Welcome to the Collins Group Realty July 2012 Market Update

 

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Last Updated August 22, 2012

 

Happy Back-to-School!

I think this time of year more than any other shows us how fast time flies – when we are amazed that so-and-so is already in such-and-such grade. And while everyone is focused on that, we find that real estate takes somewhat of a back-seat for a couple of weeks… But September is right around the corner and we have great hopes for what the Fall market will bring!

You will see the trend in Pending Sales move downward over the past 2 months, which we feel is more about the spike that preceded the slow-down than it is about the slow-down itself. Pending Sales are still up 17% year-to-date over last year…so I think we just in an end-of-summer lull that won’t last long.

Inventory is still down sharply, and the annual trend demonstrates that the Fall market is much more about sales than it is about new listings…so I think we can cover some ground this Fall by absorbing a nice amount of existing inventory. This is essential as we are likely to see an increase in foreclosure listings in 2013 as a result of the government-imposed slow-down on processing of foreclosures 2 years back.

Closed Sales are the most impressive statistic through July with a whopping 25% increase over last year! Closed Sales are the key driver to the market, as they set benchmarks for value while establishing real evidence of the improvement in our marketplace.

More and more people are realizing everyday that this best-case-scenario of high inventory and low mortgage rates is on its way into the history books as the market improves. And there are a record-number of buyers looking at the Hilton Head area real estate market with keen interest…so I think the next 6 months are going to be excellent in our local market.

Thanks, as always, for your time and interest in our read on the market. Feel free to shoot me questions, comments and feedback at anytime…

Best-

Chip

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