Closed Sales in Collin County Increase Fourth Straight Month

Closed sales increased for the fourth straight month in Collin County and surrounding areas, reports CCAR. Sales in May were up 15 percent over sales in April 2009. While this is part of a typical seasonal pattern, it is still encouraging news following a year that was anything but typical.

The CCAR Pulse, which delves into the real estate markets of 36 local communities, also reports that the number of days it took to sell a home also improved in May, dropping to 95 days compared to 99 in April. That is also a slight improvement over 2008.
 
However, not all of the news was good. In May, the median sales price of homes in the area decreased by 5 percent compared to the same time last year, while the number of new listings, listings under contract, and sales were all less than in May 2008.

"Real estate has not yet recovered to the levels we saw in 2007, but it is stronger in this area than most other parts of the United States," says Steve Haid, CCAR member services director.

This is especially true considering the opportunity the month of May gave to home buyers.

"In May, home affordability improved sharply compared to the same time last year, primarily because of the decrease in median sales price," notes Haid. "The home affordability index increased by nearly 14 percent to 158 compared to 139 a year ago. This means that the median family income is 158 percent of what it would take to qualify to purchase the median priced home."
 
Collin County and surrounding areas also remain in a balanced real estate market, with the supply of available single family homes hovering between five and six months. However, there is a shortage of homes priced under $200,000, and an oversupply of homes priced above $500,000.

Although interest rates have crept up a little compared to the last few months, they are still very low. Low interest rates combined with affordable homes make this a very attractive time to purchase a house.