Martin Miller, Bucks County Homes » real estate statistics

Year End Real Estate Update for Bucks County & Yardley

Marty Millner — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 00:16:13 +0000

Time to take a look at what happened in our real estate market in Bucks County and Yardley in 2011.

As noted on the Bucks County real estate chart below, we can see that the number of houses sold in all of Bucks County was 3% less than the number of houses sold in 2010. (There were still 4423 homes sold in Bucks County in 2011). The number of homes sold in December of 2011 though, was 11.6% higher than in December of 2010. This was the sixth consecutive month that unit sales in the County were higher than the previous year.

Prices of homes sold in 2011, in Bucks County, fell by 5.5%. As you will see in the Yardley data, home prices in Yardley/Lower Makefield Township did better than that in 2011.

Pending sales remained about the same as they were a year ago at the same time.

Bucks County real estate inventory is 9.2% less than it was a year ago, and more than 10% than it was in November of 2011.

Finally, the average listing price of a home for sale in Bucks County, is down by 3.5% from a year ago at this time.

Lower Makefield Township Real Estate review

Looking at the real estate charts for Lower Makefield Township, note the following:

Inventory of homes on the market is almost identical to where we were last year at this time.
Inventory of homes for sale, were down by over 16% from the previous month.
The average price of a home on the market in Lower Makefield Township, is down by 2.5% from last year at the same time. It is currently $487,000.
The number of homes sold in 2011 in Lower Makefield Township, was 7.8% less than 2010.
The average price of a home sold in Lower Makefield Township in 2011, was actually 0.6% higher than it was a year ago.

What does this all mean? Specifically for Lower Makefield Township, there is now a 7.2 month inventory supply. We consider a market to be balanced, when inventory is about 6 months. It seems as though in the Yardley area, we are getting closer to balanced market conditions. Average days on the market is 87 right now, compared with 72 last year. Buyers are still negotiating an average of 8% discount from original asking price.

As I suggest on a regular basis, market conditions demand that sellers who are serious about selling, be realistic in their asking price. I see it over and over again, that over priced homes, help the realistic sellers get their home sold!

Yardley and Bucks County Real Estate Market Update

Marty Millner — Fri, 16 Dec 2011 20:39:04 +0000

Hard to believe that we are just a week away from Christmas!

From a Yardley real estate perspective, we are now 11 months into data for 2011. Let’s see where we are, both with Yardley real estate and Bucks County real estate.

Bucks County real estate

Units Sold: Looking at numbers for all of Bucks County, the number of units sold this year is about 4% lower than a year ago at this time. For those who suggest that no real estate sells in Bucks County, although the number of houses sold is a bit lower, there have been 4,052 homes that have closed through November this year!

Pricing: The average price of a home for sale in Bucks County is down by 5.5% from last year at the same time.

Pending Sales: This is the best forward indicator of real estate activity, and the number of pending sales has trended up for several months.

Inventory: This is also an extremely important metric, when considering Bucks County real estate market conditions. The number of houses for sale in Bucks County is 7% less this month than last month, and more than 11% lower than it was at the same time last year! This still represents more than 11 months of inventory in Bucks County. We consider a market to be balanced when there is about a six month inventory, so you can see that factors are still favoring buyers. It is important to note, that the average days on market has also increased this year, from 88 to 101.

Observations for Bucks County real estate market

My observation from all of these statistics is that the market, while still favoring buyers, has stabilized a bit in Bucks County. I posted an article the other day comparing distressed and non-distressed real estate sales. In the article, I pointed out that both locally and nationally, prices of non-distressed properties appear to have stabilized. In looking at Bucks County real estate, it is important to note that we have far fewer distressed property sales than in many other parts of the country. Houses can and will sell, if they are priced correctly, marketed properly, and if appropriate steps are taken to ensure that they show as well as possible.

Yardley Real Estate Information

As I have pointed out many times in the past, real estate markets are very local, often varying from neighborhood to neighborhood. Let’s look at what is happening in the Yardley and Lower Makefield Township real estate market.

Inventory

Inventory of homes Nov 2011 204
Inventory of homes Oct 2011 226
Inventory of homes Nov 2010 194

Although inventory is a bit less this month, compared with last month, it is higher by almost 10% from the same time last year. This is a bit of a contrast to the County as a whole.

Pricing

Average price of a home for sale Nov 2011 489,000
Average price of a home for sale Nov 2010 499,000

Asking price of a house for sale in Yardley/Lower Makefield Township is about 2% lower this year.

Units sold

261 homes sold through November this year
291 homes sold at the same time last year

It is also interesting to note that homes selling this year sold at an average of 92% of the list price, while they sold at an average of 93% of list price last year. Please note that when comparing the sold price to list price, we use the original asking price, where the price is reduced.

There is currently about a nine month inventory of homes for sale in Yardley. This is actually a bit better than for all of Bucks County.

Observations

There is no question that, looking at all of this information, it is still a buyers market. However, whether you are a buyer, seller, or just curious about real estate in Bucks County, or Yardley, houses are selling. Interest rates are at historic lows. Despite public perception, buyers are getting mortgages, and real estate is selling. If you are a potential seller, it is critical that you be realistic about pricing. It has never been more important to make sure that your house shows as well as it possibly can, and that it is marketed properly and thoroughly. I have a real sense that, especially for non-distressed homes, the market is a bit more stable right now, than it has been in quite a while.

Yardley housing market update

Marty Millner — Tue, 01 Nov 2011 20:33:41 +0000

Let’s look at the real estate market in Yardley, and see where we are, through September. This review also covers real estate in Lower Makefield Township. As I mention in virtually every real estate post for Yardley, or anywhere in Bucks County, real estate is a very local business. Please remember that, when you read the national press.

I am also including with this post an appreciation (or depreciation) chart for Lower Makefield Township housing, starting with the year 2000. If you follow the numbers, you will see that our area has lost about 15% of value since the height of the market. The real estate market in virtually all of Bucks County has held up considerably better than many other parts of the country.

Real Estate Update for Yardley/Lower Makefield Township.

Inventory:

Houses for sale at the end of September 2011 246
Houses for sale at the end of August 2011 254
Houses for sale at the end of September 2010 214

Inventory is up by about 15% from last year at the same time.

Pricing:

Average price of a home on the market September 2011 $475,000
Average price of a home on the market September 2010 $521,000

Based on average pricing, the asking price of a house on the market in Lower Makefield Township, is down by almost 9%. Could sellers be getting a bit more realistic?

Units Sold:

The number of homes sold, year to date in Lower Makefield Township, through September 2011 was 222
The number of homes sold, year to date in Lower Makefield Township, through September 2010 was 253

Buyers are getting approximately 8% off of the original asking price, on average. This is very slightly higher than last year at the same time. Most importantly, there is an 11-month supply of houses on the market in Yardley, and the average days on the market has increased, as well. All of these factors show that the market is still weighted in favor of buyers.

One statistic that was interesting to note, though, is the number of pending real estate transactions for all of Bucks County, was up by more than 18% at the end of September, compared with the same time last year. That is the best forward-looking trend line. A pending sale means that the seller has accepted an offer, but the house has not yet gone to closing. I would expect to see this reflected in the number of houses in Bucks County that go to closing over the next few months.

Again, please keep in mind that houses are bought and sold every day of the week. There are buyers looking, and if you are considering buying, there are absolutely great opportunities in the market right now. You can reach me at 215-519-1399 to get any additional information.

Housing appreciation schedule for Lower Makefield Township

Fall is a Great Time to Check Out the Delaware Canal!

Marty Millner — Tue, 25 Oct 2011 16:22:27 +0000

The towpath along the Delaware Canal is one of the Yardley area’s most interesting landmarks. The Delaware Canal is actually a 60-mile canal system, that was completed in 1832. It runs from Bristol to Easton.

According to the Friends of the Delaware Canal website, http://www.fodc.org, in the most productive years of canal use (just prior to the Civil War), over 3,000 mule drawn boats traveled up and down the canal route, carrying over a million tons of coal a year! If you aren’t familiar with this wonderful website, you should definitely check it out. It is full of interesting history, charts and photos about the Canal.

The towpath offers a wonderful opportunity for area residents and visitors to walk, run, bike, stroll, fish or just relax along the miles and miles of Canal. You can access the towpath at various points throughout Lower Makefield, Yardley, Upper Makefield and New Hope. It is fun to bike on the towpath from Yardley to New Hope.

With the leaves changing, it is a great season to observe spectacular colors along the Canal. If you aren’t familiar with the Canal and the towpath, I highly recommend checking out the Friends of the Delaware Canal website, and then taking advantage of this wonderful local resource.

Bucks County, Pa 2009 Real Estate market recap

Marty Millner — Tue, 19 Jan 2010 01:12:30 +0000

Now that 2009 has ended, we can beging to examine what happened to the real estate market, in the various communities that I serve, in Bucks County, Pa. For my first post, examining market trends, entering 2010, I thought it could be helpful, to take a look at a chart that shows per year price appreciation (or depreciation) in markets that I serve, as well as throughout the county.

The table below, tracks very specific year to year appreciation, along with units sold, in various municipalities in Bucks County. It is interesting to see, that the markets all are different. For example, looking at Lower Makefield Township, prices declined by 6.7% in 2009, while in Newtown Township, prices dropped by 3.7% in 2009.

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For all of Bucks County, prices dropped by 6.8% in 2009.

These statistics are based on houses that sold, and they include all homes other than condominiums.

In future posts, I will be taking an in depth look, at market statistics, in the Yardley, Newtown, Upper Makefield, Buckingham, and Solebury areas.

If you have any questions, or would like any clarification of this information, please contact me.

Real estate statistics in Yardley, Newtown, Upper Makefield Township, Lower Makefield Township & Bucks County

Marty Millner — Mon, 11 Jan 2010 14:20:38 +0000

I have not done this in a number of posts, but I wanted to take a very detailed look at market statistics, through the end of November, in some of the markets that I serve.
In virtually all of the markets in which I work in Bucks County, the pace of 2009 year to date units has continued to improve. For example, in all of Bucks County, the number of single family homes this November, was 79% higher than November of 2008.

Some specific examples of that are pretty impressive. Sales in Lower Makefield Township, were 257% this November than a year ago; Newtown was up 171%; Upper Makefield was up 100%; Solebury was up 200%; Buckingham up by 111%; Northampton up 61%; Middletown up 65%. I don’t think that it was a coincidence, that the original, first time home buyer tax credit, expired on November 30th, and we saw such an increase in the number of transactions this November. Clearly the tax credit had an effect.

In virtually all of our markets, the year to date units closed, has improved over the past 6 or 7 months. Please see the accompanying graphs, which plot the general improvement.

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Inventory of homes for sale as of the end of November 2009, is down sequentially from October 2009, in virtually every market in Bucks County. Compared with November of 2008, inventory unit levels are down in all of Bucks County, by 17%. Newtown is down 6%, Upper Makefield down 18%, Northampton is flat, while inventory in Lower Makefield Township, is actually 5% higher at the end of November 2009, as compared with November 2008. In terms of months of inventory, most markets are still considered, “buyers markets”. There are a few exceptions. In Falls Township, there is a 4.7 month inventory supply, and in Newtown, 5.7 months. Basically, if inventory is between 4 to 6 months, we consider that a balanced market. In most of our markets, there is a supply of inventory of 9 months, or more.

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In most of our Bucks County markets, the average asking price of homes, is still trending lower. Lower Makefield Township is 11% lower for the year; Newtown is 4% lower; Upper Makefield is 8% lower and Solebury is 7% lower than a year ago.

How about discounts from the asking price? That is a question virtually every seller and buyer asks me. The answer is, that overall, buyers are now achieving approximately 8 to 9% discounts from the asking price. This is measured from the opening asking price of the most current listing contract.

So what do all of these stats mean? To me, it means that through November of 2009, there has been more real estate activity, in terms of units. I think that the first time home buyer tax credit, clearly encouraged some people to buy, and some of those sellers, became buyers, as well. Beccause of the economy, I believe we are still in a buyers market, but I do see signs that we may have reached the bottom. Inventory is generally lower, and I know that with buyers I am working with, we don’t find as many choices, as we saw several months ago. That may change, as we move into the year, as I believe that people will be getting homes on the market earlier this year, to take advantage of the new tax credit, which requires that a contract be in place by April 30th, and closing occur by June 30th.

We track these statistics every month, so if you would like more detailed information, please contact me.