A monthly post to keep you up-to-date on what is happening in Lancaster, Dauphin, and York Counties

Settled Units – Virtually unchanged from last year at this time. On a national level, settled units dipped over 4% in the fifty largest metro areas so our area stacks up better than the national average.

Average Sales Price – This number continues to climb at a steady rate; up almost 4% from last year which mirrors what is happening across the country.

Median Days to Sell – Twenty-five days on the market is a significant drop from last year and far exceeds what the majority of the rest of the country is experiencing.

Average Interest Rate – Almost the same as last year. Predicting mortgage interest rates is a tricky business, but most experts predict that rates will hold fairly steady until at least the spring home buying season is over.

Absorption Rates are the rates at which available homes are sold in a specific real estate market and price range during a given time period.  It is calculated by dividing the total number of available homes by the average number of sales per month.  The rate represents the number of months it would take to clear out available inventory if no other homes came on the market.

Homes that are competitively priced under $300K are selling at a rapid pace which accounts for the extremely low absorption rates. Multiple offers on these homes continue to be the norm. Head north of $300K and the market becomes relatively balanced. However, the luxury market over a half a million is ultra competitive. Sellers who are in this price category should heed their real estate agent’s advice regarding list price because of the abundance of inventory that is sitting.