My blog has been super neglected! It is a good thing though, it means I have been BUSY! I now have a moment to take a breather and therefore I bring you The Good, The Bad & The Ugly - May's RE Stats.
Santa Barbara Real Estate for January through May ’10 including Carpinteria, Summerland, Montecito, Hope Ranch and Goleta.
For May of 2010 for Santa Barbara, Montecito, Hope Ranch, Carpinteria/Summerland and Goleta the Home Estate/PUD there were 83 sales dropping from 89 in April. The April sales surge looked like it was going to keep going into May because of the substantial number of escrows that opened during April but sales fell back somewhat.
With the declining numbers of sales, the median sales price rose however from $865,000 in April to about $905,000 in May. This rise in the median sales prices was caused by sales below $1 million falling from about 50 in April to right around 45 in May. Accompanying that drop in sales below $1 million was a drop in the over $2 million sales falling from 18 in April to 10 in May. But, sales in the $1 to $2 million range rose from 19 to 28 for the month bringing up the overall median sales price.
There were about 85 Homes that went into escrow for May which dropped from approximately 120 opened escrows in April. But, the median list price on those escrows remained steady at around $880,000. The inventory grew about 10% for the month up to around 625 but the median list price on those properties for sale remained stable at about $1.7 million. The median list price on the more than 160 new listings that appeared during May did drop however down to roughly $1.1 million.
Looking at the Districts, starting out in Carpinteria/Summerland for Home Estate/PUDs, sales are up from 18 in ’09 to 29 in ’10 and the median sales price has gone up from $632,000 last year to about $850,000 this year. But, when you look at the pending listings they have dropped from 26 in ’09 to 24 in ’10 with the median list price for those escrows coming in this year at $679,000 compared to about $700,000 last year.
In Montecito sales are up from 44 in ’09 to 51 in ’10 with the median sales price rising slightly from $2.35 million to about $2.45 million this year. But, the escrows are way up this year from 45 in ’09 with a median list price of about $2.6 million to 58 in ’10 with a median list price of $2.5 million.
On the East Side of Santa Barbara sales are up from 70 last year to 98 this year with the median sales price going up from $910,000 last year to $951,000 this year. The pended listings are also up from 74 to 99 with a similar rise in the median list price for those opened escrows. For the West Side sales are also up from 58 to 70 with the median sales price rising from $775,000 last year to $810,000 this year.
In Hope Ranch sales are up from 5 in ’09 to 10 in ’10 with the median sales price going up from $2.55 million last year to $3.23 million this year. The average sales price is also up from $2.55 million last year to $3.83 million this year soaring by almost $1 million.
In Goleta South sales are basically where they were last year going from 33 in ’09 and 37 in ’10 but the median sales price has declined from $690,000 last year to $630,000 this year. In Goleta North, sales are up from 51 last year to 68 this year with the median sales price coming up only slightly from $715,000 in ’09 to $722,500 in ’10.
With the first time buyer credit coming to an end in April the sales below $1 million took a hit but sales above $2 million also fell off. With the rise in the numbers of sales from $1 to $2 million the Price Range Statistic ratios more closely resemble what we’ve been used to seeing in Santa Barbara. But, if we are to continue moving forward the sub $1 million sales will have to remain robust also. Of the almost 625 current Home listings only about 250 of those are below $1 million so that segment of the inventory needs to grow in order for the market to continue expanding.
For condos in Santa Barbara for the month of May ’10 sales went up to 35 from 32 in April and 27 in March and the median sales price rose to $495,000 for the month up from $456,000 in April and $415,000 in March. But, what didn’t go up was the numbers of escrows which rose from 35 in March to 40 in April and rose to 42 in May. The median list price on those escrows remained stable however at around $475,000 for May but up from March when that number was about $440,000.
The inventory also did not go up however remaining at around 150 condos for sale from Carpinteria to Goleta with the median list price on those properties continuing to hover around $625,000. There were only 34 new listings that came on the market during May to replace the 35 sold listings but they came on the market at a good number with a $499,000 median list price.
Of the 35 properties that sold, 15 of them were at $500,000 and over with 3 over $1 million and 2 of those over $2 million, while 1 condo sold just below $1 million. This surge in the over $500,000 market is a return to the sales of more expensive condos which had declined substantially in the previous months.
Looking at the Districts, starting in Carpinteria/Summerland sales are double from where they were last year rising from 14 to 28 and the median sales price has come up a little going from $395,000 in ’09 to $401,000 in ’10. The pending numbers are also up going from 19 last year to 26 this year so the surge should continue in the area.
In Montecito sales are up from 1 last year to 8 this year with the median sales price at about $1.1 million and the average sales price close to $1.3 million up from $679,000 for the only sale last year. The trend should continue in Montecito with 11 opened escrows this year at a $1,050,000 median list price up from 1 escrow last year with a list price of $729,000
On the East Side of Santa Barbara sales are up from 19 in ’09 to 29 in ’10 but the median sales price has declined from $528,000 last year to about $460,000 this year. The pending numbers are a lot closer together with 29 opened escrows in ’09 compared to 33 in ’10 and the median list prices are also close together going from $525,000 in ’09 to $519,500 in ’10.
For the West Side of town there are 33 sales this year compared to 19 last year but the median sales price has dropped from $520,000 last year to about $465,000 this year. The escrows are also way ahead of where they were last year with 40 opened this year compared to 25 last year and the median list price on those escrows is very close falling from $525,000 in ’09 to $515,000 in ’10.
In Goleta South there were 21 sales in both years but the median sales price has dipped from $410,000 last year to $355,000 this year. The escrows are way behind however with 35 last year compared to 25 this year and the median list price on those escrows has dipped from $419,000 last year to $339,900 this year.
For Goleta North there have been 16 sales this year compared to 14 last year with the median sales price rising from $360,050 in ’09 to $405,000 in ’10. The escrows show a slight bulge this year with 25 compared to 21 last year and the median list price on those escrows has risen from $365,000 last year to $419,000 this year.
Condo prices are starting to rise and as long as fewer properties come on the market than sell the inventory will continue to decline which should push prices up further. So the questions are, with the first time buyer credit coming to an end in April will the surge in condo sales continue, and second if prices do continue to go up will that spur the sellers to bring their properties onto the market?
-Gary Woods
