Sales of U.S. existing homes up 4.9 percent in May
Sales of previously owned U.S. homes posted the best monthly gain in nearly three years in May, providing hope that housing is beginning to regain momentum lost over the past year.
Sales of previously owned U.S. homes posted the best monthly gain in nearly three years in May, providing hope that housing is beginning to regain momentum lost over the past year.
Homebuilders filed 530 single-family building permits in the metro area in May. That’s exactly the same number of permits that were filed in May 2013. Local construction numbers were better than national figures.
Figures for May add to evidence that about 14 percent fewer homes are selling this year in the nine-county area compared with the same point in 2013. But sale prices still are on the rise.
Home-sale agreements dropped nearly 20 percent in the nine-county Indianapolis area in April. Home prices continued to rise as inventories shrank.
The sharpest sales increase occurred among homes priced at $1 million or above. Sales fell in nearly every other price group.
Home prices rose, however, as inventory dwindled. The average area home price in March was $161,191, an increase of 6.1 percent compared with the same month of 2013.
Pricier houses are vanishing from the market faster than less-expensive homes due to a temporary bottleneck caused by rising demand and a slow recovery by builders.
Pending home sales in the nine-county area slid 22.8 percent in February compared with the year-ago period. That was only a slight improvement from the 31-percent fall recorded in January.
Home-sale agreements plummeted 31 percent in January, likely due to the record snowfalls and cold temperatures.
The Indianapolis Neighborhood Housing Partnership will use the funds to help qualified residents purchase homes and revitalize their neighborhoods.
Home-sale agreements in central Indiana plummeted 18.6 percent in December, as the market continued a downward trend.
Despite the monthly decline, year-to-date permit filings are up 18 percent over 2012. This year’s number through 11 months has already exceeded 2012’s full-year total.
Although area sales of existing homes are up 15.4 percent through the first 11 months of the year, the trend has reversed in recent months. Year-over-year sales have fallen in four of the last five months.
Although area sales are up 16 percent through the first 10 months of the year, the trend has slammed into reverse in recent months amid higher mortgage rates and tighter inventories.
For 34 years, Ward has been selling homes in the Indianapolis area, often to the city’s elite, racking up 12-hour days during her busiest times.
Home-sale agreements in central Indiana fell for the second time in three months in September amid higher mortgage rates and tighter inventories.
Stonegate Mortgage—potentially the first company in Indianapolis to go public since ExactTarget in 2012—plans to entice investors with a nationwide expansion, a diversified income stream, and the prospect that federal reforms will benefit such loan aggregators.
Changing tastes, economic uncertainty could crimp sale prices for boomers wanting to move into smaller quarters.
August sales reflect contracts signed in June and July, when mortgage rates were rising steadily. A Realtors group cautioned that buyer traffic dropped off significantly in August. That points to fewer sales in the fall.
The 3-percent bump last month was cause for relief after pending agreements in July broke a two-year streak of gains.