Charleston real estate year end report, 2007
After updating the last Charleston South Carolina real estate market report yesterday, I adjusted my excel spreadsheets to reflect the new classifications I'll be tracking for you this year. In 2007, single family homes and condos/townhomes were tracked, for 2008, I'll further report each by price point, over and under 600k. Since it's year end, it made sense to provide you with a comparison of 2007 to 2006 with the new classifications.
Statistics compiled by Howard Arnoff using the Charleston MLS as the source of data, information deemed reliable but not guaranteed.
| 12 month change and comparison to active listings | | |
| | | | |
| Single Family Homes | | | | |
| | | | |
| Under 600k | | | | |
| | | | |
| Date | Sales | Avg Sale | Median Sale | DOM |
| | | | |
| 12 months 1/1/2006-12/31/2006 | 10,903 | $228,908 | $202,500 | 63 |
| 12 months 1/1/2007-12/31/2007 | 8,811 | $233,914 | $207,909 | 86 |
| Change | -19.19% | 2.19% | 2.67% | 36.51% |
| | | | |
| Active (current list price) | 5006 | $271,153 | $235,900 | 143 |
| | | | |
| Over 600k | | | | |
| | | | |
| Date | Sales | Avg Sale | Median Sale | DOM |
| | | | |
| 12 months 1/1/2006-12/31/2006 | 1,161 | $1,120,897 | $875,000 | 105 |
| 12 months 1/1/2007-12/31/2007 | 853 | $1,159,430 | $855,000 | 153 |
| Change | -26.53% | 3.44% | -2.29% | 45.71% |
| | | | |
| Active (current list price) | 1846 | $1,428,665 | $999,950 | 198 |
| | | | |
| Condos and Townhomes | | | | |
| | | | |
| Under 600k | | | | |
| | | | |
| Date | Sales | Avg Sale | Median Sale | DOM |
| | | | |
| 12 months 1/1/2006-12/31/2006 | 3,592 | $194,460 | $177,000 | 63 |
| 12 months 1/1/2007-12/31/2007 | 2,530 | $204,677 | $176,700 | 104 |
| Change | -29.57% | 5.25% | -0.17% | 65.08% |
| | | | |
| Active (current list price) | 2325 | $243,822 | $199,900 | 186 |
| | | | |
| Over 600k | | | | |
| | | | |
| Date | Sales | Avg Sale | Median Sale | DOM |
| | | | |
| 12 months 1/1/2006-12/31/2006 | 222 | $929,890 | $820,000 | 104 |
| 12 months 1/1/2007-12/31/2007 | 181 | $990,252 | $875,000 | 135 |
| Change | -18.47% | 6.49% | 6.71% | 29.81% |
| | | | |
| Active (current list price) | 455 | $1,081,626 | $850,000 | 219 |
A couple of points seem to jump out. Prices actually held up better than I had expected. I would have thought the impact of Charleston luxury real estate which makes up approximately 10% of the real estate market might have "artificially" lifted overall prices but in fact, the opposite is true. Prices actually were slightly stronger when breaking out the luxury market
Don't ask me how that could be, the computer does the calculations (but I did check it) 
But something else jumped out that I've never analyzed previously and it is important looking forward. Look at the active listings and of course, inventory is high. Take a further look and notice the average and median list prices for the active listings and compare them to the average and median sold prices.
List prices are significantly higher in every classification than sold prices except one. By significantly higher, not the 4% or 5% you can generally expect list prices to be compared to the sold price but by 16%, 23% 19% and 9% respectively by classification on an average basis and by 14%, 17% and 13% respectively on a median basis with only luxury condos listed for sale 3% lower than sold prices.
What that says to me is that sellers are still expecting too high a value for their homes and when you take a look at the inventory available and the increasing number of days on the market for active properties, somethings got to give and I think it has to be price.
I don't believe Charleston will (and I hope we don't) experience the price declines we are hearing about in California, Florida, Nevada and some other markets around the country and as I pointed out yesterday when posting foreclosure statistics, South Carolina is in much better condition than those states mentioned above and the states of the industrial Midwest who are experiencing a lot of pain.
Bottom line, asking prices should and must come down and those sellers who want to sell rather than just list need to understand these statistics. Buyers can make offers substantially below list price when the listing price doesn't reflect a seller's hope rather than market conditions (please note, there is a difference between substantially below list price and a low ball offer which has a snowball's chance in h*ll of getting accepted let alone being countered by a seller).