | 3 | 2.3 | $381,483 97% of list price |
| Southampton | 1 | 3 | 0.3 | $300,288 98% of list price |
| Colvard Farms |
12 |
0 |
∞ | N/A |
The communities above account for almost two-thirds of the total sales in the 27713 area code. This isn’t too surprising — when sales are down they tend to group around the larger, more “solid” subdivisions such as Hope Valley Farms, Woodcroft, and Parkwood. When sales improve you start seeing other places — Penrith, Villages of Cornwallis, Colvard Farms and the like.
What does the crystal ball say for January? I expect sales to still be depressed for January, as the cold tends to keep potential buyers indoors: not quite as down as December, but close. I believe the numbers will start to turn in [late] February as the combination of warmer weather and the imminent end of the home-buyers tax credit will spur people back into the marketplace.
[Data for this post was pulled from the Triangle Multiple Listing Service on January 1 at about 9:00 AM -- I might have been the only person awake . . . . ]
Tags: housing stats
