Area home sales improve, but down 6.39% in 2009 (Corrected)

Editor’s note on corrections: The Arkansas Realtors Association issued a correction this afternoon to the numbers listed in their report for Crawford County. This story and graphic contain the corrected numbers.

It may be too early to call it a recovery, but Fort Smith regional home sales ended 2009 in much better shape than it started 2009.

There were 1,948 homes sold during 2009 in Crawford, Franklin and Sebastian counties, down 6.39% from the 2,081 sold in 2008, according to information released Thursday (Jan. 21) by the Arkansas Realtors Association. However, the three counties ended the year with a combined 9.39% gain in homes sold during December compared to December 2008.

What’s more, the percentage decline in home sales in the area has moderated significantly during the year. At the end of the first quarter (Jan.-March), home sales were down 22% compared to the same period in 2008. The decline fell to 13.37% after six months, down to 13.14% at the end of nine months and finishing the year down 6.39%.

Home sales statewide totaled 24,862 during 2009, just 0.95% below 2008 sales. Also, the recently troubled housing market in Northwest Arkansas posted better percentage sales results than all of Arkansas and the Fort Smith area. The number of homes sold in Benton County (3,536) was up 7.64% in 2009 and Washington County (2,188) was up 9.02% for the year.

ARA spokesman Ethan Nobles said low interest rates and extension and expansion of a federal homebuyers tax credit gets most of the credit for improved home sales figures in 2009. Nobles also said the 2009 figures are being compared against 2008 numbers “that were simply dreadful.”

“Going forward this year, hopefully markets will continue the expansion they’ve been going through since October. We are keeping a close eye on what happens at the end of April when the tax credits expire and the end of the first quarter if the Fed stops buying up mortgage backed securities,” Nobles said in a statement. “The real estate buzzword this year is stabilization. A number of economists have said they anticipate markets to stabilize this year. We certainly hope that’s the case.”

The value of homes sold in the Fort Smith area and statewide did not keep pace with the number of homes sold.

Homes sold in the three-county area had a value of $241.854 million, down 9.62% compared to 2008. Statewide, the value of homes sold totaled $3.598 billion, down 3.97%.

REAL ESTATE STATS
• Number of homes sold
Crawford County
2009: 582
2008: 619
-5.97%

Franklin County
2009: 69
2008: 76
-9.21%

Sebastian County
2009: 1,297
2008: 1,386
-6.42%

• Value of homes sold
Crawford County
2009: $69.577 million
2008: $76.343 million
-8.86%

Franklin County
2009: $5.009 million
2008: $6.765 million
-25.96%

Sebastian County
2009: $167.268 million
2008: $184.490 million
-9.33%

• Average price of homes sold
Crawford County
2009: $119,549
2008: $123,334
-3.07%

Franklin County
2009: $72,603
2008: $89,024
-18.45%

Sebastian County
2009: $128,966
2008: $133,110
-3.11%

The top five Arkansas counties in terms of number of homes sold during 2009 are:
Pulaski County (4,430, down 1.6% from 2008)
Benton County (3,536, up 7.64% from 2008)
Washington County (2,188, up 9.02% from 2008)
Saline County (1,478, up 2.35% from 2008)
Faulkner County (1,323, up 4.5% from 2008)