Big Bear Home Sales
Home sales in Big Bear jumped up 22% in April 2009 as compared to the same month last year, from 50 in April 2008 vs. 61 in Apirl 2009.
Also, when compared to the March 2009 home sales, they were up 13% (54 vs. 61).
Any rise is sales is always a welcome sign, but a leveling off or rise in prices would be better for home sellers.
Year to date, sales are are still up 40% from 2008 (163 vs. 228).
31, or 51%, of the 61 home sales in Big Bear were bank owned while 5, or 8%, were short sales. That means 25, or 41%, of the sales in April 2009 were “organic”, or traditional sellers.
Expect the bank owned & short sale properties to continue to make up 50% or more of the sales throughout the year as there are going to be more & more coming on the market for sale.
The sales are up because the prices are down.
The buyers today are buying for a reason – to get a deal! If the property is not a deal, it won’t sell in this market, plain and simple.
Big Bear Home Prices
The median price for the homes sold was down nearly 32% from the April 2008 median sales price, but it was up nearly 14% from the median price in March 2009. This number tends to fluctuate a bit given the limited number of sales, but any increase is better than a consistent decrease.
Keep an eye on this number over the coming months as a leveling off will mean things are bottoming out – still too early to tell.
There is still a $95,000 difference in the median asking price of $300,000 and the median selling price of $205,000.
If you are trying to sell your Big Bear home in this market, then it will require a realistic price. Banks understand this principle statement. Banks price to sell!
That’s why bank owned and short sale properties make up 50% of the sales, yet only make up 16% (143 of the 894) of the total amount of what is for sale.
The median asking price for bank owned & short sales properties in Big Bear is $200,000, $5000 under the median selling price. More importantly, it is $100,000, or 33%, below the median asking price for “organic” sellers.
Homes Currently on the Market.
Last year this time there were approx. 1100 homes on the market. Today there are 894. That is only 1 higher than last month, but I do expect us to climb over 1000 as we head into the summer selling season and more of the bank owned inventory hits the market.
Banks have been holding off on putting their properties on the market, as well as delaying the foreclosure process on those homes in default. And this build up will hit our market later this year.
Big Bear Home Sales – Thru April 2009
| Month and Year | # Homes For Sale | Median Asking $ | # Homes Sold | Median Sales $ |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| April 2009 | 894 | $300,000 | 61 | $205,000 |
| Mar 2009 | 893 | $299,950 | 54 | $179,500 |
| Feb 2009 | 889 | $309,000 | 57 | $217,000 |
| Jan 2009 | 902 | $319,000 | 47 | $220,000 |
| Dec 2008 | 956 | $320,905 | 41 | $262,000 |
| Nov 2008 | 1032 | $325,000 | 50 | $240,287 |
| Oct 2008 | 1078 | $329,000 | 73 | $255,000 |
| Sept 2008 | 1109 | $328,500 | 82 | $224,500 |
| Aug 2008 | 60 | $282,500 | ||
| July 2008 | 62 | $205,000 | ||
| June 2008 | 62 | $247,500 | ||
| May 2008 | 67 | $290,000 | ||
| April 2008 | 50 | $299,500 | ||
| Mar 2008 | 1082 | $339,950 | 49 | $288,000 |
| Feb 2008 | 1049 | $345,000 | 34 | $249,950 |
| Jan 2008 | 1094 | $339,900 | 30 | $283,250 |
| Dec 2007 | 55 | $273,750 | ||
| Nov 2007 | 66 | $282,500 | ||
| Oct 2007 | 53 | $310,000 | ||
| Sept 2007 | 60 | $269,750 | ||
| Aug 2007 | 81 | $310,000 | ||
| July 2007 | 70 | $293,450 | ||
| June 2007 | 59 | $350,000 | ||
| May 2007 | 81 | $309,900 | ||
| April 2007 | 59 | $340,000 |
Year To Date Comparison (1/1- 4/30)
| Year | # of Homes Sold | Median Sales Price | Average Sales Price | Days on Market | List Price to Sales Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 | 228 | $202,500 | $272,860 | 130 | 95% |
| 2008 | 163 | $285,000 | $370,966 | 134 | 94% |
| 2007 | 272 | $317,450 | $407,031 | 125 | 96% |
| 2006 | 366 | $320,000 | $403,144 | 74 | 97% |
| 2005 | 474 | $269,500 | $333,231 | 90 | 98% |
| 2004 | 533 | $201,600 | $251,132 | 93 | 97% |
| 2003 | 480 | $176,500 | $217,838 | 54 | 98% |
As mentioned above, home sales for the year are up 40% from 2008.
The median & average sales price for 2009 are down 29% & 27% respectively. Prices remain in the 2003 to 2004 levels, and will probably still have another 10% or so to drop. This all depends on the bank owned properties that come up.
Stay tuned!
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* Note: The charts above will be updated on a monthly basis. It represents single family home sales in the Big Bear area, including Big Bear Lake, Big Bear City, Moonridge, Fox Farm, Sugarloaf, Erwin Lake, & Fawnskin. Data courtesy of the Big Bear MLS. These numbers do not include raw land or condos nor does not include homes in the Big Bear MLS that are located out of the Big Bear area.
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Big Bear Home Sales For March 2009 & First Qtr.
Bank Owned & Short Sale Homes Taking Market Share In Big Bear
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