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From The Skinny
Warming weather, affordability and approaching deadlines are activating the housing market. With less than 60 days left until the home buyer tax credit expires, buyers and sellers appear to be kicking it into a new gear. There were 1,715 new listings for the week ending February 27, an increase of 5.3 percent from a year ago and the fourth consecutive week of year-over-year increase. The $6,500 tax credit for move-up buyers appears to be stimulating some sellers to place their homes on the market in an attempt to sell them before the credit expires.
For the same reporting week, there were 868 accepted offers, which is a bump of 13.9 percent from a year ago. After several months of relatively flat home buying, the last two weeks have seen a jump as the credit deadline nears.
Days on Market continues to decrease, landing at 142 days in February. That was a 9.7 percent decrease from a year ago.
The Percent of Original Price Received at Sale stood at 92.3 percent in February, a 3.4 percent increase over the year prior.
Click here for the full Weekly Market Activity Report.
From The Skinny
Over the last three weeks, the number of new listings has grown at a stronger pace than we saw in 2009. For the week ending February 20, there were 1,833 new listings, an increase of 17.7 percent from a year ago. The recent uptick is likely a combination of the typical spring increase in activity coupled with the effects of the $6,500 tax credit available to move-up buyers. Consumers who have lived in their current residence for 5 of the last 8 years are eligible to receive the credit when they purchase a home before April 30.
Also for the week ending February 20, pending sales made a 9.9 percent year-over-year jump after staying even with last year for several consecutive weeks.
The Supply-Demand Ratio for March is 5.39, which means there are 5.39 homes available for each buyer. That's 6.9 percent below last year's number and is another indication of dwindling supply.
