Welcome to The Real State of Real Estate...

Thank you for visiting my new blog.  I am not new to blogging, but in the past, I can’t say that I’ve been very consistent.  Well, it’s a new year, and my commitment to you is that I will be posting articles on the 1st and the 15th of each month.

Some of the items I am looking to cover:

• Real Estate Brokerage – Boutique vs. Big Name
• Quarterly Market Reviews
• Property Tax Appeals

Additionally, you can always send me a question – or a request – to my email Joe@MovingBerks.com.

With the new year upon us, today I am going to take a brief look back at the local markets and give you some data comparing 2018 and 2019.  This may give us some direction on  where the market has headed; however, with an upcoming election (and impeachment hearing)…  nothing ahead of us is very predictable.

Berks County

2018 was marked by historic low inventory in the local housing market – as well as nationally.  Let’s first understand that what you hear on the morning shows is a national view, while I am going to drill this down to the local level.

With that being said, Berks County saw 6364 homes on the market in 2018, with 5195 homes being sold – so, roughly 81% of the homes listed closed in that year.

As far as the financial picture in Berks, the average sale in Berks County was just over $180,00, checking in at $180,406, with the median sale (roughly half sold above and below this price) slightly lower at $164,000.

From the listing perspective, the median list price was $174,900 in 2018.

2019 saw inventory numbers climb slightly with 6445 homes being listed with 5352 closing – so, just a hair above 83%,

The median listing price climbed slightly to $179,900, but, there was a significant increase in the average sale with the number climbing 5.5% to $190,122.  The median sale jumped as well, coming in at $173k – again, a 5.5% increase.

The “DOM” – days on market – dropped to 52 days in 2019 from 63 in 2018.

How do we interpret this information?  I think what we are seeing is pent  up demand stemming from “The Bubble” in 2008…  yes, we are still suffering the effects of that debacle.

I think the aftermath of the Great Recession is coming to an end – I am certain we are all hoping for that.  From 2008-2010, many people lost jobs, homes, equity, savings, etc.  It was a financial nightmare both locally and nationally.  I think we are at a point that low unemployment has made more people “lendable” from a mortgage perspective.  The steady decline in unemployment has allowed some to replenish savings, and buy homes – just not at a pace that will drive prices up rapidly (this is a good thing).  The continued climb in values has added equity for many home owners – allowing them to (1) be able to sell their home without writing a check, and (2) possibly have cash to apply towards the purchase of their next home.  As this continues to occur, you will have more and more “sellers that want to be buyers” entering the market.  The short DOM reflects the level of demand.  To further illustrate this, look at the 2010 numbers.

• Average Sales Price:  $159,000
• Median Sales Price: $150,000
• Average DOM: 123
• Number of Sales: 3511

In an effort not to bore you with a ton of unnecessary words, I will bullet point the same data for Chester County and Montgomery County.

Chester County

• Average Sales Price 2018:  $388,395
• Median Sold Price 2018:  $340,000
• Number of Listings 2018:  9752
• Number of Sales 2018: 7288 (approx. 75%)
• Median List Price 2018: $379,068
• Average DOM 2018:  63

• Average Sales Price 2019:  $401,969 (+3.3%)
• Median Sold Price 2019:  $355,000 (+4.4%)
• Number of Listings 2019:  9627 (-1.2%)
• Number of Sales 2019: 7136 (approx. 75%)
• Median List Price 2019: $389,000 (+2.6%)
• Average DOM 2019:  58

Montgomery County

• Average Sales Price 2018:  $332,713
• Median Sold Price 2018:  $287,000
• Number of Listings 2018:  14,722
• Number of Sales 2018: 11,171(approx. 76%)
• Median List Price 2018: $315,000
• Average DOM 2018:  57

• Average Sales Price 2019:  $346,991 (+4.2%)
• Median Sold Price 2019:  $301,000 (+4.7%)
• Number of Listings 2019:  14,481
• Number of Sales 2019: 11,383 (approx. 79%)
• Median List Price 2019: $329,900 (+4.7%)
• Average DOM 2019:  53

So, as you can clearly see, the market has been steadily improving.  A lot of people ask me if we’re in a “Buyer’s Market” or “Seller’s Market.”  That is typically defined by the 180-day average of DOM.  So, we’re in a “Seller’s Market” right now, low inventory and high demand.

I hope you find this kind of information helpful.  Of course, if you’d like me to drill this down even further, please reach out and I can get you the stats you’re looking for.

Until next post, work hard and play hard.