Regional home sales fell last month
Home sales in July in Buffalo Niagara declined 2.2 percent from a year ago, while the region’s median and average sale prices each increased.
The Buffalo Niagara Association of Realtors reported 1,159 homes sold during the month, compared to 1,185 a year earlier.
The median sale price was $115,000, up 3.6 percent from a year ago. Median indicates half the homes sold for more than that amount and half sold for less.
The average sale price was $133,390, up 1.7 percent from July 2007. The average price is more susceptible to being influenced by sales of exceptionally low-or high-priced homes.
Through July, home sales in the region were down 6 percent from the same seven-month period in 2007. On a monthly basis, June is the only month in which home sales this year have exceeded last year’s.
James Knight, president of BNAR, said despite the year-over-year drop in homes sold, the region is not experiencing dramatic changes in its sales. “I think the market is stable,” he said.
“We’re not going gangbusters, but Buffalo Niagara has never been a gangbusters market.”
July historically has been one of the best months of the year for home sales figures in the region. In 2008, the July figure was the best monthly total so far.
Phil Aquila, president of the region’s Multiple Listing Service, noted that the average price went up despite a decrease in homes sold. He attributed that to a slowdown in sales at the lower end of the market, including a drop in the number of homes being sold out of foreclosure. By extension, he said, that indicates fewer homes going into foreclosure, an overall healthy sign for the market.
The number of homes on the market in July increased 4.4 percent from a year ago, to 6,607, the first time in nearly eight years that the region’s inventory exceeded 6,000.
Knight said he felt the percentage increase in inventory was still manageable compared to double-digit increases in homes on the market recorded in some parts of the country.
Second-quarter data from the National Association of Realtors identified Buffalo Niagara’s median sale price as among the lowest in the country, although the price rose from a year ago.
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