May was another big month in the Albany housing market. Pending sales were up 19.2% in May as compared to the same month last year for a total of 981 new sales contracts. This is the highest monthly pending sales figure since April 2010, when the government was still handing out generous homebuyer tax credits. Excluding April 2010, we would have to go back to May 2007 to see a month this good for pending home sales in the Albany housing market.
As the housing supply continues to shrink, home prices continue to rise. The May median sales price rose 4.1% from May 2012 to a median sales price of $195,000. This marks the 15th month of year-over-year price gains in the last 16 months. As we’ve discussed for several months, the Albany housing market is steadily improving. For buyers, it’s very possible that what you see today will cost more tomorrow. For reasonable sellers asking a reasonable price, time is on your side.
But this historic housing market of low prices, low interest rates, and large inventory is constantly changing. For those of you actively applying for a mortgage you’ve already seen the mortgage interest rates shift dramatically in just a few weeks. Since April of this year interest rates have climbed from around 3.5% on a 30 year fixed to over 4.15%. Gone are the days of incredibly low interest rates. In the last two months the swing in interest rates has moved well over 0.6%. For example on a 30 year fixed $250,000 mortgage the extra 0.65% in interest amounts to about an extra $100/mo for the life of the loan (around $30,000 in additional interest payments).
As interest rates climb and we get through the hot summer selling season, it’s very likely prices will moderate but continue to rise. However, from a buyers point of view, any moderation in price will likely be eaten up with potential rising interest rates. If you’re looking for a good deal, those days are likely gone for a while (possibly a long while).
Within the Albany and Saratoga county regions, here is how some of the micro markets performed. Take the micro numbers with a grain of salt, as the sample sizes for each region are relatively small with just 75 May sales (at most) in the larger micro markets. Click on the links below in each local real estate market for all of the current homes for sale in that respective housing market.
In the Clifton Park real estate market, new listings were up 12.9%, final sales jumped 30.4%, but the change in median price fell 12.9% (out of 74 sales).
In the Malta real estate market, new listings ballooned 80%, final sales fell 33.3%, and the median sales price dipped by 9.7% (out of 8 sales).
In the Saratoga Springs real estate market, new listings fell 4.1%, final sales exploded by 27.3%, and the median sales price jumped a modest 9.3% (out of 28 sales).
In the Bethlehem real estate market (including Slingerlands, Glenmont, and Delmar), new listings grew 37.7%, final sales increased 16.0%, and the median sales price slid 12.6% (out of 29 sales).
In the North Colonie real estate market, new listings grew by 54.7%, final sales contracted 2.9%, and the median sales price climbed 42.3% (out of 33 sales).
In the City of Albany real estate market – the area with the lowest inventory of active homes for sale – new listings lept by 40.5%, final sales shrunk 25.0%, and the median sales price bumped up 6.1% (out of 33 sales).
For more detailed market numbers, you can visit the Albany County market page or the Saratoga County market page, with links to the specific micro markets.
