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Valley home sales slump again in September
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Sales of existing Valley homes continued to fall in September with the traditionally slow holiday season fast-approaching and sellers still competing with home builders.
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Some 3,050 sales were recorded last month, down from 4,240 sales in August and 4,875 in September 2006, a study released Tuesday by Arizona State University’s Realty Studies department shows.
Before the housing boom two years ago, September sales typically ran in the high 4,000’s, Realty Studies director Jay Butler said.
Resales are also down year-to-date with 40,800 sales through September, compared with 52,390 during the same period last year and 88,750 in 2005.
“(The market is) sort of under performing now because it’s been really hammered by a lot of different issues, especially in the financing area,” Butler said.
Tightened lending guidelines have made it more difficult to get financing, meanwhile rumors of recession are floating around, he said.
“When you get a lot of uncertainty, the tendency for most people is to just do nothing,” he said.
The winter is also a historically slow time for sales with children in school and the holidays just around the corner.
Prices tend to weaken slightly around now, Scottsdale real estate agent John Wake said.
September’s median home price — where half cost less and half cost more — was $250,000, compared with $256,900 a year ago, according to the ASU study.
Wake said he wouldn’t be surprised if the median price dropped into the $240,000-range by January.
Still, sales last month suffered from the subprime mortgage mess in August, he said.
“Since then, things have eased up a bit, and people are less concerned,” Wake said.
“October will be interesting to see if we get a little bit of bounce back.”
Meanwhile, some areas of the Valley are holding up prices better than others.
Many outlying areas are stagnating, while cities closer to freeways, shopping and employment centers are fairing better, Butler said.
“It’s really the area that you’re looking at,” he said.
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