(INDIANAPOLIS, IN) – There were 60 less homes sold statewide in July than during the same month of last year. This is according to the Indiana Real Estate Markets Report today released by the state's REALTORS®.

However, the median price of the 7,803 homes sold last month ($132,000) is 1.5 percent higher than the median price of homes sold in July 2013. The average price of those same homes ($159,032) is also 1.5 percent higher. And, the number of pending home sales in July is 4.8 percent higher, possibly pointing to a stronger-than-expected late summer and early fall.

"After double-digit increases in closed sales for all of last year, it would be easy to get discouraged by recent year-over-year comparisons," said Kevin Eastridge, 2014 President of the Indiana Association of REALTORS® and Owner/Managing Broker of the Evansville-based F.C. Tucker Emge REALTORS®. "When you look farther back, you see that housing activity statewide is actually on par with 2007, proving that local markets truly have stabilized."

Year-to-date comparisons from the report show -

• The number of closed home sales decreased 5.4 percent to 42,466
• The median sale price of those homes ($125,000) is 2.5 percent higher
• The average sale price ($150,842) is 3.9 percent higher
• The percent of original list price received increased 1.5 percent to 93.3 percent
• The number of pending home sales decreased 2.7 percent to 44,561
• The number of new listings decreased 3.8 percent to 73,036

"Potential sellers should be motivated by the pricing figures in today's report and should also understand conditions could soon change with newly constructed homes presenting a competitive hurdle and economists predicting interest rates will rise in 2015," continued Eastridge. "At the end of the day, housing is always dependent on job creation, wage growth, and credit availability. Provided the economy and the lending environment continue on their current paths, IAR members expect for this report to be about the same for the next few months."

IAR represents approximately 15,000 REALTORS® who are involved in virtually all aspects related to the sale, purchase, exchange or lease of real property in Indiana. The term REALTOR® is a registered mark that identifies a real estate professional who is a member of America's largest trade association, the National Association of REALTORS®, and subscribes to its strict Code of Ethics.

Market Watch August 2014

The biggest news story in national real estate this past month has been the announcement of the merger between Zillow and Trulia.  Many consumers are familiar with both firms, but in case you are not, let me tell you a little about these companies.  Both companies are real estate advertising portals.  Many potential buyers and sellers visit these sites, under the impression that they are the best sites to visit to find a home to buy.  Zillow is ranked first and Trulia second in real estate internet traffic followed by Realtor.com in third place. 

I am certainly not privy to either Zillow or Trulia’s plans but both have publicly stated that they have no intention of actually selling or listing homes.  Their goal is to generate enough traffic to sell advertising and leads, primarily to Realtors. If these companies don’t actually sell real estate one might wonder why they get so much traffic.  Zillow is famous, at least in part, for it’s “Zestimates”.  In theory, Zestimates are estimated values for specific homes.  Theoretically anyone can go online, enter an address and get the value of that home.  Unfortunately, even by Zillow’s own admission, many of their Zestimates are significantly inaccurate.  Both Zillow and Trulia obtain information displayed on their sites from many different sources, some accurate, others not so much.  Sometimes information is updated promptly and accurately and other times it is significantly out of date and wildly inaccurate. 

I am not trying to tell anyone not to visit a particular site.  I am, however, very comfortable giving sound, accurate advice on local real estate websites.  If you are looking for homes listed for sale in this part of the world there is no site that is more accurate or up to date than FCTuckerEmge.com

Our site is designed to make shopping for homes as easy as possible without gimmicks or outdated, inaccurate information.  If you want to know the value of your home, ask me.  A website that has never seen your home, sold a home or visited your neighborhood will not be as accurate as a trained professional. Please feel free to call or email me if you are interested to receive the market analysis of your home. You can reach me on my cell phone 812-499-9234 or email at Rolando@RolandoTrentini.com

Try to stay cool and enjoy the remainder of your summer.