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Strong 2012 finish for home sales

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The local home sales market continued to breathe fire as the year of the dragon neared a close.

Sales finalized on 372 single-family homes, townhouses and condominiums in December in the Savannah area. The volume rivaled December 2011’s 376 sales and closed out a year that saw a 9 percent jump in sales versus 2011 and a 20 percent gain compared to 2010, when the local market hit bottom.

Inventory, or the number of homes listed for sale, hit new lows, another positive sign for the market. There were 2,000 fewer houses for sale on New Year’s Eve than at the end of 2010.

“And with the fiscal cliff issue resolved I think that will free up some people to get out there shopping again and start 2013 off right,” said Donna Davis, president of the Savannah Area Board of Realtors. “I expect to see increases in showings and activity in what are usually our slowest months.”

Sales typically dip following the New Year before picking up in March and April and peaking in June. Pending sales, or homes under contract but not yet closed, hit a 24-month low in December. With most deals taking 30 to 60 days to close, pending sales often offer hints of activity in the months ahead.

Yet pending sales numbers reflected continued momentum in areas that saw surging sales in 2012, such as downtown, Skidaway Island, Pooler and Effingham County.

“There is a positive outlook that people have about the future of Savannah,” said Realtor Ron Melander with Keller Williams Downtown. “Savannah is and always has been and probably always will be a good value.”

The number of cash purchases dropped slightly in December to a calendar year low. Most cash deals involve investors purchasing repossessed or otherwise distressed properties. Distressed sales accounted for 35 percent of the market in 2011 and 2012 but trended down in the second half of 2012.

Lawrence Yun, a National Association of Realtors’ economist, predicts fewer distressed sales in 2013. Sales prices are expected to climb as a result.

“The market share of distressed property sales will fall into the teens (nationally) based on a diminishing number of seriously delinquent mortgages,” Yun said.

LOCAL HOME SALES SNAPSHOT

The Savannah-area housing market (Chatham, Bryan and Effingham counties) held its last year momentum in December. A look at the local market (numbers include residential real estate, including single-family homes, modulars, townhomes and condominiums):

Month Inventory New Sales Pending Price

Dec. 2012 3,139 380 372 163 $171,651

Nov. 2012 3,272 481 383 220 $209,104

Oct. 2012 3,424 710 388 242 $188,796

Sept. 2012 3,298 509 333 242 $188,600

Aug. 2012 3,477 638 468 223 $191,063

July 2012 3,460 610 444 278 $221,061

June 2012 3,630 649 471 283 $198,998

May 2012 3,584 639 397 331 $169,125

April 2012 3,694 648 363 275 $198,823

March 2012 3,748 690 385 298 $172,215

Feb. 2012 3,738 571 259 229 $157,906

Jan. 2012 3,754 687 246 238 $192,020

Dec. 2011 3,829 424 376 184 $184,712


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