The number of houses sold typically decreases by 25% to 30% in the winter, said Nelson, who also sits on the board of both the Arizona and National Realtors associations. He added that a lack of inventory has made this winter slower than usual.

He expects this spring to resume the influx of listings and buyers typical for that time of year.

The above-average snowfall last winter had delayed that influx by a couple of months, he said, as sellers waited for the snow to melt before placing their homes on the market.

“Our home prices aren’t really dropping,” Nelson said. “They’re dropping in some neighborhoods and some price ranges, but it's more sporadic than it is an actual trend, in my opinion. We will continue to see that, I think, through 2024 -- the market plateaued in 2023, and we’re going to see that.”

The 1.3% increase in median sale price is smaller than in previous years. Home prices have risen throughout the 2020s so far, with the median sales price for Flagstaff residential homes increasing 11.8% in 2020, 25.2% in 2021 and 13.6% in 2022.

 

 

 

The market review for five years prior lists that Flagstaff’s median sales price was 

$368,000 at the end of 2018 (and was itself 5.1% higher than 2017’s median sales price).

Flagstaff home prices continued to be higher than 2023 statewide averages, which also rose this year.

The Arizona Association of Realtors housing report for December 2023 shows the state's median home price had increased 8.7% from the previous year to $352,536.

 

In this episode of The Hallows Podcast, Wayne, Terri, and Chris talk about limited choices in a small town, tempo in the market, interest rates, and many other topics!

Recently our agent Terri Clark was interviewed for The Hallows Podcast (YouTube). Terri has been in Flagstaff for 23 years, and her experience and knowledge of the area is invaluable.

Terri holds a special place in her heart for families and first-time homebuyers, and works hard for each and every client.

A few topics covered:

• Is Flagstaff a family town?
• Should you wait to buy in Flagstaff?
• What about buying in town, versus in the outer areas?
• Make a realistic plan as a Buyer - know yourself!
• What about a starter home, versus a forever home?
• If you love Flagstaff, just get in and make a start!

And more!

Thanks to The Hallows Team at Benchmark Mortgage for the following video.

Reach out to Terri to learn more about buying or selling in Flagstaff!

Terri Clark

Terri.Clark@RealtyExecutives.com

928-853-4404

Happy Fall!  Every year seems to move faster than the last. This year I celebrated 11 years as a Realtor. Considering this, I thought it might be interesting to compare today’s real estate market with the market ten years ago. The graph below compares statistics for the 3^rd Quarter of 2013 to the 3rd Quarter of 2023.

It is no surprise the median sales price for homes in Flagstaff has increased by 39%. The mortgage interest rate in October of 2013 was 4.39% for a 30-year fixed. On Monday, the mortgage interest rate for 30-year fixed rose to 8.0%. This is the highest we’ve seen since 2000. You might be asking yourself if we are in another real estate bubble. Although it’s not reflected in the graph above, the months of inventory and the number of unsold listings skyrocketed in 2007-2008. This was more dominant in larger, metropolitan markets such as Phoenix and Las Vegas. The number of unsold listings and the months of supply have both decreased from 2013 to 2023. It is also important to note that the percentage of cash sales has also increased, demonstrating the strength of investors and second-home buyers.

While some of these stats might seem depressing, there is hope. Mortgage interest rates fluctuate. If you buy a home with a higher than desired rate, you can refinance when rates go down. If rates continue to rise, it’s best to get into a home sooner rather than later so you are not paying a higher rate along with higher prices.  Builders and sellers are beginning to offer point buy-down opportunities for interested, qualified buyers. Our Flagstaff market might have seen fewer sales this year but none of them were distressed properties. (One caveat, the MLS doesn’t show foreclosure sales that happen on the courthouse steps. It only records those properties sold through the MLS. The distressed properties would be classified on the MLS as short-sales.) There have been fewer unsold listings and homes are selling for closer to the list price. Demand for homes is still exceeding the supply we have available in our area. Owning real estate remains the best investment and the greatest indicator of generational wealth.

I could go on and on but this seems enough for now. If you would like a longer explanation or if you have questions, please let me know. I love to talk about our real estate market! If you know of friends or family who have real estate questions, I would appreciate the referral.

Our office, Realty Executives of Flagstaff, is once again competing in Best of Flag. It would be so appreciated if you would vote for us in the Real Estate category. You can text 654 to 928-770-6559. You can vote once daily through October 31.