March Residential Sales Statistics

The Tucson Association of Realtors has released the residential sales statistics for March 2011. I surely am mystified by the trend, or more accurately, lack of a trend, in the average sale price over the last three months. From December 2010 to January 2011, it went down 10.41%. From January 2011 to February 2011, it went up 9.22%. From February 2011 to March 2011, it went down 10.31%. What will April bring? Up 9%, I hope.

At $163,590, the average sale price is almost 19% below March 2010. The last time the average sale price was that low was September 2002.

Short sales accounted for almost 9% of the sales, and 45% of the sales were foreclosures.

Investors with cash continue to dominate the market, snapping up 37% of the houses sold last month. There are a lot of bargains to be found, but people who need to get financing are unable to buy the most steeply discounted houses because mortgage lenders require houses to be habitable. A great many of the foreclosed houses have been trashed by previous owners or vandals.