By Carol Wersich, Evansville Courier & Press
Housing sales in Vanderburgh County are down 7.4 percent through the first nine months of the year compared to last year, according the local Association of Realtors.
"We're almost nearing the national statistics," said John Czoer, president of the Evansville Area Association of Realtors and a broker associate with the Czoer Team First Class Realty.
He said 183 new or existing homes were sold by Realtors in September in Vanderburgh County. That was down 20.1 percent from September 2006.
The National Association of Realtors reported sales of existing homes fell across the U.S. by a record 8 percent in September, a far bigger drop than expected.
The nation's home builders have been reporting tough times. The cancellation rate on home contracts hit 48 percent in its most recent quarter, twice the normal rate.
Nationwide, new home sales posted an unexpected increase in September. Analysts, however, viewed the small gain as highly questionable given the severe credit crunch that rocked the housing industry this summer.
They predicted further sales declines before the worst housing slump in more than two decades comes to an end.
The local Realtor association's figures include only homes sold by professionals.
Statistics on file with Vanderburgh County Assessor Jonathan H. Weaver include all homes sold in the county.
Weaver said 284 homes were sold in September. That was down 26.6 percent from September 2006.
He said 3,321 homes have sold from Jan. 1, through September, down 7.4 percent from a year ago.
Bob Reid, an Evansville real estate appraiser, agreed that the local sales statistics mirror the national trend. "Why? I don't know. It doesn't make sense ... The interest rate is still good," he said.
Reid said in the first three months of this year, local sales exceeded 2006 figures, before a downturn in sales began.
Normal market
Kathy Briscoe, a co-owner of F.C. Tucker Emge Realtors, said she believes the county and nation are experiencing a return to a normal market after a stretch of record sales years.
The current situation, she said, reflects that the local market is adjusting. "And that's the way it should be: free enterprise in action."
Vanderburgh's inventory of active listings was down 9.77 percent in September from a year ago, she said. Its pending sales were down 6.78 percent in September from a year ago, according to Briscoe.
"I think we might be seeing improvement with October based on a little increase in the amount of sales pending, which tell us what's going to happen in our future," she said.
Even though sales slumped badly in September, she said the market is so much better today than when she started in real estate in 1985 and interest rates were much higher.
"I used to say if I could get it (interest rates) under 10 percent or 12 percent, I could sell houses."
The Associated Press contributed to this report.