Real Estate Information

Even though many predicted 2011 to be a grim year for the economy, we prefer to reflect and find the good that came from it.

We have gathered the numbers and prepared the following report for you.

Residential Sales in Garland County, AR 

(information obtained from the Hot Springs Board of Realtors mls)

Average Days on Market

1/1/10 – 12/31/10:  172

1/1/11 – 12/31/11:  166             * Note - Listings sold a little faster in 2011
 

Number of Listings Sold

1/1/10 – 12/31/10:  1266

1/1/11 – 12/31/11:  1246           

Average Price of Sold Listings

1/1/10 – 12/31/10:  $152,355

1/1/11 – 12/31/11:  $154,150            *Note - Higher priced homes sold –and/or – homes sold for a higher price in 2011

Percentage of listings that Sold

1/1/10 – 12/31/10:  31.56%

1/1/11 – 12/31/11:  37.76%  Note – A higher percentage of listings sold in 2011

MLS Sold Volume

1/1/10 – 12/31/10:  $178,661,072

1/1/11 – 12/31/11:  $170,661,072            Note - While the total sales was lower in 2011 - inventory continuously dropped throughout the year …. This is greatly improving our market to a more balanced market.

(Click here for a more detailed report of the current market.)

There's a story we like about a business owner in Texas, who years ago--in the midst of a Recession--placed an ad in the local paper saying, "There are reports of an economic Recession, but we have decided not to participate!"  Love that statement!  Feel free to use it with us.

We wish you a wonderful and prosperous 2012!!

The market stats are in ... and while the overall pictures isn't glowing with improvement, we were able to find a silver lining in the cloud and a bit of positive news.  Below is the overall year-to-date report (information obtained from the Hot Springs Board of Realtors® mls):

Average Days on Market

1/1/10 – 10/31/10:  172

1/1/11 – 10/31/11:  166
 

Number of Listings Sold

1/1/10 – 10/31/10:  1067

1/1/11 – 10/31/11:  1039

Average Price of Sold Listings

1/1/10 – 10/31/10:  $152,158

1/1/11 – 10/31/11:  $150,605

MLS Sold Volume

1/1/10 – 10/31/10:  $162,353,137

1/1/11 – 10/31/11:  $156,478,698

​Then when we looked closer at the detailed report (click here for details), we noticed one really POSITIVE factor.  Inventory is at the lowest we have seen it in at least 4 years (total of 1072 homes on the market vs. an average of 1350 homes on the market in our area).  We think this could be a good indicator that our market may start to improve soon.  With inventory steadily dropping, we hope to see the pendulum swing back a little more evenly and start to level out the supply and demand.  

With inventory at its lowest, NOW may be your best chance to sell your home so let’s make sure it’s priced right, dressed right and it’s out-shining the competition.  If you have any questions or would like to talk more, please feel free to give us a call at 501.655.6247 or 501.276.4446.

In comparing the residential sales reports for Garland County, it appears that residential sales in Garland County for the first eight months of the year is down as compared to the same period last year.  The first quarter of 2011 started out holding steady and appeared to be a mirror image of the same period in 2010.  However, the second quarter of 2011 was the down period – whereas we did not see the spike in sales in our area as we normally do with vacation home sales in the summer months.  May and June of this year limped along in summer sales, then we had a nice spike in July with an increase in the number of units sold up 24% over June, however it wasn’t enough to increase our year-to-date figures.

In comparing the residential sales reports for Garland County, it appears that residential sales in Garland County for the first half of the year is down as compared to the same period last year.  Unfortunately, our market has yet to see the spike in sales that we normally see in the summer months.  

Take a look at the below statistics on residential sales in Hot Springs (information obtained from the Hot Springs Board of Realtors®mls). Click here for more detailed information on the Hot Springs market. 

Average Days on Market

1/1/10 – 6/30/10:  177

1/1/11 – 6/30/11:  161

Number of Listings Sold

1/1/10 – 6/30/10:  653

1/1/11 – 6/30/11:  589

Average Price of Sold Listings

1/1/10 – 6/30/10:  $147,907

1/1/11 – 6/30/11:  $142,804

MLS Sold Volume

1/1/10 – 6/30/10:  $96,586,343

1/1/11 – 6/30/11:  $84,111,989

While it’s no secret that we’re in a tough market, we believe we can still get the job done.  The Kennedy Team ranked #1 in total residential sales in Garland County for the past 3 year recession.  As the saying goes “When the going gets tough … the tough gets going!” and that’s exactly what we’re doing.  If you or someone you know is interested in selling , please give us a call and we'll be glad to help. 

In comparing the monthly residential sales reports for Garland County, it appears that residential sales picked up significantly in home sales in Garland County for April with a 48% increase over March.  The majority of those homes sold in April were homes sold under $150,000.

Then we compared the year-to-date market statistics and compared it to the same period as last year, and it appears that we’re still running a very similar race as last year.  Take a look at the below statistics on residential sales in Hot Springs (information obtained from the Hot Springs Board of Realtors® mls) . 

Average Days on Market

1/1/10 – 4/30/10:  176

1/1/11 – 4/30/11:  172

Number of Listings Sold

1/1/10 – 4/30/10:  383

1/1/11 – 4/30/11:  373

Average Price of Sold Listings

1/1/10 – 4/30/10:  $144,606

1/1/11 – 4/30/11:  $142,090

MLS Sold Volume

1/1/10 – 4/30/10:  $55,384,315

1/1/11 – 4/30/11:  $52,999,773

Click here for more detailed information on the Hot Springs market, and be sure to call the # 1 real estate team in Hot Springs – the Kennedy Team with Hot Springs 1st Choice Realty at 501.655.6247 or 501.276.4446.

In a transaction which set a record for most expensive U.S. residential sale ever, Russian billionaire Yuri Milner (who heads Digital Sky Technologies) has reportedly paid $100 million for a 25,500-square-foot Los Altos Hills (CA) home which was not even listed for sale. This record-setting sale is just one indication that the wealthy have opened their wallets and are shopping for homes again.

Nationally, the million dollar and above housing market rose 4% in February year-over-year as luxury buyers snapped up homes, often for all cash. The jump in luxury purchases is counter to the real estate resale trend in general.  In February, total residential sales dropped 2.8% as compared to February a year ago.  

While Hot Springs, Arkansas does not have triple digit luxury homes in our market, we currently have 25 homes priced at $1 million or more listed for sale.  While the luxury home sales have been down throughout the last couple of years, we are starting to see an increase in the number of showings of our luxury homes as of the first of this year.  The most expensive home for sale locally has an asking price of $4,899,000, one of our finest listings, built by one of Arkansas’ finest builders – Ferguson Custom Homes of Little Rock.

Why the rise in luxury sales?  According to Laurie Moore-Moore, Founder of The Institute for Luxury Home Marketing, an organization  which trains luxury agents internationally, “The number of wealthy households in the U.S. and world-wide is almost back to where it was before the downturn.  Add the fact that many high net worth individuals are reassessing their investments and rethinking how and where to invest.  High-end U.S. residential real estate is now attracting many of these dollars, Euros, and Rubles. This bodes well for the luxury home market in the short term.  Luxury may well be the real estate segment that leads the recovery.” 

For more information on the luxury real estate market, please contact Hot Springs’ only certified luxury home marketing specialist, Jeff Kennedy with Hot Springs 1^st Choice Realty at 501.655.6247 or online at www.BestofHotSprings.com

Looks like residential sales in Hot Springs are running a close race with last year at this point.  We just compared the recent market statistics to the same period as last year, and the first quarter of 2011 is looking very similar to last year’s first quarter, with a slight increase in the average price of sold listings, and a slight drop in the number of days that it takes to sell a home – actually both positive signs of some improvement.  Take a look at the below statistics on residential sales in Hot Springs (information obtained from the Hot Springs Board of Realtors® mls) . 

Average Days on Market

1/1/10 – 3/31/10:  175

1/1/11 – 3/31/11:  168

Number of Listings Sold

1/1/10 – 3/31/10:  255

1/1/11 – 3/31/11:  246

Average Price of Sold Listings

1/1/10 – 3/31/10:  $134,594

1/1/11 – 3/31/11:  $139,139

MLS Sold Volume

1/1/10 – 3/31/10:  $34,321,632

1/1/11 – 3/31/11:  $34,228,333

Click here for more detailed information on the Hot Springs market, and be sure to call the # 1 real estate team in Hot Springs – the Kennedy Team with Hot Springs 1st Choice Realty at 501.655.6247 or 501.276.4446.

RESIDENTIAL SALES ARE LOOKING BETTER THAN LAST YEAR

Looks like residential sales in Hot Springs is staying on track with continuous signs of an improved market.  We just compared the recent market statistics to the same period as last year, and 2011 is looking better overall!  Take a look at the below statistics on residential sales in Hot Springs (information obtained from the Hot Springs Board of Realtors® mls) . 

Average Days on Market

1/1/10 – 1/31/10:  154

1/1/11 – 1/31/11:  177

Number of Listings Sold

1/1/10 – 1/31/10:  67

1/1/11 – 1/31/11:  75

Average Price of Sold Listings

1/1/10 – 1/31/10:  $123,600

1/1/11 – 1/31/11:  $141,793

MLS Sold Volume

1/1/10 – 1/31/10:  $15,628,862

1/1/11 – 1/31/11:  $21,004,032

Click here for more detailed information on the Hot Springs market, and be sure to call the # 1 real estate team in Hot Springs – the Kennedy Team with First Choice Realty at 501.655.6247 or visit us online at www.BestofHotSprings.com

The most important question for the last three years has been “Have we hit bottom yet?” and the answer is finally “YES!”.   The year-end statistics indicate an improved market in Hot Springs in 2010.  Click here for more details.

The recent recession we just experienced was quite challenging.  Throughout this period, we noticed a different trend in the sellers.

As we began to see some signs of a dip in the market near the end of 2007, we had the “experienced” sellers – who sold right when the market began to shift.  Those were the sellers who had equity in their homes; they felt certain the real estate market was shifting; and they quickly jumped before the pendulum hit bottom. 

In 2008 – 2010, we had the “distressed” sellers.  Those were the sellers who had very little equity or no equity in their homes; they could not make their payments, and they were unable to sell because they would have to come to the closing table with money.  Those were the ones who elected to turn their homes over to the banks. 

In 2009 – 2010, we had the “astute” sellers.  Those were the sellers who had “prime” homes (good home, good location, and the ability to make payments or did not owe on their homes).  Those sellers were in control, and did not have to sell, however, those chose to sell for other beneficial financial decisions. 

Today we have the “uncomplicated” sellers in 2011.   These sellers have survived the recession, and they are interested in selling their homes for a fair and reasonable price.

If you have been waiting for the best opportunity to buy a home … we believe that opportunity is now here!  Rates are still low, home prices are no longer dropping, and we are ready to help.   Visit us online at www.BestofHotSprings.com or give us a call today at 501.655.6247 (Jeff) or 501.276.4446 (Debi).  

Great News!  The year-end numbers are in, and it’s all good!  Looks like residential sales in Hot Springs are back on the upswing, and we are ecstatic!  Take a look at the below statistics on residential sales in Hot Springs (information obtained from the Hot Springs Board of Realtors® mls) . 

Average Days on Market (YTD)

2009: 154

2010: 172 

Number of Listings Sold (YTD)

2009:  1243

2010:  1260

Average Price of Sold Listings (YTD)

2009:  $148,065

2010:  $152,280

MLS Sold Volume (YTD)

2009: $163,720,480

2010: $177,226,819

Click here for more detailed information on the Hot Springs market, and be sure to call the # 1real estate team in Hot Springs – the Kennedy Team with First Choice Realty at 501.655.6247 or visit us online at www.BestofHotSprings.com