September home sales up 17.7%, median price down 1.5%
By Rick Romell of the Journal Sentinel
Oct. 17, 2011 9:52 a.m. |(3) Comments
Existing home sales statewide last month rose 17.7% compared with September 2010, the Wisconsin Realtors Association said Monday.
The increase, however, comes largely because of depressed sales a year ago. A federal tax rebate program in effect until June 2010 pushed sales activity into the first half of that year, creating a sharp drop in the second half, the association said.
The median sale price fell 1.5% last month, to $134,900. But that was the smallest monthly decline this year, and was called welcome news by association president Mike Theo. Monthly median prices were down 4.1% to 13.3% through August.
"We shouldn't place too much emphasis on just one month's data," Theo said in a statement. "If we see a continuation of this pattern for several months in a row, then we might be able to conclude that prices are near the bottom."
New listings are down 17.4% so far this year, while the inventory of unsold homes remains high, the association said.
September sales in Milwaukee and Waukesha Counties outpaced the statewide average. Milwaukee County saw 643 sales last month, up 26.8% from a year ago. In Waukesha County, 348 existing homes sold, up 23.4%. The median price in Waukesha County fell just 0.3%, to $221,000.
http://www.jsonline.com/business/september-home-sales-up-177-median-price-down-15-131982103.html
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