By Mike Sunnucks | Rose Law Group Reporter
New home sales in Tucson are seeing healthy jumps compared to a year ago, according to the latest data from Belfiore Real Estate Consulting.
The Tucson market posted 294 new home sales from March to May, according to the Belfiore research. That is 53 percent higher than the 193 new homes sold in Tucson and Pima County for the same time frame a year ago.
“It is pretty significant,” said Steven Hensley, an analyst for Belfiore Real Estate Consulting who specializes in Tucson market. “That’s pretty extraordinary,” he said of the year-over-year=gains.
Tucson saw 310 home sales from January to March. Hensley said total home sales are up 12 percent compared to a year ago.
Hensley said homes priced at $250,000 are helping drive the sales numbers. “They are selling everywhere,” he said.
The median price for a new home in Tucson market is $286,490. The median existing home price is $229,000 up from $210,000 a year ago, according to Belfiore’s latest research.
Hensley said the new Saguaro Trails master-planned community from Mattamy Homes has performed well since opening in February.
“That’s something that really jumped out really quickly,” he said.
The Tucson metro area has added 6,300 jobs the past 12 months and has a 4.4 percent unemployment rate, according to May figures.
That compares to a 4.0 percent unemployment in the larger Phoenix metro area where 66,500 new jobs have been added in the last 12 months.
