This past week our listings had an average of 1.3 showings each. Although I’d like to see at least an average of 2 per week, the current average is better than it was this time last year. Regardless of the negative news we keep hearing amongst the media, all signs in our local market are pointing to an improving real estate market.

This week we sent out our monthly E-Newsletter which included the real estate market stats for August. When comparing August 2011 with the previous month and the same month last year, here is a brief summary:

– Home sales were up 4.9% from last month and up 37.6% from last year.
– Average sales price was down 4.3% from last month and down 12.9% from last year.
– Median sales price was down 2.8% from last month and down 4.5% from last year.
– Average time on market was about the same as last month, and up 4.9% from last year.
– Pending home sales were down 4.3% from last month, but up 19.0% from last year.
– Supply was down 8.0% from last month and down 15.9% from last year.
– Mortgage rates are down to about 4.27% for a 30 year fixed, which is a drop from both last month and last year.

The indicators above all show improvement in the local market except for the sales price figures. However, you have to remember these numbers reflect the end of summer which is historically when sales and prices begin to drop from their season peaks during the calendar year. I’m not at all concerned or suprised to see a small dip in prices from the July peak.

Furthermore, I am very encouraged to see that pending homes sales are still almost 20% higher than they were a year ago. This indicates that home sales this fall will be significantly higher than they were last year.

My personal experience has shown that last year started out strong and finished poorly. This year it is the exact opposite. The weak sales last fall rolled right into the spring which was weak overall. However, the summer season has been consistently steady and it appears that trend will continue into the fall. Of course, I expect things to slow down into the fall, but if the market continues to be better than last year, there is a good chance that will roll into the spring of 2012.

There is one real looming concern that I have regarding our local economy. Bank of America has recently announced mass layoffs to cut costs. Implementation of that plan could most certainly have a negative impact on real estate sales in Charlotte. But I’m staying positive at this point and trying to avoid speculation. Right now our market is showing improvement and I’m sticking with that until the data begins to show us otherwise.