Home Prices Are Up Again in Metro Phoenix

Source:  ArizonaCentral.com
Date:  11/5/13
Arizona Republic Article By:   Catherine Reagor 
Link to Article:  Home Prices are up again in metro Phoenix

Home prices climbed in metro Phoenix during September, and so did the number of houses on the market. The combination worked to curb sales.

The median sales price reached $199,000 last month, up from $192,000 in August, according to Tuesday’s report from the W.P. Carey School of Business at Arizona State University. Price gains are expected to slow in the rest of 2013. Traditionally, fewer home sales are made in the last months of the year.

“The main change (in the housing market) is a steep fall in demand, which we can see in the 12 percent drop in single-family-home sales just between August and September,” said Mike Orr, director of the Center for Real Estate Theory and Practice at the W.P. Carey School.

“Going forward, we anticipate a much slower rate of price appreciation than the furious pace we have witnessed over the last two years.”

Orr said the government shutdown is at least partly to blame for September’s slower sales. Last month, 7,143 homes sold Valley-wide.

The region’s shortage of homes for sale appears to be over for now. Rising prices are enticing more homeowners to try to sell. The supply of houses for sale in metro Phoenix climbed 32percent during the past year.

Investor interest continues to wane. About 23percent of all sales were investor-driven in September, nearly half as many as in the same month a year ago.

“If the current trend continues, supply will exceed demand by the end of the year,” Orr said.

“We now expect a balanced market to prevail during November. This is great news for buyers since they will experience less competition and be in a strong position to negotiate.”