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Valley sees record home sale closings in July

Housing industry continues solid growth despite pandemic

Posted 9/6/20

The summer in Arizona is usually a time when Realtors can take a bit of a load off because of lower demand compared to the rest of the year.

But the housing industry in 2020, like so many aspects …

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Valley sees record home sale closings in July

Housing industry continues solid growth despite pandemic

Posted

The summer in Arizona is usually a time when Realtors can take a bit of a load off because of lower demand compared to the rest of the year.

But the housing industry in 2020, like so many aspects of this unprecedented year, does not hold to the norms we are used to.

The summer of 2020 has turned out to be the summer of home sales.

July had a record number of closings, surpassing every July as far back as 2001, as well as broke records in dollar volume with $3.9 billion sold, according to Arizona Regional Multiple Listing Service.

Previously 2005 was the best July ever recorded at $2.9 billion. The monthly appreciation rate finished 12.5% higher than 2019 and was the fourth highest appreciation rate for July going back to 2001, according to the Cromford report.

The luxury home industry is seeing a banner year as well, with contracts over $1 million, up an amazing 93%, compared with this time last year.

Contracts between $500,000 and $1 million are up 64%. Between $300,000 and $500,000, they are up 39%. Between $250,000 and $300,000 they are up 15%, according to the Cromford Report.

One-third of homes closed were over asking price and only 15% involved any sort of seller-paid closing cost assistance; down from a high of 27% last May, according to the Cromford Report.

Half of all sellers who accepted contracts in the first week of August did so with seven days or less on the market.

Realtor Rebecca Durfey said that as far as 2020 goes, all the playbooks are out the window. She said it’s a unique and very different market and generally speaking it is very strong right now, but when the industry is going so well, people start to wonder when there will be a crash.

“We don’t anticipate a crash in the true sense of the word, but there will at some point in time be a shift,” she said. “Markets are up and down and tend to be cyclical, and I don’t expect to see big changes immediately. We are in a strong market. ...But I do feel we are starting to enter a more cautious time.”

Philip Haldiman can be reached at 623-876-3697, phaldiman@newszap.com, or on Twitter @philiphaldiman.