Lancaster PA Real Estate Blog

Here's the Lancaster Pa real estate homesales report for April 2008:

Interesting numbers!  Homes sold continued the 2008 trend of running at 25% off from last year, while new listings continued the trend of following 2007's numbers.  As I've explained each month, I believe this discrepancy is due to the lack of "easy mortgages" for the first-time, credit-challenged and no-doc homebuyer market.   Home sales have been climbing steadily all this year as the weather warms.  As I always say, "a well-priced, well-marketed home in a good location will always sell quick".  Those homes certainly ARE selling quick this month, as several of my buyer clients can attest to...

Pending listings are off slightly from last year (but up 20% from last month - encouraging!). One big stat is the huge increase in the number of expiring listings...69% up from 2007!  Wow.  That's mostly the "well-marketed" part not happening...(more on that in an upcoming article).

Active listings were up 20% from 2007 - no surprise given fewer homebuyers out there this year. 

Can you say "competition for buyers"?  That is 2008 in a nutshell.

Yes, the "gap" continues to widen.  In April it blossomed to $46,501 - one of the biggest numbers in a year.   I would say this is accounted for by the glut of higher-end homes, including new construction listings.  The good news is that the sales price is once again strongly on the rise after a falloff at the end of 2007.  You can see from the green line that sales prices are coming up in 2008.  Will we get to $208,000 this year?  Stay tuned...with the changes to FHA financing that may happen.

Just one more chart to reinforce the trends in new listings and sold homes for Lancaster County, PA.  Homes for sale, new listings are largely mirroring last year's trend (note the similarity between Feb-Apr for both years).  Again, just like the sales price curve from the last chart, total sold homes is on the rise in 2008.  

So, is the market terrible?  No way!  Are there some local challenges?  Yes, but if you are looking to sell or buy I believe this will be a good year to do so.  No Hype, just the facts!

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For Lancaster PA homes for sale click here. Jeff Geoghan is a top real estate expert in Lancaster County, PA, and an involved community member. Jeff's work has been featured in the Lancaster Newspapers, WGAL Channel 8, PA Business Journal and Wall Street Journal. Jeff's blog on Lancaster County and its homes is nationally-featured. Contact Jeff for more help with your Lancaster PA Real Estate needs. Jeff is also a photographer - view some of his portfolio. Comments are welcome!