August 8, 2012 (Shirley Allen)
Monthly sales of existing single-family homes and condos continued to improve in Ohio during June while home prices jumped nearly 11 percent from the previous month of May according to the latest housing data from the Ohio Association of Realtors® (OAR).
An estimated total of 11,246 existing single-family homes and condos were sold in the Buckeye State in June. That was 2.0 percent higher than the 11,018 homes sold in May and 10.6 percent higher than the 10,165 homes sold in June 2011. It was the 12th consecutive month that year-over-year homes sales have improved.
The average sales price for an existing home in Ohio increased by 10.9 percent in June to $150,174, up from $135,450 in May, and was 5.6 percent higher than the average price of $141,793 in June of last year.
Robert U. Miller, president of the Ohio Association of REALTORS®, stated, “We’ve reached a significant milestone in our long journey toward recovery of the housing marketplace throughout Ohio, as sales activity has achieved 12 straight months of gains for the first time since December 2004 through November 2005. It’s apparent that we’ve begun to overcome the challenges stemming from the economic collapse of 2008 and have made strides in building a solid foundation for having a sustainable, growing marketplace going forward.”
Of the 20 local boards that provided data for the monthly report, sixteen of the boards reported sales gains or were unchanged from the previous year with the Athens Board (+52.4 percent) reporting the largest increase while the Mansfield Board (-10.6 percent) posted the largest year-over-year decline in sales.
The NEOHREX (Northeast Ohio Real Estate Exchange) recorded the most sales for the month with an estimated 3,609 home sales, up from 3,528 in May, while Columbus followed with an estimated 2,429 home sales for the month, up from 2,070 the previous month.
Year-over-year, twelve of the local boards posted an increase in their average prices led by the Ashland Board (+24.1 percent) with the Greater Portsmouth Board (-18.6 percent) posting the largest decline in prices.
Through the end of June, a total of 52,896 homes have been sold in Ohio, 12.8 percent higher than the 46,914 homes sold during the same time frame last year.
“Ohio’s REALTORS® remain extremely confident about our market – as interest rates remain at historic lows, prices have begun to trend upward, inventories are declining, sellers are increasingly realistic in their pricing expectations and consumers understand that long‐term, owning a home is a tremendous investment,” Miller added.
Tags: existing homes, condos, sales, median home prices, Ohio
Source:
OAR
