March 2015 Market Report

Cheryl Marlow - Residential Real Estate Expert on 770-KKOB-AM Radio

Overview of Sales: The Greater Albuquerque Association of Realtors has released the statistics for the month of March and as we always do, we will begin with the total number of sales.  In March, a total of 891 homes and condos were sold.  In February,  that number was 604.  As you can see, we experienced a healthy increase in sales over the last month.  In addition to the hike in sales from month to month, we also saw a jump in SOLD signs when compared to last year.  In March of 2014... 757 homes and condos sold.   Compare that to this year and we experienced a jump of more than 100 sales.  That's great news for our market.   

Price Points: Last month, a large majority of sales in the Greater Albuquerque Area were under that magic $250,000 mark.  In fact we saw 76% of the total sales under $250,000.  21% of sales were between $250,000-500,000 and as usual, just 3% were over $500,000.  Our market is maintaining its consistency when it comes to what price ranges are selling. 

Inventory:  In March, nearly 1700 homes and condos were new to the market!  That's a healthy jump in inventory.  For sellers that means more competition.... for buyers, more choices!  That is why it is critical for sellers to be competively priced if they want their home to sell.  As of late, just about 20 homes out of every 100 sell.  For your home to be one of the 20% selling every month, you need a Great Realtor, a Great Price and a Great Marketing plan. 

Call us today for a free home value estimate at 505-923-4745!

Or email cheryl@cherylmarlow.com

February 2015 Market Report

In February,  a total of 604 homes and condos were sold.  That's an increase in sales from the 585 homes and condos that sold in January.  Last month we also saw a healthy increase in pending sales.  There were 999 contracts written on homes and condos.  This gave us positive momentum going into March.

Sales By Price: When talking about price points, month after month we can pretty much bet on 74 to 75% of sales to be under that magic $250,000 mark.  For the last two months that percentage has jumped.  In January we saw nearly 79% of sales under $250,000.  In February that number was almost 80%.  Buyers are really looking in that affordable range.  17% of home sales were between $250,000-500,000 and just 3% were over $500,000.  Our market continues to maintain consistency when it comes to what price ranges are selling. 

Sales By Area: Last month Placitas saw just a half of a percent of all detached sales with only 3 homes sold.  The East Mountains saw only 4% of the total sales.  With those kinds of numbers, it is imperative for sellers to select an experienced Realtor who knows the market and how to price your home, and market it correctly.   And with this beautiful weather we've been seeing, you can expect a huge influx of inventory in the Albuquerque area over the next couple of months.  That's only going to create more competition and is all the more reason to hire a professional.  A team like mine willmarket your property correctly and get you the exposure you need in order to sell your home before that other house in the neighborhood sells.... and help you to net more money. 

Let our team help you today!! 

Call us at 238-1000 or email cheryl@cherylmarlow.com! 

January 2015 Market Report

In January,  a total of 585 homes and condos sold in the Greater Albuquerque Area.  That's a decrease in sales from the 727 homes and condos that sold in December.  However, we should take into consideration the number of homes and condos that had contracts written on them last month, which was 924.  That is a healthy jump in activity and based on that number alone I expect to see a significant increase in closed sales for February.

Most of the sales were under that magic $250,000 mark.  In fact last month we saw 79% of sales under $250,000 in January.  That's even up from what we normally see month to month which is around 75%.  And when jumping up to home sales between $250,000-500,000 we saw about 18% of the total activity and 3% was over $500,000.  Our market is maintaining it's consistency when it comes to what's selling. 

Northeast Albuquerque and the close-in west side received a healthy majority of last month's total sales.  The outlying areas of Albuquerque are still slower, but we are starting to see a hike in activity in February.  I am optimistic about these next couple of months and believe that now is a great time to get in the game if you're a seller.  It's a smart marketing move to get your home on the market before we see a huge influx of inventory come Spring. 

If you're looking to buy or sell a home today.. call my team at the office at 505-923-4730 or email us at cheryl@cherylmarlow.com.

December 2014 Market Report

I’ve looked over the December market statistics thoroughly and believe it or not, the Greater Albuquerque Area saw more sales in December than in November.  Here are some of the highlights.  In December 727 homes and condos sold.  That’s compared to the 658 that sold in November. Not only did we see the number jump from month to month…it’s also an increase from what we saw sell in December of last year.  

I may sound like a broken record, but our market truly is consistent month to month when it comes to activity in certain price ranges.  In December we saw just 3% of sales above $500,000.  22% were of homes and condos between $250,000 and $500,000 and of course we saw a large majority of sales in that magic mark of $250,000 and below.   

I do believe we will start to see the market pick up following the holiday season.  In fact, we’ve already seen a lot of activity in January.  I’ll give you a snapshot of what’s already happened.  In just the first few weeks of the New Year, 282 homes and condos sold and 557 have contracts written on them.  Buyers are out there looking and serious buyers are making offers.  If you’re a homeowner on the fence about selling, now is time to get in the game before we see a huge influx of inventory in the early spring.  Less competition means more activity for your home and could ultimately mean a sale.  

November 2014 Market Report

The Greater Albuquerque Association of Realtors has released the numbers for the month of November.  I looked through the market report in depth and pulled out some highlights to focus in on.  In November, 658 homes and condos sold.  That’s down from October’s 827 sold.  And there’s always a silver lining right?  For us, it’s that the 658 sold last month, is actually an increase when compared to the same time last year when just 617 were sold.

Maintaining our market’s consistency…we saw only 4% of the total sales above $500,000.  As expected, most of the sales were made below the $250,000 magic mark totaling for nearly 73% of all of the homes and condos sold in November.  That of course means 23% of sales were between $250,000 and $500,000.

Supply and demand also stood out to me in this report.  Our market is still out of balance.  In November there were 4741 homes and condos available.  Out of the 4741 only 658 sold.  Those numbers tell me that only 14% of homes and condos on the market in November sold.  Let’s break that down … that’s 14 out of every 100 homes and condos available selling. This time of year it is a price war and a beauty contest more than ever.  That’s why it’s so important to have an experienced Realtor on your side who will tell you the truth about how you should price your home and show your home in order to get it Sold! 

September 2014 Market Report

The Greater Albuquerque Association of Realtors just released the statistics report for the month of September.  We did see a decrease in activity since August.  A total of 776 detached homes and condos sold last month when compared to 895 in August.  We predicted this decline with the seasonal slowdown, however September’s sales were almost 10% less than September of 2013 which indicates the real estate recovery in Albuquerque is stagnant at best. 

The outlying areas such as the East Mountains and Placitas continue to be a challenge.  We saw just 5% of the total detached home sales in the East Mountains in September.  Another area that is challenging is in the upper end.  Last month only 3% of sales were above $500,000 and only half of one percent of sales was for homes listed at $750,000 and above.  Maintaining market consistency, 76% of sales were under $250,000 and 21% of total sales were in the $250,000 to $500,000 range. 

As you can imagine pricing, especially in the upper end, is very important with these current market conditions… in fact it is absolutely vital!  You have to be competitively priced to win the price war and the beauty contest with buyers.  The good news is that the buyers out looking this time of year are serious about making a purchase.  They’re looking for a home that shows well and is well-priced.  That’s why it’s so important for sellers and buyers to work with experienced and knowledgeable Realtors like myself who can help you navigate the current market conditions.  If you are a buyer, especially in the upper end, there are great opportunities available to purchase your dream home!

August 2014 Market Report

In the month of August the Greater Albuquerque Association of Realtors reported 895 closed single-family, detached homes and condos.  Almost tied with the 898 sold this past July and 5% below sales we experienced in August of 2013.  We also saw more than 950 pending sales in August.  I’m encouraged by those closing numbers and at the same time I am closely monitoring supply and demand as with 1700 new listings in the month of August we have an oversupply of inventory of 5500 homes.

As usual, we saw quite a bit of activity in the Northeast Heights.  What was different this time around was an increase in activity in some areas West of Coors.  The southwest and northwest heights each had more than 40 sales in the month of August.  I have to mention the East Mountains, as I do quite a bit of business out there and also live out there.  The market is still very slow.  In fact in the month of August there were only 41 detached homes sold.  That’s less than 5% of the total detached sales in the Greater Albuquerque Area.  That area continues to be a challenge, but we are seeing activity.  That’s why it is so important for today’s sellers in these tougher areas to be realistic about pricing and realize that they are constantly in a price war and a beauty contest. 

Maintaining our market’s consistency, we saw most of the sales in August under that $250,000 mark.  In fact 75% of sales last month were under $250,000.   22% of total sales were of homes and condos in the $250,000 to $500,000 range.  That means only 3% of sales were over $500,000.