Sedona real estate sales remain strong for the first four months of 2012. Inventory is close to being in balance, and slightly tipping to a seller’s market with less than  a 6 month’s supply of homes on the market when you take out the 65 homes priced over $1,000,000. This is great news for Sellers. Of the 356 single family homes on the market 49 (13%) is distressed inventory. As of this writing 82 of the 356 homes are under contract (23%).  Of the 49 single family homes that are distressed inventory, 33 (67%) are under contract.  The Sedona luxury market is staging a comeback, although it is a slow one, with year to date 9 closed sales over $1,000,000, another three under contract.

Sedona az single family inventory mat 2012
 
The number of transactions for the first four months of the year is up 18% over 2011, but is just slightly up from 2010, when the tax credit was in play. The really great statistic to look at is the number of distressed sales. When you look at the graph below you can see that up until 2009 we had no distressed sales in the first four months of any year. In 2010 there were 60 distressed sales in the first four months. Since that time we have seen a steady decline in the number of distressed sales. So far in 2012 we have had 40% less distressed sales compared to 2010. This is what has to happen for a market to stabilize. Keep your eyes tuned to this statistic.

sedona az single family sales first four months of the year
 
We are still seeing a decline in the median sales price with a 4.7% drop in median sales price compared to the first four months of 2011. I really expect this number to turn around and even go up by the end of the first half of 2012. Sales are strong and inventory is in shortening supply, aren’t prices supposed to go up?
 
median sales price sedona az fisrt four months of the year
 
Bottom Line: Sales are strong, inventory is tipping towards a seller’s market, days on market is going down. These are all signs of a strengthening market. With prices still not quite on the rise, if you are a buyer you better get on it, if you are a seller, the sun is coming out from behind those dark clouds.