New Jersey Appraisal Update According to the latest results of the monthly Campbell/Inside Mortgage Finance HousingPulse Tracking Survey; despite media reports of the emergence of so-called Real Estate “bidding wars" in select housing markets, average real estate prices remained flat in the month of April.
While reports of some residential listings attracting dozens of offers have become common thus far in 2012, the closely watched nationwide HousingPulse survey found that most homes sold in April received only two or three offers and sold below list price.
Demand from investors remained steady during the month of April as well. Investors accounted for 25.1 percent of home purchases, while current homeowners accounted for 40.1% of purchases, and first-time homebuyers in accounted for 34.8 percent of purchased homes.
Average prices for home purchases slightly declined from March to April, according to transactions reported by HousingPulse survey respondents. The average price for non-distressed properties declined 1.5% from March to April, while the average price for short sales dropped 1.7 percent. For damaged REO the average price fell 1.4 percent and for move-in ready REO the average price slipped 0.3 percent.
The average number of offers for non-distressed homes sold in April was only 1.9, according to the nationwide sample. For damaged REO, move-in ready REO, and short sales, comparable offer statistics were 3.5, 3.1, and 3.0, respectively.
Despite seldom reports of homes being sold above list price, comprehensive HousingPulse survey statistics show that average ratios of sales prices to listing prices continued to be below 100 percent in the month of April. Non-distressed properties sold for 94.9 percent of list price in April, on average, a metric that has not changed substantially for the past two years. Damaged REO sold for 92.2 percent of list price, while move-in ready REO sold for 95.3 percent of list price and short sales sold for 94.1 percent of list price.
One factor continuing to hold home prices down is the high share of distressed properties, especially short sales. The total share of distressed properties in the housing market in April, as represented by the HousingPulse Distressed Property Index (DPI), was 47.9 percent, using a three-month moving average. This was the 26th month in a row that the DPI has been above 40 percent.
For Residential and Commercial Real Estate Appraisals please contact: James Hanson Associates Phone: (609) 884-9185 Email: Info@AppraiseNewJersey.com