February Housing States for Woodcroft, Hope Valley Farms, Parkwood and Elsewhere in Durham
Thursday, March 1st, 2012As I write this, the thermometer just hit 80. Has the real estate market thawed as quickly as Winter did? Let’s take a look.
This morning, there were 1,771 homes available for sale in Durham County — an increase of 123 listings, or about 7%. February saw 202 closings – a jump of almost 25%. Using February sales, we would sell our entire inventory of available homes in 8.8 months, which is an decline of 2.6 months from January.
In South Durham 642 homes were listed for sale at the end of February – an increase of 91 homes. 65 sales closed in February, an increase of 19 closings. This moves the adsorption rate down to 9.9 months – back to November numbers.
Again we saw a steadily increasing tide of listings coming onto the market. What was surprising, and a good surprise at that, was that closed sales kept pace with the listing tide. By comparison February 2011′s countywide numbers were 2,186 listings, 136 closings and south Durham saw 848 listings and 37 closings. Fewer homes are on the market compared to last year, but more of them are selling, which makes it a good trend to see in our housing market
Here’s the updated neighborhood information.
| Total Available Listings | Total Closed Sales | Adsorption Rate [in months] | Avg Sale Price |
Average Price per SF |
|
| Woodcroft | 50 | 4 | 12.5 [+4.7] | $125,875 | $83 [-13] |
| Hope Valley Farms | 69 | 2 | 34.5 [+21.7] | $172,000 | $102 [+5] |
| Woodlake | 21 | 2 | 10.5 [-1.5] | $183,680 | $103 [-23] |
| Parkwood | 12 | 3 | 4.0 [-0.8] | $98,359 | $69 [+5] |
| Chancellors Ridge | 15 | 3 | 5.0 [-6.0] | $241,000 | $115 [+4] |
| Grandale | 3 | 0 | 3.0 | $383,800 | $105 |
| Audubon Park | 9 | 2 | 4.5 [-3.5] | $189,300 | $85 [-10] |
| Falconbridge | 10 | 0 | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| Fairfield | 9 | 3 | 3.0 | $306,187 | $95 |
| Lochside | 6 | 3 | 2.0 | $160,000 | $95 |
| Davis Park | 12 | 3 | 4.0 | 133,300 | $106 |
| Marydell Estates | 1 | 0 | N/A | N/A | N/A |
For some overall numbers, the average in south Durham was $105 per sf with the highest neighborhoods being Blenheim Woods [1 sale at $173 per sf], The Oaks [1 sale at $174 per sf], and Hope Valley West [1 sale at $170 per sf. The lowest neighborhoods were Forest View [1 sale at $26 per sf], University Estates [1 sale at $49 per sf], and Forestwood [1 sales at $61 per sf]
As we noted above, this is all a part of the normal (and somewhat stronger) real estate cycle. Everything we have seen points to a more stable real estate cycle in 2012. Listings will continue to come into the market for the next few months as more people try to time the Spring market. Closed sales will probably be even or slightly improved, but start to really pick up in April as the weather starts to turn.
Now is a good time to lay the foundations of your own real estate plans for 2012. Whether you are buying or selling, preparation now will lead to opportunities for success later in the year. If you would like to hear more about where the market is heading, or just want to know what your own home is worth, please send me an email and we’ll gladly get started. Have a good March.
