Maricopa Homes for Sale – Market Report 31OCT
It’s been awhile since I posted this report but with our seasonal buyers on the way I thought it was time to get back on track. I will be updating this report on a weekly basis so check back for the latest information.
ACTIVE LISTINGS: 230, down from 257 The number of subdivision homes in Maricopa AZ has declined to the lowest level in the past few years. As a reference point, there were 961 homes for sale at the same time last year! Although we saw a brief increase a couple of weeks ago, the inventory quickly returned to its low point. I attended a 4 day conference last week and heard from many of the asset managers who are in charge of liquidating foreclosures. They all agreed that they are not receiving as many from the lenders. The “shadow inventory” is there in the form of many homes that have been vacant for as long as a year but have not yet been listed. There are many reasons for this but the biggest one appears to be that the lenders are still a little wary of impending lawsuits nationwide. If, in fact, they do not begin to release this inventory in the next few months (which is very unlikely especially since there will again be a Holiday moratorium), the influx of seasonal buyers will quickly deplete the few homes that are available. This would indicate multiple offers and bidding wars in the hear future which, of course, will drive values up. I’ll be watching this VERY closely!
SHORT SALES: 37, down from 60 Due to the lack of inventory, more buyers are targeting short sales. The lenders are beginning to streamline their procedures and, if negotiated by an expert agent, a wait time of 60 days is becoming pretty common. This is a lot better than the 3-6 months experienced by many in the past. Due to the higher demand, listing agents are now less likely to accept “lowball” offers just to get a banl approved price as they are usually able to receive a “market price” offer relatively quickly. If you are not in a big hurry, the best deals will still be found here but you will have to act quickly on the more desirable homes.
LENDER OWNED: 34, UP FROM 31 The number of lender owned homes (foreclosures or REOs) has remained relatively stable over the past month or so. Since this has been during a “buyer lull” we have experienced over the past 30 days, I expect this number to begin to drop quickly as seasonal buying activity picks up. Unless the lenders begin a large release of their shadow inventory, I expect that there will be very few foreclosures available after the first of the year.
HUD HOMES: 5, DOWN FROM 13 These are foreclosures from government backed loans (FHA and VA). Although there has been a steady supply of them, they are going under contract as soon as they hit the market. The prices on these homes tend to be 10% or more under market value. The good news is that the offers are done electronically and they do not review them until the 11th day on market. That means that most everyone has a chance to place a bid on them. The bad news (for seaonal buyers) is that they are restrcited to owner occupants for the first 30 days and they are all gone well before then.
AWC (SHORT SALES WITH OFFERS ON THEM): 225, UP FROM 213 As expected from the inventory numbers, more offers are being placed on short sales. I would expect this number to continue to increase but, at some point, there will be a ceiling unless more short sales enter the marketplace. I would expect the number of owners using the short sale option to remain strong as there are still over 300 homeowners that are 30,60,90 days late on their mortgage payments. Many of them, however, may wait until after the Holidays to list.
PENDING SALES: 246, DOWN FROM 251 The number of homes under contract has been slowly declining over the past 30 days. Because this has occured during our “end of summer buying lull” I do not expect to see a decline much longer. Buyers are starting to return to the market (driven by seasonal buyers) so an increase in the number of accepted offers is expected.
CLOSED: 42, down from 73: Although this number is down from last week, it is close to the normal range as last week was exceptional high.
SUMMARY: It would appear that we are headed towards a Perfect Storm in the Maricopa Arizona homes for sale market. The combination of reduced inventory and a heavy influx of buyers after the first of the year will make it much more difficult to find homes at the prices of the past year, or even find them at all! If you are planning on purchasing in the next few months, I recommend that you begin your search NOW!
I cannot stress the importance of using an agent that is very familiar with the Maricopa market and one that follows it very closely. Most realtors will refer to the HOT SHEET which posts all new listings, price changes, back on the market homes from the past 24 hours. Patti and I scan this list almost hourly so we can be the first to show the home and submit an offer. We also keep in touch with numerous agents that acquire and “flip” investment properties so we often know of homes for sale before they hit the market. In addition, we are the top lister of short sales so we usually have a steady supply of them AND have the ability to get them closed in a reasonable amount of time in most cases.
To sum it up, this market is going to be very volatile over the next few months. If you are interested in purchasing (or selling) a home in Maricopa AZ, be sure to use a local agent.
View the full report Monthly home data
