June home sales down 22 percent
Realtor: Market in ‘very, very slow trend’ upward

June home sales were down about 22 percent compared to the same month last year, according to statistics released this week by the Lake Havasu Association of Realtors.

Still, Ken Standahl, the association's executive director, said there are signs the market is in a "very, very slow trend" upward.

"The trend is in an upward position. The number of listings on the market seems to be, if not dropping, not increasing," Standahl said.

That's a hopeful sign in a time when there have been too many properties, including a glut of bank-owned properties, hitting the market, he said.

The number of active residential listings in June was 1,479 compared to 1,484 in May and 1,514 in April. The number of homes sold came to 95, while 122 homes sold in June 2007.

June's numbers follow two months when residential sales were close to last year's levels, according to association statistics. In May, 139 homes sold, compared to 146 in 2007. In April, 121 homes sold, three more than sold that month last year.

Year to date, residential sales are down 12 percent, with 649 homes sold compared to 736 in 2007.

The median sale price for single family homes in June was $212,000, down nearly 25 percent from June of last year. Year to date, the median sales price is down about 18 percent.

That number echoes the findings of an Arizona State University study that shows home sale prices in Phoenix decreased by 18 percent from April 2007 to April 2008.

The report attributes the drop partly to a wave of foreclosures hitting the market

"In Phoenix, you have a metro area where home prices are already sliding down, and then all of sudden, discounted properties are thrown into the market, too," said Karl Guntermann, the Fred E. Taylor professor of real estate at ASU's W. P. Carey School of Business.

The number of bank-owned houses on the market in Lake Havasu City is still "hundreds more than we'd like to see," Standahl said. However, he said, they now "seem to be selling off faster than they're coming on."

The fact that home prices have dropped begs the question why sales aren't on the rise.

Standahl said the broader real estate market in the region could be leading to fewer home sales in Lake Havasu City.

"A lot of our market is from California, and if they can't sell their home over there, they can't buy one here," Standahl said.

Standahl acknowledged stricter mortgage underwriting standards, and the perception that money is tight could also be discouraging buying.

"You're not seeing the normal moving up. People at this point are just hanging with what they've got," he said.

With home prices down, it simply isn't a good time to think about selling your home if you don't have to, Standahl said.

"But as far as buyers are concerned, you can't find a better market than we have right now," he said.

You may contact the reporter at dparker@havasunews.com.