The days of standing on the sidelines and waiting for home prices to continue to fall in Arizona have come to an end. As of May 23 2011 there were about 24,772 single family and condo homes listed for sale in Phoenix Arizona. Since this time last year, the inventory of homes for sale has decreased by 23.0%.
The Valley’s troubled housing market is showing some signs of recovery with lower-priced homes leading the way, but a notable drop in inventory might be a misleading indicator, according to real estate observers.
Greater Phoenix has an inventory of less than 25,000 homes, down almost 25 percent from a year ago. That’s the encouraging news, yet the media hasn’t quite caught on. The rapid decline in home inventory deserves more attention.
At the current pace of sales Arizona home resale inventory will be depleted in 5 months. This is three months faster than it was just 90 days ago, and it is falling fast, the 2-year home supply average is over 9.0 months. This means there are more buyers in the market, and fewer homes from which they can choose. It has happened so quickly that home prices have not had a chance to correct. But they will. 
Arizona home sales prices have been flat for 5 months straight. There has also been an up-tick in listing prices for homes being put on the market. While the media can only look at statistics and trends after the fact, those that work in the real estate industry have already seen the turn, as Troy Reeves predicted in March of this year.
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The average days on market for a listed home has began a rapid descent as well. This shows that buyers are getting more aggressive and are starting to feel urgency when searching for a home.
As the supply of cheap homes shrinks and prices stabilize. Homeowners who had put off moving because they didn’t want to sell during the downturn grow confident that they can fetch a decent price. That prompts more buying and selling, then in turn prices rise even higher. Before the latest downturn housing prices had risen steadily for the last 30 years. A primary residence was considered the best investment one would ever make in their lives. If inventory levels and prices continue their steady march in the right direction, we are headed for many more years of housing prosperity.
39 Responses
I bought my first house from Glenn in 2008, where he helped me find a house in 2 days! I decided to purchase again and Glenn was very patient as we looked at many houses until I found the one I wanted. Now he is helping me short sell my other house, which sold in 2 days! Way to go Reeves team:)
Glenn helped me find a house in 2 days when I moved back to Phoenix in 2008. Then helped me buy another home 3 weeks ago. It took some time and looking at a lot of homes to find the right one, but Glenn was patient throughout. Now he has an offer (short sale) on my first home which sold in 1 day. Thanks Reeves team for all your support.
Definitely some good points! It really is a good time to invest. Sure prices may drop a little bit but you could always turn your property into a rental. Renting is in high demand, and a good clean unit should go fast.
Oh my, the Reeves team sold my house in one day. It is a short sale so I am glad that Glenn Marlin is handling the transaction. His experience will be beneficial and a must during this process. Rock on Reeves Team!!
Oh my , after 2 days my house had multiple offers ,good job Glenn
There is NO Better Time Than Now! Many properties today are going for such low prices…. PLAN FOR YOUR RETIREMENT by purchasing an investment property (or two) with a 15 year term. The home could be paid off by the time you retire. Thus securing your future… Thanks REEVES TEAM for the information.
Holy Smoke! You guys did a great job but it gives me a feeling like I just heard a weather report and you know how accurate the weatherman is! The problem with the housing market is that it can change overnight just like the weather. At least you guys give us a good feeling about it.
I completly agree with this! The past several weeks I have been working with buyers in the 100,000.00-250,000.00 price range and homes are moving! We are seeing multiple offers and better home choices!Great article!
….thanks for doing the research…..great info……Reeves Team !
great news…i love how you always keep us updated…sounds like the market is turning around…positive!
Very good information. Real Estate is certainly a business of cycles and taking advantage of the opportunities.
It is being said, we will have a housing shortage within the next two years. Predictions are being made that new homes will double from 386,000 units in 2011 to 800,000 in 2012! Where is all the “shadow inventory” the media keeps bringing up? 900,000+ foreclosed homes have not hit the market yet… If this pace continues through the summer with sales as I have seen them, we will be out of homes by August! Prices going up? You bet. Buy now if you can. Waiting on the sidelines for the best deal is over!
Thank you for putting the information together – very informative – time of all buyers to take actions!
Very informative; it’s time to buy our dream home.
Great article! Thanks for the information!
I want to thank Glenn Marlin and the Reeves Team for selling my house (short sale), I had a 6 month contract with another agent and did not get anywhere, that agent had the home priced too high, so nobody was interested.
I researched real estate companies and liked the Reeves Team’s website, they looked like they don’t fool around, so I signed on with them.
When I signed up with the Reeves Team, we had a offer less than 3 weeks, and when the bank said no to the offer, and refused to say what they want, Glenn took the bull by the horns and sent them comps from the area, and they finally said yes!
I got my HAFA $$, and did not have to pay anything for selling my home, I am very pleased with Glenn and the Reeves Team, Michael Leith
I agree the worst is behind us, if interest rates stay low.
Remarkably low interest rates + home prices at or near the bottom = the perfect opportunity to but yourself a home or an investment property.
I agree that the laws of “supply and demand” will soon result in rising prices. We certainly saw it work in reverse when the inventory of homes was over 50.000 in ’07. Thanks for tracking the numbers.
I agree that the law of “supply and demand” will soon result in rising prices. We saw it in ’05 when the inventory shrunk to less than 8,000 homes and again in ’07 when it swelled to over 50,000. Thanks for tracking the numbers.
I’m glad to see that true local professionals in the industry are tracking this monster and helping us to become more educated about our local market so that we can make our real estate investments in a timely manner! I really enjoy the knowledge being passed on by these pros. I know I’m itching for the right time to pull the trigger! I can feel it!
This is great information to know. Interest rates may start to rise if the home inventory continues to go down… Act now!
A colleague of mine just bought a home here last month, and had to place offers on four before one was accepted. Surprised us all–I did not know the market was changing.
If I were considering buying a home , I would wait untill after
12-21-2012.
Exciting news! Time to buy.
This sounds like a perfect time for an investment, supply and demand baby! Plus, the interest rate is still so low. Doesn’t get any better does it? ; )
Awesome!! Exciting news!
Wow…great news for Phoenix area residents!
Great information! Thanks for passing along.
Buyers should really take advantage of low interest rates and low prices on homes while they last!
you’re seeing an increase of multiple offers on one home because the prices are CHEAP, not because there is low inventory. some people can simply write a full price check at these prices.
if you’re waiting to sell, don’t wait. these low prices will be around for years due to unemployment & it is way harder to get a loan now (hence , writing a check). in the meantime you’re making payments on a BMW and living in a Chevy, if you get my drift.
Wow, finally good news the housing market is changing!!!!
Looks like we should consider buying an investment property …
Great article. Always felt that real estate was a great investment.
Looks like the time to buy!
This is great news but lets not rule out the possibility that it is our normal springtime trend of increased home sales. Only time will tell.
This is some great information, thanks as always to Troy and the team!
We have seen a huge increase on multiple offers for each property due to low inventory.
How funny – I have been meaning to call Glenn, who helped me buy my home, about options if I move out of state! I assume you are referring to the piece in the NY Times w/ a Phoenix dateline. I’d love to hear more about your view of things. Can I get my free dinner now? 🙂