Big Bear Home Sales
Home sales in Big Bear took a hit in May 2009, falling nearly 14% from May 2008 numbers – 65 in May 2008 vs. 56 in May 2009. This is the first month in 2009 where the monthly home sales were less than the same month last year. A sign of things to come?
Compared to the April 2009 home sales, they were down just about 8% (61 vs. 56).
Year to date, sales are are still up about 23% from 2008, but that number is rapidly decreasing (231 vs. 285). Keep in mind, sales in 2009 were close to 50% stronger after the first 3 months of this year.
14, or 25%, of the 56 home sales in Big Bear were bank owned. That is about half of what is was last month. 4, or 7%, were short sales. That means 38, or 68%, of the sales in May 2009 were “organic”, or traditional sellers. This is good news for these sellers, as it is the first month in nearly 6 months that they have made up a majority of what is selling.
Unfortunately, I expect the bank owned & short sale properties 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.
Big Bear Home Prices
For the second straight month, the median sales price in Big Bear has gone up.
While the median price for the homes sold was down nearly 19% from the May 2008 median sales price, it was up nearly 15% from the median price in April 2009. This number tends to fluctuate a bit given the limited number of sales, but any increase is better than a consistent decrease. This will be an important number to keep an eye on. (See the chart below for the historical median prices).
If it starts to level off like this, that could mean a market bottom, but with all the foreclosures still coming up, along with the job losses, I remain skeptical.
There is still a $86,000 difference between the median asking price of $316,000 and the median selling price of $235,000.
Some “organic” sellers are starting to understand that if they want to sell, they need to be priced very aggressively. Many times this comes after being on the market for many months – a hard lesson.
The median asking price for bank owned & short sales properties in Big Bear is $225,000, $10,000 under the median selling price. More importantly, it is $91,000, or 29%, below the median asking price for “organic” sellers.
Homes Currently on the Market.
The number of properties on the market for sale in Big Bear continues to hover around 900. It has been there for the 6 months but I’d expect this number to get closer to the 1200-1300 range by late summer. The summer selling season is when most of the homes in Big Bear sell so sellers try to take advantage of this time. Add to the those the bank owned properties that are coming up and it should increase pretty rapidly.
Big Bear Home Sales – Thru May 2009
| Month and Year | # Homes For Sale | Median Asking $ | # Homes Sold | Median Sales $ |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 2009 | 902 | $316,000 | 56 | $235,000 |
| 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 |
Year To Date Comparison (1/1- 5/31)
| Year | # of Homes Sold | Median Sales Price | Average Sales Price | Days on Market | List Price to Sales Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 | 285 | $200,000 | $269,617 | 129 | 94% |
| 2008 | 231 | $286,900 | $366,669 | 136 | 94% |
| 2007 | 351 | $325,000 | $415,251 | 121 | 96% |
| 2006 | 471 | $320,000 | $401,540 | 76 | 97% |
| 2005 | 636 | $265,000 | $331,560 | 83 | 98% |
| 2004 | 701 | $215,000 | $260,600 | 90 | 97% |
| 2003 | 600 | $174,450 | $216,206 | 54 | 98% |
As mentioned above, home sales for the year are up 23% from 2008.
The median & average sales price for 2009 are down 30% & 26% respectively. Prices remain in the 2003 to 2004 levels.
Want more? Be sure to sign up for my email newsletter or RSS feed.
* 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.
Related Articles
Big Bear Home Sales For April 2009
Bank Owned & Short Sale Homes Taking Market Share In Big Bear
Speak Your Mind