Local homes sales post strong first quarter results

Listing five homes a week makes Coldwell Bankers’ Nicky Dou a busy, but happy real estate broker.

“I currently have 16 homes under contract and writing more every day. Listing five homes this week. Last year was my best year ever in real estate sales and I am over triple the amount I was at the same time last year,” Dou said on Monday (April 15.)

She isn’t alone. The number of home sales across Northwest Arkansas rose 12% during the first three months of 2013 compared to the 2012 period.

George Faucette, CEO of the local Coldwell Banker franchise, said the firm’s first quarter sales rose 22% from 2012, with an impressive gain of 64% from 2011.

MountData.com reports agents across the two-counties sold 1,413 homes valued at $241.24 million in the first quarter of this year. Not only did agents sell more homes, but the prices of those properties were also higher and boosted total sales volume by 19% from a year ago.

Median prices of the homes that have sold this year totaled $140,000, up 4.47% from a year ago, and 18.8% higher than in 2011, according to Paul Bynum, statistician with MountData.com.

Faucette says there are more higher-end home selling across his firm. He reports the average price of homes closed in March was $192,000, up $30,000 from the same month last year.

He says part of the reason prices are moving up is that more upscale buyers are in the market, and they are closing deals.

“Some of that certainly has to do with the relocation, of which there is more and our company does a lot of that,” Faucette added.

Bynum agrees that a combination of more higher-end homes selling and less foreclosure or distressed sales factored into the averages. Bynum says there were 3,226 homes listed for sale at the end of March, inventory was up by about 50 homes from last month, but is still 10% below the inventory levels of last year.

He said four homes have sold for more than a million dollars so far this year.

“The higher end market is coming back but at a slower pace. I am getting ready to list two million-dollar homes, one is on Beaver Lake and one is in ‘The Blessings.’ I feel confident they will both sell pretty quickly,” Dou said. “The homes at Pinnacle Country Club that are in the Bentonville school district are going quick. I have a buyer from out of town that can’t even seem to find a home in the higher-end market that fits their family’s needs and will most likely end up building.”

Dou and other agents say they see a sense of urgency from more buyers today and a higher confidence level than they have witnessed in seven years or so. With prices moving higher and inventories shrinking in some price ranges and geographic areas, the market has become more favorable for sellers.

Bynum says there is a four-to-five-month supply of homes under $150,000. He considers a neutral market to be a five-to-six-month supply.

“The market is becoming more of a sellers market again and buyers are finding that they can’t ‘wait’ if they want to get the home they want,” Dou said.

She recently worked with buyers who looked at homes once a week for about a month. But every time they liked a home, it sold before their next house hunting outing. Dou said they missed out on a home they loved after three weeks of looking before they were convinced to make a move.

“The home they purchased was only listed one day. I have sold many listings within a week of listing this year. The market is amazing and I am happy to be part of it,” Dou said.

Bynum reports there were 621 pending sales at the end of March, up 11% from the same period in 2012. He says pending sales are a leading indicator of future market activity.

In March, agents sold 409 homes in Benton County, up 23% from the same month in 2012. Total volume was $74.795 million, up more than $20 million from a year ago.

In Washington County there were 191 sales, down from 213 a year ago. Total value was $32.557 million, down by roughly $1.5 million from March 2012.

Harold Crye, CEO of Crye-Leike Realty, the fifth largest real estate firm in the nation, told The City Wire  that sales were good in March, even with a year ago, which was a record $33 million.

"Our Northwest Arkansas market is up about 13% so far this year, over last.  We are expecting another good year, but supplies are down and the market is leaning more toward sellers. Realtors prefer a more balanced market because buyers want ample choices.  We expect overall inventories to stay pretty low throughout this year," Crye said.