Housing and Housing Market Trends

Benny Cass in the Washington Post led with a great headline when he said “Only the Freshist Will Do”. He was talking about how important it is to have the most recent sales information when picking a sales price.

Many markets in Montgomery County are dropping at a rate of 1.5% per month. This makes the recent within 6 month of sale standard obsolete. With the market as price sensitive as it is, anything older than 1 month needs to be adjusted for the drop in value over time. Thus a 3 month old sale would have to be adjusted down by -4.5%.

It  is also important to see what a similar home in the neighborhood can be bought for. If a buyer can purchase a home of similar size and condition for much less than a new sale or a time adjusted sale the market price is best found among the active listings.

This situation of active listings being priced lower than sold prices turns traditional pricing methods on its head. Beware of old information and techniques that does not take the above items into account.