The market lost some steam during the first two and a half months of 2010, but appears to be hitting its stride as we enter the crucial second quarter. Sales during March totaled 8,963, 37% higher than February and 18% higher than March 2009.  20,794 listings are under contract.

Demand is still very strong, fueled by low prices, low interest rates, a tax credit that expires during the second quarter and strong buying interest from out of state. Supply of active listings also increased through the first quarter until mid-March, but has now started the usual seasonal declining pattern which should continue through the second quarter. In many areas we are now close to a balance between supply and demand.

Overall pricing has been fairly stable for the past 9 months across most of the market. Declines in the higher end of the market have been balanced by increases at the bottom end.  Overall annual appreciation turned positive in late February and is now reaching a peak. It is likely to fall back over the next several months but remain above zero.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, April 6th, 2010 at 8:32 pm and is filed under Real Estate Market. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.