Wallingford Market Update June 2009

by Harriman Real Estate on July 30, 2009

The Wallingford housing market may finally be showing some signs of life. The number of houses sold in June doubled from May, and they were on the market for an average 30 days less than last month. This pushed the inventory levels to 7 weeks, the lowest level this year. Also, the average sales price rose slightly as some more upscale homes sold than in previous months.

Condo sales remained mixed. Sales rose by 60%, and pending sales were almost half as many as May, but days on market almost doubled. The average sales price made a nice recovery, ending at its highest level this year after being at its lowest level last month.

The $8000 tax credit for first time home buyers may have had some impact on home and condo sales, but the window of opportunity to use it is fast closing. As I stated in the Meriden Market Update, there are only 122 days until the credit expires on November 30 and, since closings typically take place from 4-6 weeks after a contract has been signed, prospective home buyers should be looking to have a home under contract no later than October 15th to ensure closing prior to the expiration of the credit. Short sale and foreclosure purchases should be under contract even sooner, as those can and often do take longer than 4-6 weeks to complete. There is still hope for the expanded $15,000 tax credit to make it through Congress, but you should not hold off buying a home waiting for that to happen as interest rates could be negatively impacted in the meantime. If you’re a first-time home buyer, the time is now to decide if you’re going to take the plunge or not.

Here’s the comparison of the last three months:

Single Family Homes	Apr 2009	May 2009	Jun 2009
New Listings	36	40	43
Total Listings	46	61	51
Pending Sales	20	36	31
Homes Sold	20	15	30
Expired Listings	15	18	13
Average Days on Market	103	126	96
Average Price/SqFt	$159	$165	$175
Average Sales Price	$247,443	$274,753	$285,638
Absorption Rate (# of weeks to sell current inventory at present rate of sales)	10	18	7

Condominiums	Apr 2009	May 2009	Jun 2009
New Listings	22	19	19
Total Listings	16	30	27
Pending Sales	9	19	11
Condos Sold	10	5	8
Expired Listings	6	3	6
Average Days on Market	128	73	148
Average Price/SqFt	$156	$154	$174
Average Sales Price	$202,588	$170,300	$253,225
Absorption Rate (# of weeks to sell current inventory at present rate of sales)	7	26	15

For the purposes of housing market info, it is usually considered to be a seller’s market when there is less than 13 weeks of inventory on the market; 13-26 weeks of inventory is considered a balanced market, and more than 26 weeks indicates a buyer’s market.

Data used was provided by the CTMLS (Connecticut Multiple Listing Service).