Foreclosures and short sales seem to dominate the real estate news and this past year they have
been a big icy chunk of our market here in Grand Rapids. They are the huge iceberg that is slowing
traditional home sales and cooling the market for home sellers.
But as any expert will tell you, real estate is local.
So, let's take a look at the recent stats on our Multiple Listing Service. We were relieved to see
foreclosures and short sales slowing. Now I realize not all short sales or foreclosures are listed as
such and there are sales that occur outside of the MLS, but this still has to be a good sign:
3 Straight Months of Dropping Sales in this Sector
We have had over 1825 short sales or foreclosures recorded out of 3943 since the first of 2008
on our real estate board. This is about 46% of our sales overall.
| Month/Year | Short Sales | Dollar Volume | Total Sales | Dollar Volume | Short Sales Percentage | Dollar Perentage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1/2008 | 583 | 47,392,634 | 1193 | 146,554,249 | 48.87% | 32.34% |
| 2/2008 | 416 | 30,453,308 | 872 | 103,713,076 | 47.71% | 29.36% |
| 3/2008 | 457 | 33,936,488 | 982 | 117,722,603 | 46.54% | 28.83% |
| 4/2008 | 369 | 30,532,296 | 893 | 119,621,552 | 41.32% | 25.52% |
To me, this means that the good buys are being snapped up and the remainder may be not as
financially attractive or might be in physically deep distress. Over 40% of our market is still short sales or
foreclosures but the cloud is lifting. If we can get these homes off the market, it will return to more
normal numbers. And that looks like it is starting to happen .....
The scary part of this picture is if the iceberg is still 3/4 underwater and many, many more foreclosures
come on the market that we don't forsee right now.
Other Foreclosure Articles:
Are Foreclosures Selling Faster?
Copyright by Terry Westbrook 2008
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3 straight months of dropping / slowing foreclosures and short sales?
Very interesting news!
Thanks for this post! You'd never expect to hear good news from the media. We must inform each other and our clients of such trends and improvements in our local markets!
I think we should all call/e mail a TV station and demand that they cover this! Too cool.
I have been in a few competing bid situations on bank owns.........where the winning bid was over the listed price! Even though I may of lost, it is still is good...........very good!
Kirk: I try to see the trends before it becomes news but it is still in the early days of the recovery we need to spread the word.
Karen: How many of us would it take to get the news out?
Michelle: Activity brings more activity thanks for sharing .
Terry...way to break it down to the local level for your Grand Rapids buyers and sellers.
Joey:Thanks for stopping by glad you enjoyed the analysis.
Terry -- great analysis! Thanks for sharing!
Colleen: Thanks for stopping by glad you enjoyed it.
Terry-
Thanks for stopping by! We have seen a 2% increase in most of our metro markets in home value.
After skimming your blog on beer, I think I want one to celebrate!
Steve
Steven: Enjoy your beer. I hope the increase continues.
Hey Terry, Just read a great article from The Wall Street Journal, http://www.emailthis.clickability.com/et/emailThis?clickMap=viewThis&etMailToID=351035659 you will want to read it as well. It might be worth forwarding to clients and other agents maybe even lenders. It's really refreshing to have some positive news. Peace.
Jeff: I looked the article over and agree we are ready for a recovery and now is the time to buy. Thanks for stopping by.