Real Estate Trending Up in Lawrence

Real estate trends seem to be pointing up, but there is still a way to go to before the market returns to what it was this time three years ago, according to Prudential Fox & Roach, Realtors HomExpert Market Report.

The number of properties sold in Lawrence during the first quarter of 2013 increased by 71 percent from the same time last year, but is still 5.2 percent lower than what it was during the first quarter of 2010, according to the report.

According to the report, 55 properties in Lawrence were sold during the first quarter of 2013, compared with 32 last year. In 2011 47 homes were sold and in 2010, 58 homes were sold.

In addition, the median price of those properties sold during the first quarter of 2013 rose 19.5 percent from the same time last year, but is still 26.5 percent short of where it was during the first quarter of 2010.

According to the report, the median properties of a house sold during the first quarter of 2013 was $231,500, up from $193,750 in 2012. In 2011, the median price was $193,750 in 2011, and $315,500 in 2010.

Also according to the report, properties for sale spent an average of 96 days on the market during the first quarter of 2013, 139 days in 2012, 109 in 2011, and 86 days during the first quarter of 2010.

Here are some other findings in the report. To find it online, click HERE.

• Washington Township in Mercer County posted the highest median sales price in the Greater Philadelphia region at $817,500 (+80.4percent), followed by Pennsbury Township in Delaware County at $575,250 (+135 percent), Edgmont Township in Delaware County at $572,500 (+94.9 percent) and Upper Makefield Township in Bucks County at $555,000 (+6.7 percent).
•  Atlantic County median home prices decreased 14.6 percent to $175,000 in the first quarter of 2013, compared to the median sale price in the first quarter of 2012, which stood at $205,000. In the first quarter of 2013, Atlantic County saw 205 homes sold, a 14.6 percent decrease from the 240 homes sold in the first quarter of 2012. The average number of days a home remained on the market decreased to 141 days in the first quarter of 2013 from 145 days in the first quarter of 2012.
• Throughout Middlesex County, the number of homes sold during the first quarter of 2013 rose 1.1 percent, from 928 in 2012 to 938 this year. The median price for those homes rose 5.8 percent, from $240,000 in 2012 to $254,000 in 2013. Those homes spent 110 days on the market this year, compared with 108 days last year.

Findings are compiled using the company’s exclusive HomExpert Data, which analyzes TREND Multiple Listing Service (MLS) data and provides the timeliest information available in the industry. The HomExpert Market Report offers analysis of real estate activity regionally, by county, MLS area or zip code across the Prudential Fox & Roach service area.