Bullish on homes
Albuquerque association says homes are selling faster than last year, especially condos and townhomes
WE TELL BUYERS NOW THAT THEY CAN’T BE AS PICKY AS A YEAR OR TWO AGO WHEN (THERE WAS MORE INVENTORY) AND THEY WOULD WANT TO LOOK AND LOOK AND LOOK. JON SCHNOOR GREATER ALBUQUERQUE ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS PRESIDENT
Homes in the Albuquerque market are selling faster than a year ago, according to a new residential report from the Greater Albuquerque Association of Realtors.
The association’s third-quarter report covering July, August and September shows homes in the greater Albuquerque area sold in an average of 48 days, compared to 58 days during the same period in 2015. For condos and townhomes, the pace was even quicker — 46 days as opposed to 64 days a year ago. Rio Rancho was the most brisk in the amount of time for singlefamily homes to sell: 38 days on the market, down from 62 days a year ago.
Single-family detached home sales increased 6.3 percent from the third quarter of 2015, according to the association. And the average sales price for detached homes was up by 3.3 percent to $228,271. The data cover the city of Albuquerque and Bernalillo, Valencia, Sandoval, Torrance and parts of Socorro and Santa Fe counties.
“We’re still closing loans at 3.5 percent,” said Jon Schnoor, association president. That financing factor is getting more folks out of apartments and onto the first rung of homeownership.
Homes that show well and are reasonably priced go fast, said Schnoor. “We tell buyers now that they can’t be as picky as a year or two ago when (there was more inventory) and they would want to look and look and look.”
“They have to be ready to move” if they are serious, said Schnoor, adding the areas charting the most sales during the quarter were in the Northeast Heights, mid-Rio Rancho and the Southwest Heights.
One longtime Albuquerque real-estate agent has been staying busy helping baby boomer clients transition from large single-family homes to condos and townhomes. “If they are in a nice neighborhood, have low upkeep and a tiny yard or patio,” they go fast, said Linda McCreary of Signature Southwest Properties.
Boomers can sell a 4,000-square-foot home on three-quarters of an acre where they raised their kids and downsize to something pretty decent. “They can buy something for cash and have enough left over to book a cruise,” said McCreary.
McCreary is currently seeing strong interest in a two-bedroom, two-bathroom patio home on Knollwood Drive NE in the Bear Canyon neighborhood. “It is quiet, very accessible, near a golf course and Sprouts Farmers Market is just down the street,” she said of the home, which is listed for $180,000.
And one of the best parts: There’s no homeowners’ association fees, said McCreary.