“We have seen a slow down and we can (attribute) that to a couple of things,” said Donna Deaton, vice president of RE/MAX Victory in Liberty Twp., which deals with homes from Cincinnati to Dayton, including Butler and Warren counties in between. “School starting, we always slow down a little bit when school starts, and then when get around a holiday, and then now we’re gearing up to some election stuff coming up.”
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Most of the hold up in home sales increases is a result of low inventory, with many homes on the market fielding multiple offers, which drives up values and the final price of sales.
The median price of a home in Butler County for the year stands at $193,000 through August compared to $180,000 through August 2017 and $179,900 for all of 2017.
The median price of a home sale for Warren County this year stands at $248,250 through August compared to $234,919 through August 2017 and $236,500 for all of 2017.
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Deaton, a realtor since 2003, said the home sales market will likely pick up the pace this month and next, then slow during November before finishing off 2018 at about the same level as 2017.
“I think they (home sales) are going to flatten out because we’re seeing a little bit of turn in the market where we’re getting more inventory,” she said. “We’ve seen it change just in the past two to three weeks. We have a lot more to show now than what we do three or four months ago.”
Warren County also has another positive factor that should cause its numbers to rise: another year of hosting Homearama, the Home Builders of Cincinnati’s annual luxury homes showcase.
Deaton said the statistic show that the homes moving the quickest in the Greater Cincinnati Area are in Butler County, where homes are on the market for 23 days as of August, compared to 29 days in 2017. Nationally, homes are on the market for an average of 42 days according to the latest RE/MAX National Housing Report, which surveys 53 metro areas.
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Phil Morrical III, the president of the Cincinnati Area Board of Realtors, said the region continues to be “a very strong and vibrant market.”
“Homes in greater Cincinnati are very affordable despite the fact we are dealing with low inventory and increasing home prices,” he said. “Homes priced right and in move-in condition are selling quickly.”
Morrical has several tips for those buying a home in the current market.
“One, be prepared to move quickly; two, make your best offer and three, it’s beneficial to come with a pre-approved loan,” he said.
He also said a potential home buyer should ask his or her realtor about what price range of property is not selling as quickly and that a dream home might be more easily found by expanding one’s required features.”
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