Home sales may be set for recovery
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Two months into the new year, it appears that Pittsburgh-area real estate could be on track to break its six-year losing streak of declining homes sales that began in 2005.
For the past two months, there has been not only an increasing number of homes sold, but sales prices have also increased and the dollar volume of those home sales also jumped compared with a year ago, according to RealSTATs, a local real estate information service.
"We've had six consecutive years of declining home sales," said Dan Murrer, vice president of RealSTATs. "That's a long slide. If things continue as they have in 2011, that slide may end."
In February, the number of homes sold in the five-county region that includes Allegheny, Beaver, Butler, Washington and Westmoreland counties jumped 5.1 percent, with 1,104 homes sold in February 2010 compared with 1,160 homes sold last month.
The median home price gained a healthy 3.9 percent from $103,000 in February 2010 to $107,000 in February 2011. The total dollar volume of those sales rose 15.7 percent from $146 million to $169 million.
Mr. Murrer said all three indicators were positive signs that the local real estate market was gaining momentum.
"That means more sales commissions for real estate agents," he said. "It means more transfer taxes for school districts and municipalities and more business for contractors.
"When people buy new homes, they usually paint, install carpet, buy new curtains and decorate in other ways. There's a ripple effect. It's good for a number of sectors."
While it may be too early to judge a trend based on two months, the end of the quarter will provide more of an indication of where the prices and home sales are heading.
Home sales and home prices in the five-county Pittsburgh region also were up in January compared with January 2010, despite the expiration of a tax credit that encouraged people to buy homes last year.
There were 1,474 homes sold in January in Allegheny, Beaver, Butler, Washington and Westmoreland counties combined, up 8 percent over the 1,362 homes sold in January 2010.
The average price of those homes was $148,148, up very slightly from January 2010's average of $147,496.
The median price for home sales in January was $115,000, 8.5 percent above last year's $106,000.
First Published March 17, 2011 12:00 am
