Are you a numbers person?  Interested in the housing market at a national level?  Here’s the presentation from the National Association of Realtors Chief Economist as presented at the Realtor Convention going on in New Orleans this week.

Remember if you have questions about the local Cary North Carolina real estate market there’s no better resource than the team at CaryRealEstate.com

Last week I had the pleasure of attending the National Association of Realtor’s Convention in San Diego – One of the sessions was led by Dr. Lawrence Yun,  Chief Economist for the Association. During the presentation Dr. Yun shared his forecast for the 2010 National Real Estate Market – here are few highlights.

I hesitated to write this post, as I’ve often been quoted as saying  that looking at the national real estate news is like listening to a national weather forecast -  the national numbers represent averages – what’s truly important to you is understanding your local market.    I decided to write the post, mainly to share my takeaway – on a national level the real estate forecast for 2010 is positive news.  I concur, on a local level we are seeing an increased number of properties going under contract and closing.

The Tax Credit Stimulus for 1st Time Buyers generated an additional 300,000 – 400,000 buyers – total of 1.5 million frst time home buyers for 2009.

47% of ALL Home Buyers were First Time Home Buyers – This is the Highest percentage in years, usually hovers around 40%

15% Increase in the number of sales transactions – which represents an additional 800,000 sales!

We’ve seen 8 Straight Months of Increase in Number of Pendings (numbers adjusted for seasonal averages)

3-5%  Average Appreciation will return

9 Month  Current Supply of Homes Priced under $250,000

10 Month Current Supply of Homes Priced $250,000 – $500,000

15 Month Current Supply of Homes Priced Over $500,000

Current National Average Supply of Homes:  8 Months – We hit a low of 4 months supply in January 2005 and hit a high of 12 months average supply – so the numbers are improving.

Helpful Point – a ‘balanced’ market has a 6 month supply of homes – when you have more than 6 months supply it represents a buyers market.

Dr Yun also noted that new home construction starts are now well below average – which could lead to a lack of supply of new homes as the market strengthens.

The continued recovery of the real estate market hinges significantly on home prices stabilizing – should the market see another decline in home values, that would create a ripple effect of ‘strategic defaults’ – that is home sellers choosing foreclosure as their home would be valued less than what they owe.  We are fortunate in the Cary market area, our foreclosure rates are well below the national average.

Looking for a little good news in the world of real estate?  Last week at the Realtor Convention in San Diego, Lawrence Yun (NAR’s Chief Economist), yea can’t help the name drop – it was cool to hear his address in person! – anyway – he  reported the number of homes selling (or going to pending status) continue to increase – in fact, the nation has seen 8 straight months of increased sales!

Here in the Cary NC area, the local MLS association reported today the number of homes going under contract/pending status for October  up 28% over October 2008 numbers! The number of closed homes increased almost 18% over the same period last year.

National Pending Home Sales Copyright National Association of REALTORS®. Reprinted with permission.

Cary and Entire Triangle Area MLS Reports Increase in Pending Home Sales