“Sales of Previously Owned Homes Dropped 9.6% in February”. That headline made its way into my inbox yesterday and was posted by Marketwatch correspondent Jeffry Bartash. The article went on to note that sales were 2.8% lower in February 2011 than in January, 2011. I gasped. How could I be having my best first quarter ever given such dismal statistics. I checked the Park City stats and breathed a sigh of relief. We sold 40 single family homes in January, 2011 and 61 homes in February, 2011. This is a significant increase from the 2010 numbers of 28 sales in January 2010 and 37 in February.
Some other national statistics noted in the article were the downward pull of distressed (bank owned and short sale) homes and an increase in cash purchases. Distrressed properties make up only 12% of Park City listings at the present time. Nationally, cash purchases made up about 33% of sales, while in Park City, they make up about 50% of sales. Ha! The banks don’t need to worry about bad loans if buyers are going around their ridiculous new guidelines and paying cash. I know this trend is not looked upon favorably by my mortgage broker friends. But I digress…..
Bottom line is that all real estate is local. Before you get upset by the national headlines, it’s best to check with a local Realtor who understands the market. I have access to all the Park City statistics and am happy to share with anyone who is curious about this information.