Sandra Mathewson, CRS ABR GRI SFR CDPE RE/MAX Premier Properties Northern NV

Reno/Sparks and Fernley Homes and Real Estate News.

Fannie Mae announced Tuesday that is has expanded its online system to accept purchase offers for all its REO's listed for sale.

Real estate agents will now submit offers online on behalf of buyer clients, receive receipt confirmation, and track the status of submitted offers through the HomePath.com website. HomePath is the GSE's REO disposition operation.

In Novelmber 2010, Fannie Mae launched the HomePath Online Offers pilot in Orlando, Florida; San Diego, California; and Detroit, Michigan. Active Data Technologies, Inc., the developer of the offer platform, commented just five months after the launch that the technology was seeing positive results in these three test markets.

Now the online Offers feature is available for all FannieMae-owned properties across the nation through HomePath.com.

The online platform will make it easier to sell properties to owner occupants, which is a major factor in helping to stabilize communities across the nation.

Real estate professionals representing buyers are able to connect directly with Fannie Mae's listing agents through the HomePath website. The buyer's agent can also find information on the site regarding financing and incentive options offered through HomePath.

If you are interested in finding out more about HomePath homes in Reno/Sparks and Fernley call Sandra. Sandra is a real estate professional registered to assist buyers with HomePath homes.

Summary

• December home sales at 524 are the highest home sales for a December in history. This number outpaces December 2010 sales by 8% and is up 6.1% from November. Year-end sales for 2011 were the second highest in the history of the MLS. We are optimistic that these are early and positive signs of a move toward recovery.

Reno/Sparks Homes Median Sales Price

• December 2011 median price was up 3.9% to $155,400 compared to $149,506 in November 2011.
• For the past two months we have seen moderate increases in median sales price. It is too early to call it a trend, but it is positive to see the modest price increases after five months of bottoming.
• Median price is defined as the mid-point, where, for the time period identified, the price for one-half of the sales are higher and one-half are lower.

Reno/Sparks Price per Square Foot Solds

• Price per square foot is at $88.73.
• Price per square foot by area groups, as provided in the Detailed Report, is a good way to compare similar homes for current value.

Reno/Sparks Homes Sold

• December ended the month with 524 sold transactions, up 6.1% from the prior month.
• Sales are up 8% from the same period last year.
• Total sales for 2011 are the second highest in history and off just 4% from 2005, which is defined as the peak of the market.

Average Days on Market

• The average days on market are 148 days, up 1.4% from November 2011.

Day on Market (DOM) by Special Conditions

• Short sales continue to influence the average days on market at 202 DOM.
• Properties with no special conditions 137 DOM and Other had 173 DOM.
• REO properties average days on market remain stable at 102.

Reno/Sparks New Listings

• 425 new listings were taken in December compared to 502 in November, a 15.3% decrease and a 12.2% decrease from December 2010.
• Distressed New Listings by Special Conditions
• 67% of new December listings were distressed - 33% (140) Short Sales; 34% (145) REO; No special conditions 31% (133) and Other less than 3% (7).

Status of Pending

• Active Pending - Short Sales represent 61.6% of the total active pendings; Active Pending Loan equals 17.1%; Pending No-show represents 16.7%; Active Pending call 4.2%; and Active Pending House less than 1%.

Reno/Sparks Homes Supply of Inventory

• Historical Months Supply of Inventory shows that December MSI is down to 5.1 months compared to November 2011 at 6.2 and down 24% from December 2010.
• The National Association of REALTORS® describes a balanced market as between 5 and 7 months supply.
• Unsold inventory includes Active Pendings. This method of reporting months supply of inventory follows the industry standard of including all pending sales remaining in active status in the active inventory.

Conclusion

• Homes sales have been at historic or near historic levels throughout 2011. The big news is that 2011 total home sales is the second highest performing year, off only 4% from 2005 which is described as the peak. Year end 2011 homes sales (5,899) numbers are up 10% over 2010 homes sales (5,351). Beginning in 2008 year end home sales numbers have consistently out-performed the previous year's sales.
• Washoe County reported an 11.6% unemploymnet rate for November the lowest rate reported since May 2009. Despite the unemployment rates, the high volume of sales reported this year shows that qualified buyers and investors are taking advantage of affordable prices and record low interest rates.
• Interest rates reached another new low of 3.96% in December.
• December's median price of %155,400 was up 3.9% from November. This is the second month we have seen modest increases in median sales price. It's too early to call it a trend; but after five months of bottoming, it is a positive sign. Sales at under $250-,000 represented 84% of the total sales for the month. With this trend, it's understandable why median price has remained at an affordable level.
• Lower inventory is a signal that price declines may be coming to an end and a sign of pent up demand.
• We are optimistic that these are early and positive signs of a move toward recovery.

To read the complete Reno/Sparks Homes and Real Estate Market Report December 2011 complete with charts, graphs and 5 year history.

To read Reno/Sparks Homes and Real Estate Market Report November 2011 and previous months and years.

Report courtesy of Reno/Sparks Association of REALTORS® with data compiled from NNRMLS.

Photo by Jerry Mansker

Summary

• December home sales at 47 are the fourth highest homes sales for a December in history. This number outpaces December 2010 sales by 47% and is up 27% from November 2011. Year-end sales for 2011 were the fourth highest in the history of the MLS. We are optimistic that these are early and positive signs of a move toward recovery.

Fernley Homes Median Sales Price

• December 2011 median price increased 7.3% to $90,000 compared to $83,859 in November 2011.
• The median price is down 8% from the prior December.
• The median price is defined as the mid-point, where, for the time period identified, the price for one-half of the sales are higher and one-half are lower.

Fernley Price per Square Foot Solds

• Price per square foot is at $55.97.

Fernley Homes Sold

• December closed the month with 47 sold transactions up 27% from the prior month, and up 47% from December 2010.
• Fernley sales have been relatively stable for the past ten months.
• Total sales for 2011 (505) are the fourth highest in history and up 6% from 2010 (479) year-end sales.

Fernley Homes Average Days on Market

• The average days on market are up to 146 days, an increase of 47% from the prior month.

Days on Market (DOM) by Special Conditions

• Short sales average days on market are up to 206 DOM.
• Properties with no special conditions and REO are comparatively close at 134 and 107 DOM respectively.
• Properties in the Other category had an average DOM of 182.

Fernely New Listings

• 31 new listings were taken in December down 32.6% from November, and a 27.9% decrease from the prior year.
• New listings have declined from a high in 2011 of 75 in August.

Distressed New Listings by Special Conditions

• The market remains dominated by distressed new listings representing 78% of the market, up from November 2011 (67%).
• REO listings represented 39% of the market; Short Sales 39%; No special conditions 22% and Other 0%.

Status of Pending

• Active Pending - Short Sales represents 54% of the total active pendings; Pending No-show represents 29.2%; Active Pending Loan equals 8%; Active Pending call 8.8% and Active Pending House 0%.

Absorption Months Supply of Inventory (Unsold Inventory divided by Sales per Month)

• As of December 31 there was 4.1 months of inventory based on the December sales rate.
• The National Association of REALTORS® describes a balanced market as between 5 and 7 months supply.
• Unsold inventory includes Active Pendings. This method of reporting month's supply of inventory follows the industry standard of including all pending sales in the active inventory.

Conclusion

• Total sales for 2011 (505) are the fourth highest in history and up 6% from 2010 (479) year-end sales.
• December's median price of $90,000 was up 7.3% from November. This the second month we have seen modest increases in median sales price. It's too early to call it a trend; but after eight out of twelve months showing a bottoming, it's a positive sign.
• Despite the unemployment rates, the high volume of sales reported this year shows that qualified buyers and investors are taking advantage of affordable prices and record low interest rates.
• Interest rates reachedf another new low of 3.96% in December.
• Lower inventory is a signal that price declines may be coming to an end and a sign of pent up demand.
• We are optimistic that these are early and positive signs of the move toward recovery.

To read the complete Fernley Market Reports December 2011

To read Fernley Homes and Real Estate Market Report November 2011 and previous months and years.

Report courtesy of Reno/Sparks Association of REALTORS® with dat sources from NNRMLS.

Homebuyers with enough cash in hand to cover their offer price in full are able to bid significantly lower on properties and according to a new industry report released Monday, because they offer a shorter and more reliable closing timeline without the impediments of a mortgage, appaisal, underwriting time, they often win out with that lower bid.

A study found that this low-bid-winning dynamic is particularly true for distressed properties because mortgage servicers selling foreclosed or REO homes generally prefer transactions that can close within 30 days.

The total share of distressed properties in the housing market in December, as represented by the HousingPulse Distressed Property Index (DPI), continued at a high level of 47.2 percent, based on a three month moving average. December marked the 24th month in a row that the DPI has been above 40 percent.

Cash buyers, many of them investors, are putting downward pressure on home prices across the board, according to the HousingPulse Survey.

In December 2011, date collected for the survey shows that the overall proportion of cash buyers in the housing market surged to a record 33.2% up from 29.6% a year earlier.

Among investor homebuyers, however, the proportion of cash buyers was much higher, with 74 percent of investors laying down the money to purchase homes outright last month.

The latest survey results indicate investors accounted for 22.8percent of all home purchase transactions in December 2011, up from 22.2 percent a month earlier.

Despite their relatively small share among homebuyers, investors have an outsize effect on home values because their bids bring down market prices, according to the survey report.

While investor bids may not be the first offers accepted, the report notes that they often end up winning properties after other homebuyers are eliminated because of mortgage approval or timeline problems.

Investors usually offer 10%-20% below list up to a price of $250K. First time homebuyers are offering close to list price as are current homeowners. Investors want a 2-4 week close of escrow. Financing buyers end up with 6-8 weeks plus.

In competitive offer situations, cash offers prevail for the most part because of the common knowledge of lender closing issues. Cash sales can close in 21-30 days. FHA sales close 45 to 60 days.

Article by Carrie Bay DSNEWS.com

Summary:

• October home sales in Washoe County are the fourth highest home sales for an October in history and outpaces October 2010 by 15 percent. This is the first month where the year-over-year comparison is not influenced by the tax credit incentives, thus a positive sign that sales remain healthy. Also, we have seen only moderate fluctuations in median price for the past seven months. With the majority of new listings entering the market at the under $150,000 and a majority of sales occuring in this same price range, we are cautiously optimistic that prices are at the bottom.

Reno/Sparks Median Sales Price

• October 2011 median price was down 1% to $148,500 compared to $150,000 in September 2011.
• Median price is defined as the mid-point, where, for the time period identified, the price for one-half of the sales are higher and one-half are lower.

Reno/Sparks Homes Price per Square Foot Solds

• Price per square foot is $89.65
• Price per square foot by area groups, as provided in the Detailed Report, is a good way to compare similar homes for current value.

Reno/Sparks Homes Sold

• October ended the month with 483 sold transactions, down 14.7% from the prior month.
• Sales are up 15.3% from the same period last year. For the first time in over a year, the October 2011 comparison of year-over-year figures is a comparison without the influence of tax incentives.

Average Days on Market

• The average days on market are 147 days, up 9% from September 2011.

Days on Market (DOM) by Special Conditions

• Short sales continue to influence the average days on market at 214 DOM.
• Properties with no special conditions, and Other show a range of between 131 and 149 DOM and have been trending up the last couple months.
• REO properties average days on market remain level at 97.

Reno/Sparks Homes New Listings

• 516 new listings were taken in October compared to 617 in September, a 17% decrease.
• Distressed New Listings by Special Conditions.
• 68% of new October listings were distressed - 39% (201) Short Sales; 28% (147) REO; No special conditions 32% (164) and Other less than 1% (4).

Status of Pending

• Active Pending - Short Sales represents 61.2% of the total active pendings; Active Pending Loan equals 17.7%; Pending No-show represents 16.2%; Active Pending call 4.5%; and Active Pending House less than 1%.

Reno/Sparks Homes Months Supply of Inventory (Unsold Inventory divided by Sales per Month)

• As of October 30, there was 6.5 months of unsold inventory based on the October sales rate.

Historical Months Supply of Inventory

• Historical Months Supply of Inventory show that October MSI is down to 6.5 months compared to September 2011 at 6, and down 25% from October 2010.
• Eight of the past twelve months, the market has been what is defined as balanced. In the past 24 months, the market has remained as primarily a buyer's market.
• The National Association of REALTORS® describes a balanced market as between 5 and 7 months supply.
• Unsold inventory includes Active Pendings. This method of reporting months supply of inventory follows the industry standard of including all pending sales remaining in active status in the active inventory.

Conclusion

• October home sales at 483 are the fourth highest home sales for a October in history. The number outpaces October 2010 sales by 15%. October 2010 was the final month of the tax incentivized period. This is the first month where the year-over-year comparison is not influenced by the tax credit incentives. Going forward, we will be comparing the year-over-year sales period without the artificial influence of a tax credit.
• Year-to-date 2011 home sales (4,862) numbers are up 8% over 2010 home sales (4,478). We are optimistic that the sales number will outpace 2010.
• October's median price of $148,500 was down less than 1% from September. The median price has traded in the 4% range for the past six months. Sales at under $150,00 represented 50% of the total sales for the month. With this trend, it's understandable why there is downward pressure on the median price.
• Freddie Mac reported that the 30-year fixed rate loan dropped to 4.07%, compared to 4.11% last month. This is the lowest rate reported since Freddie Mac began tracking rates in 1971. Sources report that mortgage interest rates should gradually rise from today's record lows and reach 4.5% by the middle of 2012.
• A qualified homebuyer purchasing a home priced at $150,000 with a 3.5% down payment, at 4.07% interest rate will have a monthly payment of approximately $700,000 principal and interest.
• According to Lawrence Yun, NAR Chief Economist, "Housing affordability conditions, based on the relationship between median home prices, mortgage interest rates, and median family income, have been at a record high this year. Very favorable affordability conditions will dominate next year as well, which will probably be the second best year on record dating back to 1970. If credit restrictions ease, there is optimism that it will open the door for more home buyers to take advantage of current opportunities.

To read the complete October report, complete with charts, graphs and 5 year history.

To read RSAR Detailed Reports, Oct 2011 report and previous months and years.

Report courtesy of Reno/Sparks Association of Realtors® with date from NNRMLS.