2010 May | Milestone - Kentucky Houses

Market Update based on April 2010 data reports:

May 28, 2010

By Judy Craft

Local Market Update: Central Kentucky real estate sales up 36% in April while nation shows only 26% jump, pending sales up 41%. A review of the Central Kentucky real estate statistics for April shows dramatically increasing sales and pending sales.

Total Central KY Sales, Monthly Stats, Apr. 2009-Apr. 2010

Sales in Central Kentucky for April 2010 rose 36%, while the National Association of REALTORS® (NAR) posted a 26% increase in sales for the nation. Many buyers took advantage of the tax credit which ended April 30. However, it is not surprising that the sale of Bluegrass homes outperformed the nation because of our relatively stable local economy.

Pending sales for the region were up 41% compared to April 2009 as buyers placed contracts on homes before the ending of the tax credit.

Total Pendings for Central KY, Apr. 2009-Apr. 2010

The Bluegrass region currently has an 8.7 month supply of homes on the market which is 24% lower than last year’s 11.5 month supply. NAR reports that the nation has an 8.4 months supply of inventory but that is only 16.8% less than at the same time last year. Likely due to increasing sales, the average days on market fell 17% to 89 days for residential homes in the Bluegrass and fell 42% to 93 days for townhouses/condos vs. April 2009.

Total Housing Inventory for Central KY, Apr. 2009-Apr. 2010

The active number of listings or inventory on the market for Central Kentucky in April was 6,462 which is up 3% compared to April 2009. With a double digit increase in sales and a falling months supply of inventory, sellers are feeling confident in placing their homes on the market.

Subscribe to our RSS feed or watch four our blog for my upcoming overview of May data in relation to the national market. And, don’t forget that you can check out highly detailed statisical reports on our Market Statistics page.

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Bringing Power to Kentucky!

May 27, 2010

By Becky Locknane

Hundreds of Military Jobs Created in Ft. Knox, KY

I recently attended a presentation at the Lexington Bluegrass Association of Realtors about the economic impact created by the Ft. Knox Base Realignment (BRAC) program positioning Ft. Knox as the headquarters for all U.S. Army Human Resources.

Brad Richardson, who is the Executive Director for One Knox was the presenter. Mr. Richardson has a long list of credentials, one of which is the past Director of Louisville Economic Development. The Mission Statement of One Knox is: To serve as the central coordinating community agency that helps the region respond in the most positive way to growth opportunities at Ft. Knox.

The new Headquarters is 900,000 square feet and is 2^nd only to The Pentagon. Ft. Knox is located in three counties- Bullitt, Hardin and Meade. Approximately 4400 Army personnel will be arriving at Ft. Knox. For the first time in the history of Ft. Knox the senior commander will be a 3 Star General and there are only 100 in the United States. The number of general officers at Ft. Knox will increase from 6 to 17.

This move is projected to bring 7,800 new jobs to the area including Military, Civilian and the Private Sector. In comparison, in 2009 the number of new jobs created in all of Kentucky was 6,687. It is projected that by 2012 the employment number will be 20,012 comprised of 10,515 Military and 9497 Civilian.

The impact of this move for the housing industry is HUGE! We will see significant positive financial impacts for the entire state of Kentucky. Sales of Louisville houses should surge as a result of Ft. Knox.

Mr. Richardson emphasized that it is “all about the soldier” so we must step up to the plate and do all we can to prove what a wonderful place Kentucky is to live.

To find out more about BRAC and Ft. Knox, visit Oneknox.com

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The Hangover!

May 22, 2010

By Mike Wheatley

Feeling like the real estate market has a hangover?

Now that we are more than halfway through May, and the Tax Credit deadline has passed, the big question is…“How long will the Tax Credit Hangover last??” I wanted to update you on my analysis of the market, and in particular, the effect of the Tax Credit deadline, which was April 30th (the last day contracts could be signed). The million dollar question that everyone has been pondering is, how long will it take to recover from the huge increase in sales generated by the credit? I think without a doubt we are experiencing a “hangover”, with pending sales and showing activity way below normal for the first 2 weeks of May compared to years past.

Here is what happened, and what I think we can expect over the next few months:

Pending sales in April were 1143 units, the highest Pending month we have had since June of 2005, when we had 1158 Pending sales. Pending sales in March were 909 units, again way over what I would have expected as ‘normal”…without the tax credit, I’m guessing around 700 units in March, and about 800 units in April would have been normal, based on historical trends. The total impact for those 2 months was an increase in Pending sales of about 500 units over what I would expect to be a normal 2 month period. As of today, we are over half way through May, and Pending sales are at 227 units, which if we finish around 500, that number would be a record low number of Pendings for May, going back at least 9 years (we don’t have detailed stats prior to that). I would expect between 800 and 900 Pendings per month for May, June and July without the credit, so the 500 unit bubble created by the credit should be absorbed over the next 3 months, based on where we are right now with May Pendings. Based on my personal experience, I feel like the major impact of the credit was that it “pulled forward” demand, as opposed to really creating sales that wouldn’t have otherwise occurred, and I think our preliminary May numbers support that idea. I simply didn’t talk to very many people over the past year who were in the market as a direct result of the credits.

While it’s frustrating at the moment to be enduring a period of very few showings and sales, I am optimistic that we will absorb the bubble and be back to normal by the end of the summer. In the meantime, please feel free to let me know if you have more questions. I’m hoping my crystal ball is giving us an accurate picture!

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Milestone Louisville Community Involvement…

May 19, 2010

By Dennis Miller

There has been a lot going on in the Louisville area with the $8K tax credit coming to the conclusion on April 30th. Looking at the statistics for April with sales up in excess of 30% over the same time last year, there were many folks out looking for Louisville houses. But my blog is not to talk statistics, it is to keep you current with activities of the Community Relations Committee.
In spite of my absence at the April meeting, things proceeded quite nicely without me at the head of the table. My thanks go out to Lester Sanders, Chair in Waiting, to set in for me. Sherry Spanyer of the Milestone Louisville office is continuing to keep our group on task with serving meals at The Wayside Christian Mission once a month. Milestone will be serving this month and we are looking forward to getting down to their new downtown facility. Wayside serves those less fortunate not owning a home.
“Carnival Day at Camp Quality” will be taking place June 30th at Country Lake in Henryville, IN. Our subcommittee, under the leadership of Leesa Hill, has been in the planning stages and are looking to top last year’s outstanding event with games, prizes, ice cream Sunday bar, DJ, dance contests and assortment of celebrities to mingle with the kids. We are expecting to have over 70 children (all with cancer) along with their companions, volunteers and medical staff.
“The Repair Affair” will be June 12th with our committee providing breakfast for all of the volunteers along with registering the repair teams. This is a super event and a great opportunity for GLAR and affiliates to assist those in Louisville homes unable to make the repairs themselves.

“VIPS (Visually Impaired Preschool) Fund Raiser” will take place in August with numerous teams from GLAR participating in the “Run/Walk at Churchill Downs” to raise funds for this most worthy cause. This committee is being headed up by Lester Sanders.

“The GLAR Annual Golf Outing” is taking place May 24th with the Milestone Louisville office fielding a team consisting of Becky Locknane, Debbie Jenkins, Jill Kelley and yours truly. Mulligans will be sold with all proceeds going to the “Fuller Center Project”. Our team doesn’t know it but I am planning on playing from the ladies tees.
Last, but certainly not least, sub- committee has been formed to brainstorm on how to get more offices, Realtors and affiliate members to participate in community affairs. I can’t speak I for other associations but Louisville has a membership of over 3800 agents and our the Community Relations Committee has 30 members. Do the math and it doesn’t take long to see there is something wrong with this picture. We are all familiar with the 80/20 rule but it does not apply when it comes to volunteering for community service. The next time someone in your office is looking for a helping hand, reach out to serve. I promise you, you will gain more than you give.

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Milestone Trip to Cancun

May 17, 2010

By Judy Craft

Annual Top Sales Agent Trip 2010, Cancun, MX

Milestone Realty Consultants was pleased to award our top agents a 5 day all expense paid trip to Cancun in April. Everyone had a great time in spite of the fact that it rained for 2 solid days!! Our 2009 winners included Mike Wheatley, David Stewart, Greg Back, Erin Raymond, Deborah Back, Richard Flora and Louise Miller. Principal Broker Judy Craft served as host for the trip. Jeff and Holleigh Sharp of Walden Mortgage Group also attended. Winners were based on total sales production for 2009 for Bluegrass homes, commercial sales and land sales. Congratulations to all!!

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Louisville Home Sales are Up!

May 14, 2010

By Becky Locknane

GLAR (Greater Louisville Association of Realtors) statistical reports showing activity through April 30, 2010 show the volume of Louisville houses sold in April 2010 is up an astounding 40% from 2009. The total unit number of Louisville houses sold year-to-date remains up over last year.

Louisville (GLAR) Units Sold from Jan 1-Apr 30

Louisville (GLAR) Avg. Price from Jan 1-Apr 30

Louisville (GLAR) Median Price from Jan 1-Apr 30

Louisville (GLAR) Days on Market from Jan 1-Apr 30

The increase in sales could be attributed to the Federal Tax Credits that were available to homebuyers in recent months. While the Federal $8000 First-time Homebuyer tax credit and the $6500 tax credit expired April 30, 2010, we are hopeful these numbers will remain positive.

GLAR statistics show that the number of Residential (Single Family and Condo) listings of Louisville houses is 584 for the period May3-9, 2010 as compared to 644 the same period last year. This is an indicator that inventory is down from the previous year possibly due to more sales. GLAR statistics also show that the number of units sold April25-May 1, 2010 is 328 as compared to 231 during the same period last year.

Louisville (GLAR) Units Sold, Year Over Year

The Sold information reported in these statistics is based on the date the sale was entered into the MLS system.

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May 12, 2010

By Walden Mortgage Group

Pending Home Sales Rise 21.1%:
Pending sales of previously owned homes from March of 2009 to March of 2010 rose 21.1%, showing continued strength in the housing market.

Market Statistics

The National Association of Realtors said its Pending Home Sales Index, which is based upon contracts signed in March, increased 5.3% on a monthly basis – building on the prior month’s revised rise of 8.3%.

It is clear that we have seen a steady increase in housing demand with Kentucky houses‘ Pending Sales Up 34%. Now is the time to start to seriously consider buying now before prices start to accelerate.

Payrolls Increase Again:
The Labor Department reported that Non-Farm Payrolls increased by 290,000. This is the second consecutive week where our economy has added jobs. Plus, they revised March’s numbers from 162,000 all the way up to 230,000.

Hiring for the census accounted for 66,000 of the new jobs. If you subtract the jobs added by the federal government, we can see that the private sector accounted for 224,000 new jobs. This shows that our economy is adding jobs. This is the largest increase since March of 2006. This is very important because housing is not about location, location, location. It is about jobs, jobs, and jobs!

What Happened to Rates Last Week:

What Happened to Rates Last Week

Mortgage backed securities (MBS) gained +81 basis points last week which caused 30 year fixed rates to decrease for both government and conventional loans to their best levels since March. MBS pricing increased (which causes mortgage rates to go down) due primarily to Greece. Yes, Greece. With concern about their looming default on their sovereign debt and the subsequent “domino affect” all across Europe, money flew into U.S. treasuries and MBS. This artificial (and temporary) demand helped to push mortgage rates down.

What To Watch Out For

What to Watch Out For This Week:
The following are the major economic reports that will hit the market this week. They each have the ability to affect the pricing of Mortgage Backed Securities and therefore, interest rates for Government and Conventional mortgages. We will be watching these reports closely for you and let you know if there are any big surprises:

It is virtually impossible for you to keep track of what is going on with the economy and other events that can impact the housing and mortgage markets. Just leave it to us, we monitor the live trading of Mortgage Backed Securities which are the only thing government and conventional mortgage rates are based upon.

Mike Dunn, Holleigh Sharp & Jeff Sharp

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The Tax Credit Deadline has Passed…Now What??

May 11, 2010

By Judy Craft

Market Trends Post Tax Credit

April 30th has come and gone and along with it the chance to qualify for the first-time home buyer credit of $8000. What’s next? Do we expect our Bluegrass homes to decline in value? Should we expect the market to go down greatly? The answer is no. According to a survey just released by Prudential Real Estate and Relocation Services, although more than 90% of consumers believe that the home buyer tax credits have helped both first-time home buyers and the U.S. housing market overall, among consumers actually shopping for homes, 65% believe that the end of the tax credits will have little or no effect on their interest in purchasing a home.

That’s good news for all of us. While it is true the tax credit certainly did the trick we also know that people will always have a need to buy or sell a home. Regardless of the economy families will experience the joy of bringing new babies into the world, thus the necessity for larger living quarters. People will marry, divorce, die and graduate which also demand a change in their life and living circumstance. Plus the fact that interest rates are still phenomenal also promises continued activity as evidenced by additional survey results which indicated among those who have already purchased a home, 61% cited low mortgage interest rates as “very important” to their decision.

As for as the dream of home ownership and the perception that owning a home is a good investment, among current renters 75% still believe owning their home is a better long-term choice for their needs than renting. The survey goes on to show that the majority of consumers also believe that home ownership is a better investment than individual stocks or bonds (75%), mutual funds (72%), or savings accounts (74%). As a summary Earl Lee notes, “the real estate market is precariously balanced. Consumers are clearly motivated to take advantage of the opportunities the current low interest rates and prices afford. While the market is picking up in terms of sales and confidence, and the majority still believe that owning a home is a good investment, the outlook for the market remains highly dependent upon the direction of the economy overall.”

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Local Market Update: Central Kentucky Pending Sales Up 34%; Median Sales Prices Outpace National Figures

May 7, 2010

By Judy Craft

A review of the Central Kentucky real estate statistics for March 2010 shows that buyers have a great selection of homes from which to choose. Buyers and sellers are benefiting from stable sales prices and continuing low mortgage rates. First, sales of Central Kentucky homes rose 6% for March 2010 vs. March 2009.

Central Kentucky: Monthly Percentage Change vs. Last Year for Total Sales

While regional sales didn’t top national sales which rose by 20%, many counties in the area did post more significant gains than the region as a whole. For example, sales in Lawrenceburg were up 25%, sales in Winchester were up 13% and sales for Lexington homes were up 14%.

Monthly Percentage Change in Sales Central Kentucky, Area Counties vs. Nation for March 2010

And, even though local sales didn’t outpace national sales for March there are many sales in process. Pending sales for Bluegrass Homes are up 34% — this is more than double the pending sales in February.

Central Kentucky: Monthly Percentage Change vs. Last Year for Pending Sales

A key figure in which the Bluegrass almost always outpaces the nation is median sales prices. In March, the National Association of REALTORS® reported a meager gain of 0.4% for median sales prices in the U.S. In Central Kentucky, we saw a gain of 3% for single family residential homes and a 7% rise in median sales prices for townhouses and condos.

Monthly Percentage Change in Median Sales Price for Central Ky Single Family Homes and Townhomes March 2010 vs. National Median

Listings in Central Kentucky rose 6% for March 2010 vs. March 2009.

Central Kentucky Monthly Percentage Change vs. Last Year for Home Inventory

Subscribe to our RSS feed or watch the blog for my overview of April data in relation to the national market.

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Lexington Named 41st Best City for Bicycling in the United States

May 6, 2010

By billcole

Lexington, KY named in top 50 Best Bike Cities!

If you’re looking at Lexington homes, you’re in for a new treat. Because of the city’s new commitment to bicycling, the editors of “Bicycling Magazine” have named Lexington Ky, as one of the top 50 cities in the United States.

Cycling enthusiasts have long heard of the legendary climate for riding in cities like Boulder, Minneapolis or even Madison (WI), but now Bluegrass homes are right in the mix. Factors that the editors considered in their evaluations included the miles of marked bike lanes on public streets, the availability of easily used bike racks on public transportation, the commitment local governments have made to improve the conditions for cyclists and the presence of a vital cycling community. Lexington has also been recently given about $7 million in combined local, state and federal funds which are dedicated to encouraging bikes as a citywide mode of transportation and recreation. These grants will allow cyclists to crisscross the city more safely. If you venture onto Fayette County’s more rural roads, make sure to note the yellow “Share The Road” signs which mark well traveled bike routes used for recreation, fitness and commuting by residents.

The Bluegrass Cycling Club named the “Best Regional Cycling Club in America”

If you add the fact that the Bluegrass Cycling Club was just named the “Best Regional Cycling Club in America” by the League of American Bicyclists and the monthly “Second Sunday” rides which lead families and beginning riders to spots throughout the city on Police-escorted rides, it’s easy to see why the Bluegrass is truly becoming a cycling destination with a quickly developing national reputation. This reputation will be expanded this year as about 2,500 cyclists from all over the world will come here for the “Horsey Hundred,” a nationally recognized, three-day bike festival over the Memorial Day Weekend.

Just to toot our own horn one last time, please come and join us for the “Ride For The Red” which combines bikes, the Red Cross, and Equus Run Vineyards on May 15th, 2010. Four rides varying from 10 miles long to a full “Metric Century” rode of 100 kilometers (63 miles) will challenge you physically and then soothe you with a Bluegrass barbecue lunch cooked on the grills at the winery while you help raise funds for the Red Cross.

Check out the rest of Bicycling Magazine’s top 50 cities. Join our club by contacting the Bluegrass Cycling Club. And if you’re looking for a new home with a bike-friendly location you can email me, Bill Cole at bcole@milestoneKY.com!

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