Here's the latest figures for active homes, as of Saturday July 22. Keep in mind this only includes single-family homes listed in ARMLS:

I'll add some sales data soon and get back to the absorption rate idea as well.

Talk to you soon!

For more information about the Phoenix Arizona Real Estate market, visit my comprehensive website at http://www.DaltonsAzHomes.com!

For someone with a background in journalism, I thought writing at least one entry a day in a web log would be fairly easy. Then the rest of my career got in the way, which was great in some ways but not so good for the consistency of the blog.

Luckily, or not, not much has changed in the past couple of weeks that I've been neglecting the journal. Phoenix Arizona remains a buyers' market, with more and more homes joining the growing inventory list every day. Sales are taking place, just not at the pace sellers want to see and at not a high enough rate to substantially reduce the number of homes on the market.

Much has been made of the investors leaving the Valley and what that will mean for our real estate market, the big fear being that our property values drop akin to what took place in Las Vegas. But that hasn't been the case to date.

In fact, despite the constant Chicken Little drumbeat of the Arizona Republic that the real estate market is crumbling, buyers remain in force in Phoenix. I'm working with several right now, which is one of the reasons my online journal hasn't gotten very far. The biggest difference is these are real home buyers, not an investor looking to purchase and flip a half-dozen properties. And with the number of homes on the market, they can afford to be a little more selective in the home they ultimately buy.

No, the Phoenix real estate market hasn't fallen apart by any stretch of the imagination. It's merely returned to normal, which isn't so bad after all.

For more information about the Phoenix Arizona Real Estate market, visit me at www.DaltonsAzHomes.com!

Interesting article in Arizona Republic discussing the affordability of the Phoenix real estate market. Though from what I've seen, the buyers are still there but there are far more properties for them to review.

Also brings to light the unrepresented sellers, who are going to be targeted increasingly by investors and other buyers looking to purchase a home at bargain prices.

http://www.azcentral.com/business/articles/0204affordable04.html

For more information about the Phoenix Arizona Real Estate market, visit me at www.DaltonsAzHomes.com!

Existing-Home Sales Down in December But 2005 Sets a Record

WASHINGTON (January 25, 2006) – Existing-home sales declined in December but easily set an annual record, according to the National Association of Realtors^®.

Total existing-home sales – including single-family, townhomes, condominiums and co-ops – were down 5.7 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate1 of 6.60 million units in December from an upwardly revised pace of 7.00 million in November. Sales were 3.1 percent lower than a 6.81 million-unit level in December 2004.

There were 7,072,000 existing-home sales in all of 2005, up 4.2 percent from 6,784,000 in 2004. This is the fifth consecutive annual record; NAR began tracking the sales series in 1968.

David Lereah, NARs chief economist, expected the monthly sales decline. This is part of the market adjustment weve been discussing, with a soft landing in sight for the housing sector, he said. The level of home sales activity is now at a sustainable level, and is likely to pick up a bit in the months ahead. Overall fundamentals remain solid, driven by population and employment growth as well as favorable affordability conditions in most of the country, so we expect the housing market to remain historically high but lower than last years record.

According to Freddie Mac, the national average commitment rate for a 30-year, conventional, fixed-rate mortgage was 6.27 percent in December, down from 6.33 percent in November; the rate was 5.75 percent in December 2004. Last week, Freddie Mac reported the 30-year fixed rate was down to 6.10 percent.

Mortgage interest rates have been trending down from a peak in November, and are lower than expected – if lower interest rates are sustained, the housing market could see some unexpected lift, Lereah said.

The national median existing-home price2 for all housing types was $211,000 in December, up 10.5 percent from December 2004 when the median was $191,000. The median is a typical market price where half of the homes sold for more and half sold for less.

For all of 2005, the median price was $208,700, up 12.7 percent from a median of $185,200 in 2004.
NAR President Thomas M. Stevens from Vienna, Va., said it may take a while for home price growth to cool. Were coming off of five years of tight supply, and many sellers are accustomed to expecting very strong price gains and exceptional returns on their investment, said Stevens, senior vice president of NRT Inc. With the supply of homes improving and buyers having more choices, the rate of price growth should come down to more normal levels this year.

Article courtesy of Realtor.Org.

For more information about the Phoenix Arizona Real Estate market, visit me at www.DaltonsAzHomes.com!

Reading the local newspaper truly is an amazing experience. On Saturday, the real estate bubble has burst and prices are about to plummet. Two days later, another analyst predicts yet another strong performance in 2006, albeit one with milder prices.

Of course, given the hyperappreciation of a year ago, saying the market will be milder is like saying the high temperature in Phoenix in July will only reach 102, not 112.

In any event, read on for information about the latest prediction for Phoenix real estate 2006:

http://www.azcentral.com/business/articles/0124housingforecast24.html

For more information about the Phoenix Arizona Real Estate market, visit me at www.DaltonsAzHomes.com!