A 10-year look at the 2009 Phoenix Real Estate market

Housing Tracker Phoenix

I usually break down the Phoenix housing market on a micro level. But, and as Monty Python used to say, "and now for something entirely different," here's a look at the larger macro picture.

I was interested to see just how far prices have dropped since the boom years. So I logged into the multiple listing service, came up with a few criteria, pushed a few buttons, and here you go: a 10-year look at the average price and price per square foot in the Phoenix housing market. This is my disclaimer: this information came directly from the Arizona Regional MLS. Any realtor and can get the same information. I'm not responsible for any errors in the data. OK, now that that's over with, let's get back to this post.

Read that chart in this manner: in 2009 there were 92,146 residential sales in the Phoenix area. That total sales volume equaled $15,668,606,573, or an average price of $170,045. Since the average sold home was 1,930 square feet, the average price per square foot in the Phoenix housing market for 2009 was $88.00

Housing Tracker

Phoenix residents and those in the know realize the rest of the chart isn't really any ground breaking news because this information was available on an intuitive basis. In other words, we all knew that house values started an amazing increase in 2004 - 2005 and that many people bathed in the "afterglow" during 2006. But seeing these numbers all in one place -- and in black and white -- is a littleshock to the system. However, then the foreclosure crisis set in and home values decreased to their current state.

You can see a $94.00 drop in the price per square foot from 2006 to 2009. Obviously, that is due to the fact that approximately 55% of all homes sold in 2008 - 2009 were foreclosure-type properties. I'm talking about bank owned homes and short sales. That quantity of foreclosure sales is enough to suck the life out of values in any housing market (and we won't name other housing markets in this post -- you know which ones I'm talking about ).

When people ask me "is this the time to buy real estate" I can now honestly say prices are lower than they have been in the last 10 years.

Phoenix real estate

Housing Tracker Phoenix

Phoenix housing market

December 2009 Housing Tracker - Phoenix Market

Here is another in a series of reports for our regular housing tracker. Phoenix market results for December 2009 indicated an increase in the number of homes that sold for under $100,000. December 2009 is the first month in which there was any significant increase in this statistical category.

Looking at the total number of homes that sold for under $100,000 is one way to look at Metro Phoenix housing. Market tracker information is revealed in the following chart and is read in this manner: "There were 7,670 homes sold in metropolitan Phoenix during the month of December 2009. 2,811 (or 36.6%) of all thesesales were under $100,000. 2,249 of those homes (80% of the total) were foreclosure type sales."

As indicated by the color yellow, this number had been on a decline since a peak of 3,866 homes in May 2009. At that time 90% of all homes that sold for under $100,000 were foreclosure-type sales (indicated in orange).

A primary reason for the June through November decline has been thegradual increase of home prices in the Phoenix area. Our Phoenix housing market tracker has indicated the increase began in April 2009 when the average price in the entire metropolitan area was approximately $84.00 per square foot. Price per square foot in December 2009 was approximately $91.00.

Phoenix Real Estate and Homes for Sale

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Phoenix Housing Market

Phoenix homes for sale ranked 21st most affordable at $78 per square foot in Metro area

This table ranks Metro Phoenix cities and their corresponding homes for sale by their annual average sales price per square foot. Only single family detached homes are included in these numbers. Information for major and secondary cities is current as of September 30th, 2009. Data for the small cities is updated on a monthly basis, and is measured on the 13th of each month. As you can see, Phoenix homes for sale are more affordable than those in many surrounding communities.

The primary function of this table is to show the least and most affordable homes for sale in the Phoenix metropolitan area together with longer term pricing trends.

Annual averages are based on a relatively large number of sales. Therefore they are not as subject to rapid change as monthly averages. The downside is that they do not necessarily represent the "current" market (or market right at this moment on 9/30/2009) very accurately, since they include sales from up to a year ago. Pricing may have moved a great deal since then. However, the information is consistent for all homes for sale in the Phoenix area and will give good trending information.

Note that Higley has been included in Gilbert and Ahwatukee included in Phoenix. Desert Hills is still counted separately though it is increasingly being incorporated into Phoenix.

Note that Phoenix is second only to Tonopah Arizona with the largest year over year (YOY) decrease in average price per square foot for all homes for sale in a range that extends from $337 to $59 per square foot.This can be attributed to the large number of new home communities built in west Phoenix over the last seven years, complete with all of the bad financing and other troubles that led to the classic foreclosure profile we have now come to know.

Statistical Information courtesy of the CromfordReport.com