June appears to be approaching the May level of home sales based on a snapshot of the Flagstaff market taken before business opened Monday morning June 16. Thirty-two Flagstaff homes were reported as sold so far in June according to the Multiple-Listing-Service of the Northern Arizona Association of Realtors.® An additional sixty-four homes had gone under contract for sale from June 1 through the morning of June 16. Since most closings occur in the second half of the month, we can expect the total for the month of June to more than double the 32 homes sold so far, but it may not equal May Flagstaff sales of 111 total housing units. My snapshots of neighborhood prices as I analyzed various Flagstaff submarkets over the weekend show that prices have dropped significantly since January, at least in the neighborhoods that I had occasion to look at on Friday through Monday. When homeowners are considering offers on their properties, they need to ask their agents to run a current market analysis and not simply rely on the market research done at the time they set their price at listing. Even if your counter offer is accepted by a buyer who has fallen in love with your home, the sale may not close because the appraiser will be looking at recent sales – not sales from 120 days ago. Don’t pass up what may seem like a low-ball offer if you need to sell! Meanwhile, on a national basis, the National Association of Realtors® The Pending Home Sales Index, a forward-looking indicator based on contracts signed in April, rose 6.3 percent to 88.2 from a reading of 83.0 in March. It’s the highest index since last October, but remains 13.1 percent lower than April 2007 when it stood at 101.5. Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist, said pending sales contracts have picked up in areas undergoing significant price drops. “Bargain hunters have entered the market en masse, especially in areas that have experienced double-digit price declines, but it’s unclear if they are investors or owner-occupants,” he said. “Sharp price reductions are leading to a quicker discovery of price equilibrium points. The West is already seeing year-over-year gains in pending contracts.” NAR President Richard F. Gaylord, a broker with RE/MAX Real Estate Specialists in Long Beach, Calif., said the real estate market may be breaking its holding pattern. “It appears that more buyers are realizing they can take advantage of a favorable combination of mortgage interest rates, home prices and family income,” he said. “Overall affordability conditions are the best we’ve seen since the middle of the housing boom in 2004, but with far more choices….” If you are in the market to buy or sell a Flagstaff home, contact Team Heitland at RE/MAX Peak Properties. | 
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