I have some good news to report based on August pended (accepted purchase agreements) results.  August pended transactions increased for the fourth consecutive month.  As I have mentioned a couple of times over the past few months, the now expired tax credit makes month to month comparisons difficult.  The tax credit clearly stimulated, then depressed the housing market.  As expected May pended transactions dropped dramatically after the spectacular March and April numbers.  This coincided with the expiration of the tax credit on April 30^th. 

We have gone from 269 pended transactions in May to 387 pended transactions in August.  This represents a 44% increase.  Although that is good news, it is important to keep in mind that the 44% increase is from a low starting point.  What is good however is that the 387 pended transactions is slightly higher that the preceding twelve month average of closed transactions.  The average sales price in this May-August period has been virtually unchanged.  Both of these pieces of information suggest that our market has stabilized, both in terms of price and units sold.

I do not anticipate continued growth at these levels over the next few months.  Until the unemployment rate drops and our economy begins growing at a faster rate there will not be additional significant improvement in the housing market. 

We did add another enhancement to FCTuckerEmge.com last month.  In the detail section of every listing there is a “Community Info” section.  In this area you can click on “What’s nearby”, “Nearby Schools”, “Nearby Sold Listings” or “Community Stats” to get detailed location specific information about every listed home.  If you are not at your computer you can always get property information on your smart phone at Tuckermobile.com

Hopefully you had a chance to enjoy the fabulous weather over the Labor Day Weekend.  I’ll be back in touch next month with more current local housing information.