Vancouver WA New Homes For Sale – Has the Construction Industry Recovered?
John Slocum
The construction of new Vancouver WA homes has always been a major segment of the Clark County Washington economy. With this year’sClark County Parade of Homes behind us we try to answer: What’s the state ofVancouver WA New Homes For Sale in the first-half of 2010?One of the real estate sectors in Vancouver, Camas and greater Clark County WA taking the worst hit from the great recession has been new home construction, and the sale of these new homes. In both 2007 and 2008 New Homes accounted for approximately 15.5% of all stick-built homes sold. However, in 2009 that relative percentage of all homes sold dropped to less than 12%. In nominal terms, 924 new homes were sold in 2007; with only 587 new homes sold in 2009 — a reduction of 337 homes per year!Another metric to discuss relative to Vancouver new home sales is what happened to the median price for these homes? From Vancouver MLS historical data we are calculating an approximate median sales price of 0,550 for new homes sold in 2007. In 2009 that same number became 2,750 — a 33.6% reduction! We won’t calculate with precision the elements contributing to the lower median price however, in our opinion the main causes are: 1) a large number of higher-priced homes took a drubbing; 2) short sales and foreclosures of new homes caused lowered prices; 3) home values fell in general.With six months of business in the books for 2010 we’ve taken a look at the current state of sales for new homes in Vancouver and here’s what the numbers show us: 302 New homes have been sold with a median sales price of approximately 7,500. On the face of it we have a few more sales in 2010 than in 2009 but not by many; and the relative percentage of new homes to total homes sold is slightly less than last year at 11.4% However, the median price has increased 6%+!Financing for new homes has also become more of a challenge for builders and new home buyers. Loans for homes to be built on spec don’t seem to exist these days. We have heard from Larry Harris, a mortgage officer at TwinStar Credit Union, that he’s had more new construction loans for buyers than he has had in the past 8 years. These loans require 20% or more down on the part of the borrower however, they allow the lot to be purchased and the builder to build the home.With only 6 months to work with it may be too early to tell how healthy the new construction segment will be at the end of 2010. What we have observed personally is that there are slightly fewer entry-level home builders active; and more of the higher-end home builders are missing. The builders left to do the work are indeed active this season with entry level, mid-level and high-end new homes being built. With interest rates so low; and lot prices at a much lower level, we expect the new home sales numbers for the last half of 2010 to be in the 400+- units-sold range.If you are interested in a new home to purchase this year you are invited to visit:New Homes For Sale in Vancouver Washington and see the current inventory of existing, under-construction and proposed new homes. We also have all properties available to view atHomes For Sale Vancouver WA.
The Author is a real estate broker with theVancouver WA REMAX Van Mall Office, and covers various topics related to market statistics and neighborhood information.
