Pending Home Sales Sink 2.6 Percent in June
Published: Tuesday, 3 Aug 2010 | 11:05 AM ET

By: Reuters
Contracts for pending sales of previously owned U.S. homes fell to a record low in June as buyers sat on the sidelines, a survey from the National Association of Realtors showed on Tuesday.

The Realtors said its Pending Home Sales Index, based on contracts signed in June, fell to a record low 75.7 from a revised 77.7 in May. Economists polled by Reuters had expected a rise of 0.6 percent.
“We really need to see stronger job creation to have a meaningful recovery in the housing markets,” said NAR chief economist Lawrence Yun, adding “there could be a couple of additional months of slow home-sales activity before picking up later in the year” if the job market improves.
The June decline followed a 30 percent drop in May after a popular tax credit expired at the end of April.
The index was 18.6 percent lower than in June 2009 and fell in three of four regions compared to the prior month.
Contracts rose 3.7 percent in the South, the country’s largest region, but dropped by 0.2 percent in the West, by 12.2 percent in the Northeast and by 9.5 percent in the Midwest.
Copyright 2010 Reuters.

Haynes Crossing subdivision, Grayson, Ga. is conveniently located in Gwinnett County near Hwy. 78 and Hwy.124. The neighborhood is minutes away from fine shopping and dining at The Avenue at Webb  Ginn.

Haynes Crossing is very close to outstanding amenities like the Mall of Ga., Gwinnett Mall, Discover Mills Mall, Gwinnett Civic Center and Gwinnett Arena. It is very close to the Hwy. 78/Hwy. 124 corridor with all the fine restaurants and all types of shopping. Great location for commute to work being 20 minutes from I-285, I-85 and 30 minutes from I-20. Haynes Crossing is one of Grayson’s most established and desirable neighborhoods.

The outstanding local schools that serve are Grayson Elementary, Bay Creek Middle and Grayson High School. The school buses make stops throughout the neighborhood.

Homes in Haynes Crossing are typically priced from the $ 140,000 range to $ 235,000, so there really are homes in a choice of price ranges for any Gwinnett home buyer.

CLICK HERE TO VIEW ALL AVAILABLE HOMES IN HAYNES CROSSING

Has the credit made a difference?  Yes.  Would those individuals have purchased anyway, most likely.  What the credit has done was created a since of urgency and lowered the inventory levels quickly.

I have had a few buyers that have not gotten under contract to qualify for the credit and the clock is ticking.  Most of them early on made the choice to find a home that they love no matter how long it takes to find it rather than rush just to get the $8,000 credit.  These are the wise buyers.

The buyers trying to get under contract have been involved in multiple offer deals where there has been intense competition.  Banks and individuals have been holding firm on their offer price.  The ones that have won the bids have offered full list price or more.

Think about it, just months ago you could get a bank or individual to negotiate, and now they are holding strong.  I think this will continue until April 30, when demand will drop off.  At that point, then they will be more agreeable to negotiate.

Is the $8,000 credit held prices artificially high? I believe that sellers felt that could get $8,000 more for their home with the credit. Those who didn’t sell will see the reduced demand equate into price reductions.

I am glad that the credit was not considered for another extension so the market can get around to self correcting.  Selfishly I want a normal market, not artificially stimulated.   Myself and many of my colleagues agree that letting the free market find its balance will be the quickest way to get back to normal.

New buyers after April 30 will be in short supply, but we will be busy getting all the homes to closing by June 30.  During this time we will have to work hard since any issues found during inspections that could kill the deal may cost the buyer $8,000. Expect sellers to be tough about making repairs or concessions since they know every issue after April 30 is a $8,000 issue.

Keep focused on keeping the relationship of protecting your clients during the next two challenging months.  Remember, our partners are getting ready to get real busy. Our inspectors, lender, appraisers and closing attorneys all need our support and patience.

Spring Arbor in Lawrenceville, Georgia is conveniently located in Gwinnett County near Webb Ginn Road & Hwy 20. The neighborhood is only minutes from The Avenues at Webb Ginn, Fine Dining and Gwinnett Parks and Recreation.

Spring Arbor is home to outstanding amenities like Swimming Pool, Tennis Courts and Clubhouse Facility.

The outstanding local schools that serve Spring Arbor are Sterling Elementary, Couch Middle, & Grayson High school. Gwinnett County schools are among some of the finest in the state.

Home in Spring Arbor are typically priced from the mid $ 200’s to the high $ 300’s, so there are homes in a choice of price ranges for any Lawrenceville or Gwinnett home buyer.

Click here to see homes for sale in Spring Arbor.

Vanderbilt subdivision, Sugar Hill, Georgia is conveniently located in Gwinnett County off Level Creek Road north of West Price Road and close to E. E. Robinson Park. The neighborhood is only minutes from downtown Suwanee.

Vanderbilt is very close to outstanding amenities like shopping, fine restaurants, and Old Town Suwanee.

The outstanding local schools that server Vanderbilt are Level Creek Elementary, Lanier Middle, & North Gwinnett High School.

Home in Vanderbilt are typically priced from$225K to $330K, so there are homes in a choice of price ranges for any Sugar Hill or Gwinnett county home buyer.

SEE AVAILABLE HOMES IN VANDERBILT

Markim Forest, Sugar Hill, Georgia is conveniently located in Gwinnett County off Level Creek Road north of West Price Road and close to E. E. Robinson Park. The neighborhood is only minutes from downtown Suwanee.

Markim Forest is very close to outstanding amenities like shopping, fine restaurants, and Old Town Suwanee.

The outstanding local schools that server Markim Forest Are Level Creek Elementary, Lanier Middle, & North Gwinnett High School.

Home in Markim Forest are typically priced from$155K to $180K, so there are homes in a choice of price ranges for any Sugar Hill or Gwinnett county home buyer.

You can see all of the available homes in this subdivision by visiting our site.

Its almost the first of March and if you write an offer on a short sale home tomorrow, March 1 and it takes the four to five months to get  closed as we just experienced, if you are lucky, you are closing on the last allowable day, June 30, to get the $8,000 first time homebuyer credit from the federal government.  Miss that by one day and you miss the $8,000.

Now I’m not a gambling man and don’t know if you are, but, I wouldn’t risk the chance of losing $8,000 waiting on the bank.  There are thousands of homes out there for sale that only need the owner, Mr. and Mrs. Homeowner to sign and then you can close in less than 45 days from offer to move-in.

I am advising my first time home buyer clients to beware of short sales if they want to get to the finish line and collect $8,000.  While I know this news disturbs all the agents with short sale listings, the main reason is many agents don’t understand the short sale process and have not done the work to get the front end work done to speed up the process.

Likewise I have a couple of buyers looking to secure the $6,500 second home buyers credit and I am advising them likewise to beware of writing a contract for a new home that has not been started, up out of the ground.  With all the rain we have been experiencing there is a good chance of delays when digging a foundation, pouring concrete slabs and framing up a home.

Bottom line, there are risks with short sales where you can’t control the banks and new construction where you can’t control the weather.  To be sure to qualify for the first time homebuyer $8,000 and second home $6,500 write a contract that has a great chance of closing in time and don’t ride a deal down to the end only to run past June 30.

Mark helps clients in Gwinnett, North Fulton, Forsyth & Cobb County. Click here to register for a Free Home Buying Guide.

Like the line in the Don McLean song American Pie “some thing touched me deep inside the day the music died”, we were all touched when the tapping of hammers almost came to a stop in the last few years. Well I’m here to tell you that the music has resumed as I witnessed it with my own ears this week.

While searching the MLS for a home for transferee I found those listings we use to find, ones without a picture and only a sketch or rendering of what the home would look like. Well, my buyer and I ventured to see the development where the four sketches were being built.

Like music to our ears we arrived in a beehive of activity and red mud. There was raw dirt just recently exposed for multiple basements and the heavy equipment was parked on an empty lot down the hill. Trucks full of concrete were there with their loads spinning, waiting to pour down the chute to the carefully prepared forms.

There were vans and trucks of all shapes and colors parked along one side of the road. Back when we moved into the new subdivision I remember the traffic jams all the construction vehicles would cause and remembered complaining when they parked on both sides of the road totally blocking access. Now instead of complaints of traffic jams we welcome the confusion and congestion because it represents recovery for us all.

I just stood back and took it all in. Twelve homes under construction in one subdivision and five in another. There must have been at least sixty construction workers of some sort there. Think of it, sixty jobs when we are a country starved for jobs. And think of the other jobs the construction was creating through the ripple down to suppliers and subsequent trades to be on site during the building process.

Here was a ‘manned’ sales office with an agent on duty. When was the last time you heard that one. The builder was in his office, managing schedules of labor and materials. Everyone had mud on their shoes. It was great!

How sweet the memories that this experience conjured up, with the smell of freshly turned dirt, sawdust and diesel, Memories from years ago during the housing boom. It is amazing what once was an inconvenience is now music to my ears.

Folks, the music has resumed! The music of the engine that turns our world, housing and the jobs it creates. So listen in the distance for that heavy equipment moving dirt, the sound of trucks loaded with construction supplies rumbling down our road, the buzz of saws and that rhythmic tapping out of the hammers. The music is not dead, and it is touching each and every one of you.

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