THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Tuesday, April 25, 1995 TAG: 9504250297
SECTION: BUSINESS PAGE: D1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY MYLENE MANGALINDAN, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Medium: 57 lines
Home sales dropped almost 21 percent in Hampton Roads during March after higher interest rates and other economic news spooked some potential home-buyers.
While it was the second consecutive month that home sales have been down, the difference amounts to only a few hundred houses, not a significantly large sample.
Pending home sales - single-family units awaiting closing - fell to 1,951 units in March, compared with 2,458 for the same month last year, the Virginia Association of Realtors reported on Monday. Pending sales are the best indicator of local home sales.
``Rates are higher now than last year by approximately 2 percent,'' said Richard Thurmond, president of William E. Wood & Associates. Mortgage rates for 30-year conventional loans hover around 8.5 percent right now, he said.
``In addition, the pent-up demand that was there for some time in the real estate market has been met to a certain degree. Now you're back to an equilibrium market,'' he said.
Changes in the majority party controlling Congress and ever-fluctuating consumer confidence affect buyers' perception of the economic landscape, real estate agents say.
Many real estate professionals, however, shrugged off the news. The statistics belie the market activity and are not significant in monthly increments, they said.
``Real estate is really hot right now,'' said Stacy Goode, an associate broker with Nancy Chandler & Associates.
She also noted the schizophrenic economic news has scared some potential buyers.
``I think it has to do with how the country perceives what's going on. Politics, consumer confidence and interest rates probably panned out in the time span you're talking about and you're going to see a rise from now,'' she predicted.
The fall in cumulative home sales for the year has been less precipitous. Through March 1995, 4,900 homes in Hampton Roads were under contract compared with 5,641 for the same period in 1994. That's down 13 percent.
The commonwealth also witnessed an 11 percent decrease in March. Homes under contract dropped to 5,870 in the state compared with 6,949 in March 1994. The average sales price for the month was $99,982, down from last year's $101,444.
The average sales price for the Southside was $105,447. It was $104,584 on the Peninsula.
``I think it's going to be a good year but not as great a year as in years past,'' Thurmond said.
KEYWORDS: HOME SALES by CNB