Area home sales down in 2011 first quarter

Sales of new and existing homes in Crawford and Sebastian counties during the first quarter of 2011 total 317, down 13.85% from the 368 sales in the 2010 period, according to the March Weichert Realtors-King Realty Group Real Estate Report.

March proved to be a slow month, with the number of homes sold in Crawford and Sebastian counties down 20% and 23%, respectively.

However, Realtor Ernie Schimmelman, author of the report, said the 2010 comparison includes the beginning of a federal tax credit for first-time homebuyers. The credit, which effectively ended in June (with limited exceptions), boosted Arkansas home sales in the first half of the and saw a decline in home sales in the second half.

“The homes sold comparison stats between March 2011 and March 2010 are misleading. They make it appear that sales in our market area are down significantly since last year at this time,” Schimmelman noted. “We need to factor in that March 2010 was the beginning of the government’s stimulus plan that caused an artificial increase in homes sales during March through May 2010. A more accurate comparison would be 2009’s results which show that 2011 is matching 2009’s trend for March.”

For all of 2010, Schimmelman’s research shows total new and existing Crawford County homes sold at 485, down 15.6% compared to the 575 homes sold in 2009. In Sebastian County, there were 1,148 homes sold in 2010, down 10.38% compared to 2009.

According to the Arkansas Realtors Association, the number of new and existing homes sold during 2010 in Crawford, Franklin and Sebastian counties totaled 1,866, down 6.4% compared to 2009. Home sales in Arkansas during 2010 totaled 24,128, down 4.78% compared to 2009.

One sector of the area housing market definitely on the rise is the number of unsold homes.

During the past two years, the number of new and existing homes for sale in Crawford and Sebastian counties has grown more than 40%. The inventory in the two counties totaled 1,023 in January 2009, down 42.8% compared to the March 2011 total of 1,461.

Also, developers continue to focus on building homes priced under $200,000, with that price range accounting for 79.8% of homes for sale in the two counties.

The King Realty Market Group Report (as prepared by Ernie Schimmelman):
Crawford County (March)
Homes listed: 439
Homes sold, March 2011: 45
Homes sold, March 2010: 56
Mean price, March (rolling 12-month rate): $117,769
Homes listed $0 to $200,000: 341
Homes listed $201,000 to $500,000: 88
Homes listed $501,000 and up: 10

Sebastian County (March)
Homes listed: 1,022
Homes sold, March 2011: 92
Homes sold, March 2010: 120
Mean price, March (rolling 12-month rate): $134,929
Homes listed $0 to $200,000: 804
Homes listed $201,000 to $500,000: 178
Homes listed $501,000 and up: 40