By Mike Sunnucks | Rose Law Group Reporter
The Tucson housing market has seen a drop in sales volume from the red-hot summer surge in demand.
Still, new home sales in the Tucson metro areas were up 9% in November compared to a year ago, according to Steven Hensley, Senior Analyst for real estate firm Zonda.
Zonda’s Tucson research looks at housing data from September to November of 2020 versus a year ago and month ago.
“That’s still healthy,” Hensley said of the year-over-year sales increase.
Hensley said the September to November sales figures are down 47% compared to the July to September 2020 time frame when home sales were skyrocketing in Tucson and other markets because of low mortgage interest rates and some pent up demand from earlier shutdowns because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“That’s really a testament to where the market was,” Hensley said.
He said low supplies of new homes as well as existing home listings continue to challenge the market.
Zonda’s research shows new home listings in the Tucson metro area are down 36% compared to a year ago. Existing home listings in Tucson are down 49%.
“There’s not much available down there in regards to resales supplies. It’s just a tale of dwindling supply,” Hensley said.
He said the lack of resale listings has been a further help for new homes sales in Tucson especially at entry level price points.
High demand and lower supplies have also driven up prices.
Hensley said the median price for a new home in Tucson stands at $330,000 while the median price for an existing home is at $285,000.
Both categories have seen healthy price increases which could challenge affordability for first-time and entry-level buyers.
