Blog

Aug 08, 2016 Almost 75% of area sales under $200,000

Gary Sandler

No Comments | 0 likes | 1,693 Viewers

Published 

A wise gentlemen once told me that numbers can be tortured to admit to anything. Some numbers speak for themselves, however. In our marketplace, statistics from the Las Cruces Association of Realtors (LCAR) show that 589, or just over 72 percent, of the 816 new and used home, townhome and condominium transactions closed during the first half of the year carried sales prices below $200,000. Fourteen percent of the total sold for less than $100,000, with the remaining 58 percent selling in the $100,000 to $200,000 range.

Home-sales in the $150,000 to $200,000 range increased by 35 percent over 2015’s tally, giving hope to local property owners that sales in the mid-to-higher price ranges are on the rise. Those hopes were confirmed for sellers in the $200,000 to $300,000 range as the number of sales rose by 20 percent over the same period last year. In the end, the number of homes sold at $300,000 and below posted a year-over-year increase of 15.2 percent.

The hopes of sellers in the $300,000 to $400,000 range were dashed, however, after LCAR data revealed that the number of sales in the category declined by 23 percent in the YOY comparison. The nine sales booked in the $400,000 to $500,000 range represented a 3-unit, or 50 percent, increase over the six sales booked in 2015, but fell far short of the 17 sales recorded in 2014. It’s interesting to note that more sales took place in the price range during the first-half of 2014 than in the first-half of 2015 and 2016 combined.

The same holds true for sales in the $500,000 and up category, where the six closings booked during the first 6-months of this year exceed the three homes sold during the same period in 2015 by 50 percent. Once again, the total number of homes sold in 2014 were equal to the number of homes sold in 2015 and 2016 combined.

With the exception of the $300,000 to $400,000 prices range, where sellers appear to significantly outnumber buyers, sales are up in most categories. Let’s hope our modest increase in production continues to provide hope that our market is on the road to recovery.

See you at closing.

About author