Housing Trends Differ in Two-County Area (Opinion)

The focus of this article is the residential sector of the real estate market in Benton and Washington counties, including recent data pertaining to lot and home sales.

Streetsmart NWA researches property records in the two-county area with respect to lot sales and new-home sales in active subdivisions. Lot sales in final platted but not yet active subdivisions are also researched.

In the second quarter of 2011, there were 211 recorded lot sales in Benton County, where price information was available.

This represents a 28.7 percent increase over the second quarter of 2010. This data does not include lot sales in the part of Springdale located in Benton County, which is included with the Washington County lot sales.

Approximately 45 percent of the lot sales in the second quarter of 2011 were under $20,000. It is interesting to note that approximately 8.1 percent of the lot sales were in the $75,000 and above price range, with 10 lot sales at $100,000 or above.

In Washington County in the second quarter of 2011, there were 130 recorded lot sales where price information was available.

This represents a decline of 4.4 percent from the second quarter of 2010. Approximately 47.7 percent of the lot sales in the second quarter of 2011 were under $25,000, while 3.1 percent were in the $75,000-and–above price range. Two lot sales were noted in Q2 2011 above $100,000.

In the second quarter of 2011 in Benton County, price information was available on 178 new-home sales recorded (single-family and duplex) in active subdivisions. Again, the Springdale sales in Benton County are included with Washington County.

The total represents a 20.3 percent increase over the second quarter of 2010. Approximately 70.8 percent of the total sales were below $250,000, with 53.4 percent below $200,000. There were 12 new-home sales recorded in the second quarter in the $500,000-and-above price range.

This compares to 11 sales in this price range in the second quarter of 2010. If only Multiple Listing Service data is considered, including new and existing home sales, there were 997 sales in Benton County in the second quarter of 2011.

Some 83.6 percent of the sales were under $250,000, with 72.6 percent under $200,000. MLS data reflects 27 home sales in the $500,000-and-above price range in the second quarter of 2011, the same number as in the same time frame in 2010.

Property records indicate that in the first half of 2011, there were approximately 42.5 percent more new-home sales in Benton County than reported by the MLS.

In the second quarter of 2011 in Washington County, price information was available on 118 new-home sales recorded (single-family and duplex) in active subdivisions.

This represents a 29.3 percent decrease from the second quarter of 2010. Some 78.8 percent of the total sales were below $250,000, with 69.5 percent below $200,000. There were no new home sales recorded in the $500,000-and-above price range in the second quarter of 2011.

This compares to three sales recorded in this price range in the second quarter of 2010.

Considering only MLS data, including existing and new-home sales, there were 668 sales in Washington County in the second quarter of 2011.

Approximately 86.2 percent of the sales were under $250,000, with 79.3 percent under $200,000. The MLS data reflects six home sales in the $500,000-and- above price range in the second quarter of 2011. This compares to 10 home sales in this price range in the second quarter of 2010. Based on property records, there were 100 percent more new-home sales in Washington County in the first half of 2011 than reported by the MLS.

The residential sector continues to struggle in the two-county area. In the first half of 2011, compared to the first half of 2010, building permits decreased approximately 10.4 percent and new-home sales in active subdivisions were down approximately 3.2 percent.

A positive note is that lot sales in active subdivisions increased 5.5 percent year over year. However, there is a long way to go to bring lot supply to a healthy level.

The majority of the data provided to the public pertaining to the residential sector of the real estate market is from the MLS.

As provided in this article, there is substantially more activity with respect to new-home sales in Benton and Washington counties than reported by the MLS.

Tom Reed is a partner in Streetsmart NWA, which produces reports pertaining to the residential, multi-family, and commercial sectors of the real estate market. The company phone number is (479) 575-9100.