How’s the Real Estate Market in Harford County?

As I provide an overview of the real estate market for Harford County over 2012, I am first going to refrain from using the cliché that has become so ubiquitous among Realtors®: “Now is the time to buy!” I will, however, point out what has happened in the market, and where I believe we are going.

The number of homes sold actually dropped in 2012 when compared to 2011. Last year, 2,301 homes changed title in the county-down from the 2,356 that sold in 2011. The total sales volume neared $588 million, which is less than a percentage point less than the nearly $592 million that transferred a year prior. The average sale price did increase slightly, from $251,253 in 2011 to $255,440 in 2012. It also took an average of 111 days on market to sell a home in Harford County during 2012, which is less time than it took in 2011.

Despite a slightly lower number of homes sold, we can glean more from the data by looking at the absorption rate, which is a measure of how many months of existing (resale) homes inventory are currently on the market. At the end of December of 2012, there were 1,041 actively listed properties in Harford County, down almost 15% from the 1,224 that were on the market a year before. 173 homes transferred in December of 2012-4 more than what sold in 2011.

From this, we know that there are currently 6 months of inventory in Harford County, compared to the 7.25 months of inventory that were on the market one year ago. We’ve already discussed the evidence that home prices have risen, and the fact that there are fewer homes on the market to choose from will cause prices to increase even more. Interest rates are still at record lows, and the unemployment rate in Maryland is down to 6.4% from 8% just 2 years ago.

For more information about the market specific to your area of interest, feel free to contact me by visiting my website at www.scottmillerrealestate.com .