Bentonville Market Update Oct. 1
/Or close to Oct. 1 !
Bentonville Market Watch
It's time for a market update for the Bentonville Real Estate market.
I am still seeing trends of ever-increasing prices in a market that has plateaued. I think a bit of a draw-back is in order.
Reminder - average is the total of all listed price per sqft divided by the total number of homes listed. Median is the spot where there are an equal number of homes listed above and below the price given. These are numbers provided to agents as a means of determining market trends.
There are currently 519 residential listings with a Bentonville address. The average list price is 159 per square foot and the median is 128 per sqft. This spread between average and median indicates a large number of homes at a high price per sqft, or an unbalanced market. The closer these two numbers are, the more balanced the market.
Currently there are 48 homes listed between 0 and $200,000. Average list is $109 per sqft and median is $113 per sqft, a very balanced market. The sales have been 323 in the last six months at an average sale of $108 and a median of $109. This indicates that if you currently have a house that is valued at $200,000 or below, you are pretty assured of being able to list it at $109 per sqft and it will sell at $108 per sqft. There are almost exactly 50 of these homes selling per month and there are currently only 48 listed. So your home will likely sell quickly due to a low supply. We need your listings!
The $200,000 to $350,000 breaks down like this:
There are 202 currently listed at an average of $144 per sqft. The median price is $125 per sqft, again an unbalanced market. 336 have sold in the last six months, or 56 per month. So there is an inventory of about 4 months. The selling prices have been $119 per sqft average and $118 per sqft median, balanced numbers, indicating the exact spot a home in this range should be listed at to sell quickly.
The $350,000 to 500,000 range:
154 currently listed with an average of $152 per sqft and a median of $128 per sqft. Unbalanced pricing and there have been 131 sell in the last six months, so we have a 6 month supply. The sales prices have been $131 per sqft average and $126 per sqft median. This is a balanced selling point, as both numbers indicate a close range of values for homes.
The $500,000 to 750,000 range:
83 homes listed, with an average price of $177 per sqft and a median of $152 per sqft. A bit better but still unbalanced overall. The sales have been 47 in the last 6 months at an average of $153 per sqft and a median of $136 per sqft. There is, therefore, a 10 month supply of these homes on hand. Can you see the pattern? Overpriced homes don't sell as well as homes in the average sales range for a six month period. The median price is usually closer to the selling price.
In the $750,000 to $1 mil range, there are 23 listed at an average of $200 per sqft and a median of $171 per sqft. There have been 2 that have sold in the last 6 months, giving a 12 month supply. The average of these has been $230 per sqft and the median is the same. In this price range, and above, the pricing varies according to the building much more than less expensive homes. It's much easier to have $100,000 in remodel or upgrades in these homes.
Above a million dollars is a desert. There are 14 of these homes listed. The last one that sold was in May of 2016. I have eliminated properties with large amounts of land and properties that are directly downtown. And these are only ones that are listed in the multi-list. But that would indicate that those 19 homes listed at over a million will be on the market for quite some time. If your home didn't sell quickly then you are probably overpriced and need to lower if you want to sell. Cold hard facts. In the last 1000 days only 7 have sold.
That doesn't mean it won't. It just better be really special.
Pay attention to your agent and your pricing. I used to know all of the agents and I trusted nearly every one to do the right thing. There are now 3182 agents in the Northwest Arkansas Board of Realtors. That's overkill by about 2000 agents. Everyone is scrambling for whatever business is out there. 2772 residential properties sold in Benton and Washington Counties in the last six months. You can do the math. There are a few people doing a lot of business and a lot of people doing ZERO business. It's in the numbers and they don't lie.
For the average homeowner, It does no good to overprice your home. You are getting sign-worn and both you and your agent are getting frustrated. If you are way over the averages of list and sell, ask yourself why. Would it be more prudent to fall closer in line with the market averages? This is not always the real estate agent's fault by the way. Sometimes the homeowner won't listen to reason. But in many instances, an agent just wants a listing, any listing, at whatever the cost. I see some agents do this and they have a huge inventory but little in the way of closed listings in proportion.
Conversely, how many times have you seen an agent trumpet that a listing, "Sold in TWO DAYS!" What does that tell you about the pricing? Because I can guarantee you, if your home sells in two days, someone didn't find out how they should correctly price your home unless there were literally no comparisons. You are leaving money on the table.
Call me or come by, email me, if you have questions. If you want to know what your home is truly worth in today's market and the time needed to sell it, give me a call. I'll give you some no-nonsense advice.
Thanks for listening!