Posted 11:54 pm Sunday, December 13, 2009
Tyler's Home Sales Continue Climbing
By BRIAN PEARSON
Business Editor
Clay Flanagan put his Tyler home on the market in March after taking an Internet-technology job in Dallas.
Business Editor
Clay Flanagan put his Tyler home on the market in March after taking an Internet-technology job in Dallas.
With a daughter in high school, Flanagan hoped to have the home sold by summer's end and have his family settled in a new home in Dallas before the school year started.
But that didn't happen.
At first, he stayed with relatives in Dallas. In August, with the Tyler house still on the market and the school year about to start, he rented a Dallas apartment for his family.
At first, he stayed with relatives in Dallas. In August, with the Tyler house still on the market and the school year about to start, he rented a Dallas apartment for his family.
"We had hoped the house would sell by the summer, but it didn't," said Flanagan, 47, who had lived in Tyler since 1995. "It was not very pleasant."
Knowing the market, Flanagan initially set the sale price for $20,000 less than he attempted to sell the home for two years ago.
"I priced it real aggressively, knowing it was a tough market, right off the bat," he said.
But it took lopping off another $10,000 to finally draw a contract, albeit one for an even further reduced price.
Nevertheless, Flanagan finally sold his home at a time when Tyler homes sales seem to be shaking off the dust of a recession-slowed year.
Tyler area home sales in November showed a year-over-year gain for the second straight month.
Some 223 homes sold last month -- a 36 percent increase from the 164 sold in Nov. 2008, according to Greater Tyler Association of Realtors figures released this past week.
It marked the fourth best Nov. ever for the Tyler area, according to figures from The Real Estate Center at Texas A&M University.
Nov. home sales were 247 in 2005, 251 in 2006 and 265 in 2007.
Last month followed an October that saw 273 houses sold, a 28.8 percent increase from the 212 in Oct. 2008.
Median sales prices also increased in Nov., up to $129,000 from the $120,750 of the same month last year. However, it marked a decrease from the $137,900 median prices in Oct. and represented the third lowest median price for a month this year.
Nov. marked the first time since April that home inventory fell below the 12-month mark.
The Real Estate Center considers inventory, based on the past year's sales rate, to be the amount of time it would take for existing homes on the market to sell.
Tyler area inventory fell to 11.8 months in Nov. However, The Real Estate Center considers a balanced market to be around six months.
There were 2,815 listings last month, same as in November 2008.
Wood County saw 23 homes sold in Nov., compared to 16 in Nov. 2008. Smith County home sales rose 27.3 percent, with 135 units closed compared with 106 the same month last year.
Ann Fitzgerald, Greater Tyler Association of Realtors president, said Oct. and Nov. sales are a sign of good things to come next year.
Ms. Fitzgerald said forecasts for 2009 accurately predicted a turnaround in the real estate market later in the year.
Some of the increased sales can be attributed to the $8,000 tax credit for first-time home buyers. The deadline to close for the program was last month. However, the program is expected to be continued into next year and expanded to include existing homeowners, who can get a tax credit of up to $6,500.
Tyler area home sales remain down for the year. There were 1,680 homes sold through November, a 7.7 percent decrease from the first 11 months of 2008.
"The 2009 real estate forecast for Texas, presented by the chief economist at the Texas A&M Real Estate Center, suggested that we would see a 10 percent decline in sales from 2008 and an approximate 3 percent appreciation rate," Ms. Fitzgerald said. "The first five months of the Tyler area market reflected a decline in sales and our median price. The statistics were indicative of more than likely two things; consumer fear and the 'wait for the prices to bottom out' attitude buyers had adapted in Texas based on national news."
Ms. Fitzgerald said the Tyler area started seeing positive signs as early as June, when 299 units sold compared with 295 the previous June.
"The turn in the market is due to several factors," she said. "Consumers have figured out what is really going on in the Texas market. Texas has affordability and jobs. Additionally, waiting for prices to bottom out won't happen here because we never had the high appreciation rate that most of the country experienced."
Ms. Fitzgerald said she expects the upward trend to continue into next year.
"2010 promises to be a much better year for the real estate market nationally and in Texas," she said. "Sales are expected to increase due to affordability, great selection, record low interest rates and the continuation of the tax credit available to buyers through April 2010."
At this time last year, 30-year fixed mortgage rates hovered around 5.5 percent. On Friday, they averaged 5.01 percent, according to bank-rate.com.
