I just read this Realty Check article A Sign of Spring in Housing? – CNBC. on the recent nation wide surge of mortgage purchase applications indicating a 9% one week increase. While one week, the time period over which this increase was measured is short, it is a trend that we have seen in our own South Central PA real estate market in Adams and York Counties.
At the start of 2010 Adams County experienced a whooping 33% increase in units sold in January after finishing 2009 with a 7 % decrease from 2008 to 2009. More encouraging news was also received in York County, where January 2010 finished with a modest 6% increase in units sold after ending 2009 with a 4% increase over 2008.
Both Adams County and York County have overall price point sensitivity with Adams reporting a 7% price decrease in 2009 and York County reporting a 3% decline.
While these are countywide averages, there are a few community pockets that have experienced some limited price and volume growth, Gettysburg, Northern York and Spring Grove to be exact.
The good news, it seems that prices and volume have stopped declining uniformly in all areas and that pockets of volume increases at reduced prices exist in some areas with other communities reporting price stabilization / increase at reduced volumes.
