Homes for sale in Vancouver WA and nearby cities in Clark County in May 2010 continued to see pressure from Distressed Properties (Pre-Foreclosures and Short Sales), and from Foreclosed properties (bank owned homes) garnering the attention of home buyers, and putting downward pressure on prices for the remaining available inventory.
Only a few real estate news sources report on the actual level of distressed property sales in Vancouver, and we are one of them. Gathering the data ourselves from the local MLS data base the Distressed Property Category (Short Sales and Bank Owned/REOs) made up 35.7% of the Active Inventory; but were 47% of the Pending sales for the month of May. This puts Vancouver Real Estate squarely in a Buyers Market with at least half of the buyers going for a great deal.
On the positive side of the equation several factors have helped to stabilize prices (and even help with a modest seasonal price increase) and promote a healthier housing market. The first factor has been the modest level of increased buying in March and April as buyers were taking advantage of the Federal Tax Credit options for qualified first and second time home buyers.
The second positive factor has been the home loan interest rate for qualified buyers going solidly below five (5) percent. Every incremental lowering of the loan rate greatly improves the affordability of a home purchase. From what we've seen the current rates are truly at the lowest point in fifty or more years!
The third positive factor helping home prices has been the increasing number of sales of homes in the pricing tiers above $250,000. The positive movement in this segment may not increase actual home values but, mathematically it does help the average home sales price firm up or slightly increase.
We are also seeing a very visible pulse in New Home construction in all parts of lower Clark County. We live in Felida and at least two home builders have several millions of dollars in new homes nearing completion. We also have clients in Camas building a new home, right along side over 20 other new homes that are being constructed! Two key elements we've seen fueling the new construction activity are: 1) construction on lots that had been foreclosed and then sold at steep discounts; 2) buyers that could finance the construction loan with 20% or more in down-payment.
The local Vancouver WA MLS board has recently changed the way they count Days on the Market and thus the year to year statistics don't match up well. However, it is our observation that home sellers who price their homes at market should expect from 3 weeks to 8 weeks to see traffic and perhaps an offer. If the home is priced above the market the wait could be indefinite.
To see for yourself what real estate is available in Vancouver WA (USA) please visit Vancouver WA Homes For Sale.
