Summit County home sales dipped from September a year ago, as inventory remained tight.
September was the first time in 15 months that sales were down from the same month the year prior.
There were 449 homes sold last month, down 3 percent from the 463 sold in September 2011 and up 21 percent from the 371 sold in the same month in 2010, according to the Akron Area Board of Realtors.
Ali Whitley, president of the Akron Area Board of Realtors, isn’t fretting about the drop in sales.
“We had such a strong market this summer, and our pendings [sales that have not yet closed] are still strong,” she said. “We’re looking like we’ll have a nice number of closings for the fall season.”
Whitley noted that a decrease in inventory — number of homes for sale — meant those looking to buy had fewer choices: “We’re not in as much of a buyer’s market.”
Summit County’s inventory in September was 3,593, a drop of 26.4 percent from the 4,879 homes available in September 2011 and a decline of 27 percent from the 4,926 homes available in August 2011.
Still, Whitley said low interest rates should continue to help boost sales.
The Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corp. said this week that the average 30-year fixed mortgage interest rate ticked down from 3.39 percent to 3.37 percent. The average rate on the 15-year mortgage fell from 2.7 percent to 2.66 percent.
Summit County’s year-to-date home sales — for January through September — totaled 4,300. That was up nearly 12 percent from the 3,842 sold in the first nine months of 2011 and up an increase of nearly 16 percent over the 3,711 sold in the first nine months in 2010.
While sales were down in September, prices were up.
The median sales price in September in Summit increased 14.7 percent to $114,688 from $100,000 in September 2011. The average sales price rose 11.8 percent to $140,082 from $125,330 in September 2011.
Across the state, sales of new and existing homes were 5.6 percent higher in September, resulting in the state’s 15th consecutive monthly sales gain, according to the Ohio Association of Realtors.
The 15 months is “the longest uninterrupted period of sales growth we’ve experienced in Ohio since we began tracking sales in 1998,” said Bob Miller, president of the Ohio Association of Realtors, in a news release.
Statewide sales posted a 12 percent increase during the first nine months of 2012 compared to the same period a year ago.
Katie Byard can be reached at 330-996-3781 or kbyard@thebeaconjournal.com.