Whispers from the Edge of the Rainforest: March 2013 Richmond report

Tuesday, April 23, 2013

The latest from Richmond: sales expected to continue to languish due to "lack of buying interest"

Yesterday we shared with you realtor Larry Yatkowsky's stats which show inventory is hitting highs not seen in years, a pattern which Yatkowsky suggests might be "the hint of the century" about what's going to happen to the market.

Meanwhile, in Richmond, realtor James Wong is out with his latest monthly report on real estate. Wong regularly gives blunt market analysis for his readers and his latest mid-month report is no different.

Wong notes March had a much better sales performance than expected, but his prognosis is still bleak:

Richmond Home sales for March, 2013 at 280 units were 28% higher than the previous month sales of 219 homes. The much better sale performance was expected as seasonally the spring market upswing began in March. It came as a surprise that the total active listings in March, 2013 was about the same number of homes for sale in February. The overall months-of-inventory (MOI) at 9.74 was a slight improvement compared to 10.24 months in February. The drop in MOI was due to the improvement in the average 3-month sales for detached homes, townhouses and condos.

Richmond Real Estate Market Outlook:

The Months-of-inventory (MOI) in Richmond at 9.74 continues to favor buyers.

Overall, the market sentiment is subdued, while home prices are expected to continue drifting lower due to the lack of buying interest.

Home sellers can take consolation that the pace at which new listings coming into the market in the first quarter of 2013 was more tempered than the same period for 2012. The current negative market sentiment will dampen buying interest, while the over supply of homes will drive home prices lower.

Richmond detached homes are expected to continue languishing due to the lack of buying interest.

There are currently 608 detached homes for sale in Richmond at prices above $1,000,000. With average past 3 months sale around 31 homes, the MOI is at 28.8 months. And for homes above $1,500,000, there are 350 homes available for sale. At an average past 3-month sale of 11 homes a month, there are 31.8 months of supply for homes over $1,500,000.