The Iowa Association of Realtors says home sales statewide were up just over 43-percent in November. Association president, Carey Jensen says the homebuyers tax credit was originally supposed to end November 30th and that is likely a big factor in the increased sales.
Jensen says it appears that way, although she doesn’t have all the information on the sales. She says over 20 of their Realtor boards reported sales of over 50%. There are a total of 44 Realtor boards in the state.
She says there were only 11 boards across the state that reported a down trend in the number of sales, which she says is an improvement over last year at this time. The average sale price of homes was 138-thousand-375 dollars, which was down over last year in November.
Jensen says the price decline was point-nine percent which they consider flat. Jensen says she doesn’t expect the colder weather to have much of an impact on sales. Jensen says typically in the midwest things hold steady until right before the holidays when things slow down, as she says realtors slow down a little for the holidays themselves.
But she says people still have to move in the winter due to job transfers and other situations, so they still see good sales through December. Jensen says the tax credit has been extended for first-time buyers and expanded to include current home owners as well, so they hope to keep the momentum going in the new year.
The total number of homes sold across Iowa in November was 2,759, compared to 1,925 homes sold in November of last year.