Let’s take a look at the real estate market. Currently there are 21 sales pending in the market overall, leaving 39 listings still for sale. The resulting pending ratio is 35.0% (21 divided by 60). So you might be asking yourself, that’s great… but what exactly does it mean? I’m glad you asked!
The pending ratio indicates the supply & demand of the market. Specifically, a high ratio means that listings are in demand and quickly going to contract. Alternatively, a low ratio means there are not enough qualified buyers for the existing supply.
Taking a closer look, we notice that the $600K – $800K price range has a relatively large number of contracts pending sale.
We also notice that the $600K – $800K price range has a relatively large inventory of properties for sale at 8 listings. The average list price (or asking price) for all properties in this market is $1,328,221.
A total of 66 contracts have closed in the last 6 months with an average sold price of $895,960. Breaking it down, we notice that the $600K – $800K price range contains the highest number of sold listings.
Alternatively, a total of 6 listings have failed to sell in that same period of time. Listings may fail to sell for many reasons such as being priced too high, having been inadequately marketed, the property was in poor condition, or perhaps the owner had second thoughts about selling at this particular time. The $1.2M – $1.4M price range has the highest number of off-market listings at 2 properties.
You might be wondering why average days on market (DOM) is important. This is a useful measurement because it can help us to determine whether we are in a buyer’s market (indicated by high DOM), or a seller’s market (indicated by low DOM). Active listings
(properties for sale) have been on the market for an average of 52 days.
Analysis of sold properties for the last six months reveals an average sold price of $895,960 and 38 days on market. Notice that properties in the $400K – $600K price range have sold quickest over the last six months.
The recent history of sales can be seen in the two charts below. The average sold price for the last 30 days was $894,593 with an average DOM of 40 days.
Since the recent DOM is greater than the average DOM for the last 6 months, it is a negative indicator for demand. It is always important to realize that real estate markets can fluctuate due to many factors, including shifting interest rates, the economy, or seasonal changes.
Ratios are simple ways to express the difference between two values such as list price and sold price. In our case, we typically use the list-to-sale ratio to determine the percentage of the final list price that the buyer ultimately paid. It is a very common method to help buyers decide how much to offer on a property.
Analysis of the absorption rate indicates an inventory of 3.5 months based on the last 6 months of sales.
This estimate is often used to determine how long it would take to sell off the current inventory of properties if all conditions remained the same. It is significant to mention that this estimate does not take into consideration any additional properties that will come onto the market in the future.
Your Expert Bethesda, MD REALTORS®
For more information on recent activity on the Bethesda housing market and how it affects you as either a home seller or home buyer, please feel free to contact us at the Estridge Group.
While you’re at it, make sure to browse some of our helpful online resources!
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Until next time,
Melinda
