Market update

Trends in Housing, a joint publication of MRIS and Delta Associates, provides an in-depth look at the statistics and issues that shape the Mid-Atlantic housing market. Following are highlights of market activity at Year-End 2009:
Prices are showing signs of a moderate recovery: 4th quarter prices in the metro are up from the same quarter in 2008, with the Outer jurisdictions outperforming the Core and Inner jurisdictions. Prices will likely gain traction in 2010, as buyer and seller expectations continue to move closer to a balance, facilitating an increase in transaction volume. This is the first time prices have risen on a trailing 12-month basis since the 4th quarter of 2007.
Days on market continue to decline compared to both last quarter and a year ago. Properties in the Outer jurisdictions (Loudoun, Prince William and Frederick Counties) have experienced the sharpest decline, but across the region, time on market is at or below the region’s long-term average.
The ratio of inventory to sales continues to decline in most jurisdictions from one year ago. The metro-wide ratio of 5.3 months’ worth of listings is below the normal, healthy standard of 6 months, signaling that demand is beginning to outpace supply.
The gap between buyer and seller demands is closing with the average sales price in the 4th quarter of 2009 at 93.7% of list price, the highest share in more than two years.
Said Jonathan Hill, Vice President of Business Development for MRIS, “We are pleased to offer to the public this latest issue of Trends in Housing, a joint publication of MRIS and Delta Associates. It is particularly noteworthy that at year-end 2009, the housing market in the Washington area was beginning to gain some meaningful traction, with prices higher than one year ago, and days on market declining. We look forward to regional job growth in 2010, which should further bolster the demand for housing.”
Metropolitan Regional Information Systems, Inc., (MRIS) is a leading real estate information technology company and the largest multiple listing service in the nation. MRIS’ market is comprised of several states in the Mid-Atlantic region, including Maryland, Virginia, Washington DC and parts of Pennsylvania, Delaware and West Virginia. Our core MLS services for real estate professionals offer a comprehensive collection of services and products that enable each step of the real estate transaction to occur. In the past year alone, MRIS services facilitated approximately $36 billion dollars in real estate sales throughout our region.
Delta Associates, the research affiliate of Transwestern, is a firm of experienced professionals offering consulting and data services to the real estate industry for over 25 years. The firm’s practice is organized in four related areas: (1) consulting, research and advisory services; (2) valuation services; (3) distressed asset recovery services; and (4) subscription data for select metro regions.