Months Supply of Inventory for The Woodlands Texas

Real Estate Market Activity, The Woodlands Texas – Sold Prices, Months of Inventory, Days On Market, The Whole Enchelida

by Ken Brand, Sales Manager - Prudential Gary Greene, Realtors / The Woodlands TX / Cell: 832-797-1779 on September 4, 2008

Schools back in session.  Holiday season is just around the corner.  Hard to believe that Christmas is only 112 days away.

 If you want to be in your new home or out before Santa’s Sleigh lifts off, time to act.

Here’s what I see for citizens.

Seasonally listing inventory and sales velocity steadily ebb through the last quarter and begin marching upward after the first of the year.

Current Months Supply Of Inventory = Sellers Market.  Real estate economists agree, six months of for sale listing inventory equals a balanced market.  More inventory equals a buyer’s market, less than six months equals seller’s market.  The Woodlands, Texas Months Supply Of For Sale Listing Inventory = 3.9 Months.

Average Days On Market for Sold and Closed Properties – August, 2008 = 51 Days.  Properties that are staged, merchandised, marketed and priced competitively sell fast.  Properties that are missing one of the ingredients, sit for awhile.  The Average Number Of Days On The Market for unsold Listing Inventory is 91 Days.  Take Away:  Average Days On Market vary by price range, but, if you’re selling and your property has been on the market longer than average, make adjustments now.  You can adjust the merchandising, marketing, staging and the price.  Do it now. In the next 120 days there will be fewer buyers in the market place.

Are Sales Prices Rising or Falling?  Over the last two years, Sold Prices in The Woodlands, Texas have risen 16%.  The Average Sold Price for August, 2008 = $343,959.  

Take Away:  We aren’t living in Phoenix, Miami or Stockton.  Prices are not falling.  If you’re a buyer and you find a property that excites you, buy it now.  Prices should continue to climb.

August Stats for The Woodlands, Texas – all brokers combined:  For Sale Listing Inventory is 13.5% higher today than it was last year, 880 vs 775.  Written Sales Contracts for August were down 24.29%, 187 vs 247.  

The Big Picture Paradox = Sold prices steadily incline, Months Supply of Inventory remains low.  There are fewer sales than last year at this time and there are more homes for sale.  Brokers and buyers and sellers around the country dream about the day their real estate markets look like ours.  Our market is healthy and strong, it is equal to the record breaking activity of two years ago.

Here’s what I see for real estate agents.

The real estate market is a friend to the savvy, sensitive, hustler.  The weak, lazy and slow will starve.  There are fewer transactions, competition is greater and citizen expectations are higher than ever (rightfully so).  To win you must talk to more people, market and merchandise more effectively, communicate more frequently, follow-up more meticulously and deliver everything your clients want, the way they want it, when they want it.  Pretty simple to understand, difficult to do.  The good news, do it and you’ll steam roll the lazy.  Get to it!

If you want to pour over the reports and draw your own conclusions, amen.

 

If you’d like to download both reports, Click HERE

If I can help you with anything, let me know:  Ken Brand – 832-797-1779

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The Woodlands Texas – Real Estate Market Activity Report – July/August 2008

by Ken Brand, Sales Manager - Prudential Gary Greene, Realtors / The Woodlands TX / Cell: 832-797-1779 on August 5, 2008

It’s a wacky real estate market. If you’re thinking of buying or selling real estate, or you own real estate in The Woodlands Texas, reading these reports will help illuminate the foggy situation and educate you with local facts.  Having said that, keep in mind that these statistics represent The Woodlands real estate market in general.  Real estate is hyper-local in nature.  Before making decisions, you’ll want a savvy real estate agent to diligently research the up to the moment real estate data for your specific neighborhood.

Items of note:

1.  Sales Prices are stable.  Prices have not fallen. Thankfully, The Woodlands real estate market is not the Arizona, Florida or California real estate market.  Buyers looking for the deal of the decade will be disappointed.

2. Real estate economists believe that six months of available “For Sale” listing inventory represents a balanced real estate market.  Over six months of real estate inventory is considered a buyer’s market, less the six month of real estate inventory equals a seller’s market.  Months supply of inventory in The Woodlands has rock steadily flown below five months for two years running.

Take Away = Real estate sales prices are unlikely to fall.  If you’re a buyer and find a property you like, take action, don’t wait, interest rates are expected to rise, so are prices.

3. Oddly, while months supply of inventory is low and sold prices creep higher, the total number of contracts written is lagging behind 2007 totals.  The average number of days on the market for active listing inventory is in the mid 80 day range.  The average number of days on the market for properties that closed in July was 57 days.  

Take Away = If you’re a serious seller and you need to move, analyze the data, consider that seasonally, there will be fewer qualified buyers in the market place now through early next year.  Make adjustments to marketing, merchandising, staging and pricing today.

4.  Real estate agents, the market is a challenging and a shift shaping one where prices are holding steady, inventory is higher and sales are fewer (compared to last year), if you want to prosper, you’ll have to work smarter and harder than you have in the past.  You’ll have to deliver better, more effective results to please more clients and earn more referrals and recommendations.  You’ll want to move some of your marketing investment from old world media like magazines and newspaper and invest in internet broadcasting and advanced property display promotion and merchandising.

Below, you’ll find more data – Average Sold Prices, Days On Market, Months Supply Of Inventory and Market Share Results by Real Estate Broker.

That’s my two cents.  any questions or comments, leave me a comment, send an email or give me call, Ken Brand 832-797-1779

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