It’s here again: time to produce my monthly Phoenix area real estate news video for Realty Times. Read on for a snapshot of what went on in the Phoenix area in May. 

Did you miss my last Realty Times news video? You can check it out here: http://realtytimes.com/REUv/BobStahl

RT: What specifically happened last month/quarter in this market?

MyPhoenixMLS.com: After dropping 4.5 percent in April compared to March, the median price of single family resales in Greater Phoenix increased nearly 6.5 percent in May to $223,500. The number of homes sold also increased, for the fourth straight month, up almost 3 percent.

An increasingly large percentage of those homes sold are have been foreclosed by lenders. The number of foreclosures sold in May was 1,475 – representing more than a quarter of the 5,740 homes sold.

RT: In your opinion, or the opinion of experts you know, will the market conditions continue or will they change?

MyPhoenixMLS.com: An increasingly weaker economy – fueled by losses in the stock market, job layoffs, and record-high gas and food prices – will increase the stress on the housing market. As homeowners battle rising costs in other areas, their ability to save their homes from foreclosure – especially if their mortgages reset to higher rates – will be constrained.

MyPhoenixMLS.com: Median prices of single-family homes increased in a number of Valley cities, including Chandler where prices were up over 5.5 percent; North Scottsdale, where they rose more than 2 percent; and Phoenix, where prices rose 1.12 percent.

The number of homes sold increased significantly throughout the Valley as well; in Tempe, 45 percent more homes were sold in May than April; in Scottsdale the number was up 26 percent; in Chandler the number increased 7.35 percent; and in Gilbert it rose more than 4 percent.

RT: Is there anything the world needs to know about your area pertaining to Real Estate Market Conditions?

MyPhoenixMLS.com: Foreclosed homes represent attractive purchase options for many first-time homebuyers and investors, and that fact has tempered the negative effects of the foreclosure crisis to some degree.