Pelham Home Sales DOWN 27% in Third Quarter
The Pelham local market is showing signs of deceleration following a banner first half of the year. According to the MLS statistics of the Niagara Association of Realtors there were 44 residential sales reported in Pelham during the Third Quarter - down 27% from the 60 transactions recorded during July, August and September last year.
The current level of activity also hovers considerably below the five-year average (2008-2012) of 58 unit sales in the Third Quarter.
12-Month average price in Pelham UP 7.4%
Paradoxically the 12-Month average price in Pelham continues to climb. The September 2013 month end figure stood at $344, 675 – reflecting a 7.4% increase over last year’s 12-Month Average of $320,838.
Sales for the month in Pelham were 48% below last year’s level with a total of 13 transactions reported compared to 25 in September 2013. The overall impact is that September is the first month-end this year that our year-to-date sales total lagged behind last year.
September Unit Sales in Pelham DOWN 48% from Last Year
So far in 2013 there have been 165 residential sales. Last year at this time the total was 168. It’s much too early to sound off any alarm bells given that the current year-to-date total remains steadfastly above the Pelham 5-Year Average of 161 unit sales during the January-September time frame.
Niagara RegionaL Unit Sales UP 6.6.% in the Third Quarter
Across the Niagara as a whole, home sales were actually UP 6.6.% during the Third Quarter, with 1,752 homes changing hands compared to 1636 last year. This surge has helped offset a slower first half of the year bringing the current year-to-date tally to just 3 units shy of last year’s September year-to-date total of 5,016 units.
As the local housing market heads into the home stretch of the year we can expect downward pressure on average prices in Pelham should sales volume continue to decline at the rate experienced this past month. Let’s hope that September 2013 was just another in a long series of temporary hiccups that have characterized the ongoing economic recovery.
