What’s Going on with Short Sales and Foreclosures in Scottsdale?

The following two charts show a few of the the changes in the Scottsdale real estate market over the past three months, in particular related to short sales and foreclosures.  I’ve put small version of of the charts next to each other here, and then larger views, down below, so you can actually read them.

The chart on the left is 3 months old, and the chart on the right is current. You can see that short sales (light blue) and foreclosures (red) have been increasing and now comprise just over 25% of the active listings in Scottsdale. Quite a bit less than most other Phoenix cities, with the possible exception of Tempe.  However, when you look at the actual sales, comparing March to June, you will see that the combination of short sales and foreclosures have decreased, but in actuality, it’s the foreclosure component that’s reduced.  This decrease may be related to the foreclosure moratorium that was introduced by lenders earlier this year.

Looking a bit closer at the dynamics of the market, you can see that the listing prices for normal (no bank involved on seller side), short, and lender-owned properties is holding steady.  However, the average price per square foot, has dropped dramatically. For a normal sale, the price has dropped about 20%, from approximately $250/sf, as of April 2009 to $200/sf in the July chart. Average short sale prices have dropped from $175/sf to $150/sf, and average sales prices of bank-owned properties seem to be leveling off, only dropping from $150 to $140 per square foot.

The Cromford Index is trending in a positive direction, yet still shows significant market distress.

Scottsdale has experienced a different real estate market than most of the rest of the valley.  Yet, in some ways it’s very similar. Foreclosures are being gobbled up. Buyers are resorting to making offers on short sales. Overpriced normal sales sit on the market for months and months.

What’s important for sellers to know is that your house must be priced to the market, if you want sell.  Buyers need to be pre-approved and ready to make a strong offer, so you can act quickly, when you find a seller who is realistic, and a house that’s market-priced.  Competition exists for these well-priced properties, especially if they are in good condition, so it’s very important to keep up on on the current real estate market in Scottsdale.

Related Post:

Scottsdale Short Sale and Foreclosure Update – December 16, 2008

Tagged as: foreclosure moratorium, scotsdale real estate market, scottsdale foreclosures, scottsdale short sales, scottsdame real estate market update