Augusta GA Market Statistics
I thought for sure that stats from the Augusta MLS would be published by now for May. Since they’re not, I wanted to cover January thru April and we can add May to the mix shortly.
I want to compare the last couple of months to the same time period from 2008, as month to month comparisons don’t account for seasonal trends.
Avg Sale Price %Diff Sale/List Avg Days on Market Absorption Rate
Jan 08/09 $146,674/$145,761 97.6%/96.4% 98/133 11.7/16.0
Feb 08/09 $145,846/$144,846 97.2%/96.9% 94/128 10.9/13.5
Mar 08/09 $146,197/$150,457 98.0%/96.7% 102/119 10.1/10.9
Apr 08/09 $153,599/$152,755 98.0%/97.5% 108/114 10.6/10.6
What can we tell from these numbers?
1. Except for March, homes are still not selling (on average) for as much this year as they were in 2008.
2. Sellers are having to make more concessions (are they listing based on last year’s numbers?)
3. Homes are sitting on the market longer.
4. We have more inventory sitting on the market – except for the month of April. To have a more normalized market, this number needs to be between 6-7 months.
If you’re selling, what can you do to avoid some of the pitfalls of the market? Price AHEAD of the market. If you know that houses are selling for less this year, and that sellers are making more concessions this year, price your home accordingly from the start. What will this do for you? Your house won’t sit on the market for as long, and you’re not as likely to be asked for as many concessions if your house is competitively priced.
Finally, I think the hardest thing for a seller to understand is that if you overprice your house at the beginning, it won’t sell for as much in the end. This and proper staging are the most important things for a seller to accomplish.