Philadelphia Inquirer 05/28/14
Splashed across the Business Section of the Inquirer last week was the headline “Analysis: Housing prices in region fell in 1st quarter“. Counter to the nationwide trend of increasing housing prices the suburban areas surrounding Philadelphia saw an average prices drop an average of 5.3% in the 1st quarter of 2014. Delaware County saw a steeper decline with a drop of 8.6%. The regional housing market is struggling to recover from the post recession blues.
Wallingford and Swarthmore saw increases in closed sales over the 1st Quarter 2013 – Wallingford units increased from 27 last year to 39 this year, and Swarthmore saw a net increase of 1 closed sale from 10 last year to 11 this year. The Media market saw sharp declines in closed units across the board.
Just how did our local markets – Wallingford, Swarthmore, and the Media area fare during the 1st quarter 2014:
1st Quarter 2014 Local Market Performance
|
AREA |
2013 AVG |
2014 AVG |
CHANGE |
| Wallingford |
$347,494 |
$240,010 |
-30.9% |
| Swarthmore |
$340,540 |
$320,036 |
-6.0% |
| Media Boro |
$283,638 |
$270,448 |
-4.7% |
| Middletown Twp |
$332,365 |
$304,821 |
-8.3% |
| Upper Providence Twp |
$340,023 |
$307,703 |
-9.5% |
June represents the high water mark of housing activity for the year so we will be able to ascertain if the market has made any significant departure from a weak 1st quarter locally. As mortgage rates have hit 7 month lows recently that excuse no longer is valid, lack of marketable inventory is more likely a culprit, but with a tight supply the expected result would be higher prices right?
Wallingford PA Real Estate – Wallingford, PA 19086
