Home Buyers Maintain Steady Pressure on Inventory

Momentum appears to be building for a strong third quarter

On July 31, 4,620 residential properties were active and available for sale throughout the four-county Greater Sacramento region, marking a 12 percent decrease in standing inventory compared to last year at this time.

“The market appears on path for a second half surge,” says Pat Shea, president of Lyon Real Estate. “Buyers remain hyperactive in our market, and fortunately, excellent home values continue to surface.”

During July, 2,586 properties closed escrow. This reflected a 3 percent lift over June sales and nearly matched those recorded in July of 2018. The closed units from May, June and July combined were less than 6 percent shy of last year at this time.  This market information is presented by Lyon Real Estate based upon data provided by Trendgraphix Inc., a Sacramento-based reporting company.

The rate of new open escrows or pending sales support expectations that closed sales will remain solid in the coming months. New escrows opened in July were 12 percent higher than in June and stood 18 percent higher than July of 2018. The average closed sales price rested at $485,000 for the month of July and has remained there for the past three months. This reflects an approximate 5 percent increase year over year and signals price stability.

Sellers that closed escrow in the second quarter averaged 98 percent of their original list price and were on the market an average of 31 days before accepting a contract. When combining all price points across the entire region, there remains less than two months’ supply of inventory based upon the current rate of sales. This low level has remained consistent since March.

“Expect more homes to come on the market over the next few months but for sales to remain steady,” says Shea. “All of the news surrounding Northern California and our local economy is encouraging with high employment, upward pressure on wages and remarkably low mortgage interest rates. Our market appears to have hit a new normal with lower levels of inventory a constant for such an extended period and likely for the foreseeable future. Thousands of homeowners have purchased or refinanced at low mortgage rates and are expected to remain in place for longer time frames. However, there still remains plenty of opportunity for prospective buyers and sellers alike.”

About TrendGraphix, Inc.

TrendGraphix, Inc. is a real estate reporting company based in Sacramento that uses local Multiple Listing Service (MLS) data to provide highly visual market statistical graphs to real estate brokers, agents, and MLS/Realtor associations across the country. TrendGraphix’s programs are currently used by tens of thousands of agents in more than 250 brokerages in 48 states. For more information about TrendGraphix, visit www.trendgraphix.com.