Sales Increase for the Greater Nashville TN Real Estate Market
Online, March 23, 2010 (Newswire.com) - Sales Increase for the Greater Nashville TN Real Estate Market
The Greater Nashville Association of Realtors (GNAR) recently announced that home sales for the month of February 2010 increased 3.2% compared a year earlier (1,308 vs. 1,267 closings). For the first 2 months of this year, sales were up a total of 4.5%, which broke down to 100 more closings vs. the same time period in 2009 (2,341 vs. 2,241).
Lucy Smith, President of GNAR, said that this up-trend has been going on for the last 5 consecutive months, and she believes it will continue into the spring. She remarked that the metro Nashville TN real estate market has remained stable in large part because of the following conditions: 1) median residential prices have been essentially the same as in 2009, 2) condominium median prices are a little lower, and 3) mortgage rates have stayed very low.
Ms. Smith further added that while the initial tax credit deadline in November 2009 spurred on "significant increases" in closings toward the end of last year, the April 30 tax credit deadline should create a pop of activity in spring and early summer of 2010. She also believes that this increase of sales activity and momentum would quite possibly stimulate closings from non first-time buyers in the months ahead.
Other Nashville TN real estate statistics that are closely watched are pending sales, average days on market (DOM), median sales prices, and inventory levels. Pending sales were 1,614 by the end of February 2010 vs. 1,452 at that point in '09, representing an increase of 11%. The average DOM was 89 days, a figure that has been pretty stable for the last several months. The median price for single family homes was $159,900 vs. $160,000 in '09 and for condos it was $149,950 vs. $151,120 a year prior. Inventory levels were up slightly from January this year, and pretty close with last year's levels, at 23,159 homes.
Given the fast-approaching tax credit deadline, great rates, and a good selection of homes, Ms. Smith feels that the spring and summer selling seasons could be better than the last 2 years, which is certainly positive and welcome news for those looking to buy or sell in the Greater Nashville TN real estate market.