For the first time in a couple of years we have been
enjoying a wonderful spring season on the island. Although a little dry, the spring weather
brought colorful blooms that have been extraordinary.
There were 31 sales in April 2012 compared to 24 sales last
month. Seven of these reported 31 sales
were foreclosure related (about 23%), down from 30% last month. All indicators tell us we have about 12 -24
more months of a real estate market partially driven by distressed sellers.
The average sales price in April was $896,290 (up from
$578,887 in March) shows there were a few more high end sales in April but the
median price was $493,000 (down slightly from $530,000 in March). The average days on market are up about 10%
to 225 days.
There are currently 49 properties “under contract” (up 14%
from last month) that indicate an increase in closings over the next 1-2 months.
As stated in last month’s update, consumer confidence in the
economy is increasing and that is evidenced by an increase in the number of
showings. Banks are starting to “loosen”
the purse strings and mortgage requirements are not as stringent as in the
recent past. With interest rates still
hovering around 4% or less, a strong summer selling season is hopeful.