Sales of single family detached homes in metro Albuquerque increased during October, defying the traditional seasonal slowdown. The 731 detached homes sold during October were an 11% increase over the 661 homes sold during September. October sales were up 43% from October 2008 and more than double the 324 homes sold in January, the period of slowest sales during the current cycle.
The October sales were the second highest of 2009, behind only July, and third highest since August 2007. The average detached home sold during October remained on the market for 71 days, the shortest sales period of the year.
There were 900 homes with the sale pending during October, a 56.5% increase over October 2008. This performance indicates that sales should remain strong for November, even as the seasonally cold weather slows activity from previous months.
For townhouses and condominiums, October closed sales and pending sales showed an even better year over year improvement than did the detached homes, up 46% and 78% respectively.
Sales of homes priced between $100,000 and $199,000 dominated the metro region during October. This price group accounted for 446 sales or 61% of the October total.
The average price for a detached home was $209,614 during October, essentially unchanged from September, and up 1.7% from April. Average and median prices dropped from October 2008 for detached homes, townhouses and condominiums.
During October, a total of 4,938 active listings were available around the metro Albuquerque area, down 17% from a year earlier. October was the first month since April 2007 showing active listings at fewer than 5,000. With the continued reduction in listings, metro Albuquerque is becoming less of a buyers market, especially for more affordable homes.
Head to the Rio Grande Botanic Garden to get a quick holiday fix at the annual River of Lights.
One of the things I LOVE about Albuquerque is all the public art! I am excited about The Urban Forest Project, which displays banners created by local artists and designers on light poles. Middle school and high school students will have a special exhibit at the Zoo and Biopark. Even cooler, when the exhibit concludes, the banners will be recycled into tote bags and sold, proceeds benfitting Tree New Mexico to support their tree planting efforts in Albuquerque and their mission to “keep New Mexico clean, beautiful and healthy.”
Do you flush your old med's down the toilet, or throw them in the trash? Apparently those are no-no's, as the medicine can break down and enter the water system. The city water utility authority is implementing a program to encourage proper disposal of old and expired medications to prevent them from entering the Rio Grande and its ecosystem.
