Business & Finance
Business and Finance
Business and Finance 
Tue, October 27, 2009
Hottest Markets for Home Sales Begin to Diversify, According to ZipRealty Q3 2009 "Home Hunter Report"
EMERYVILLE, CA--(Marketwire - October 27, 2009) - The country's top ten ZIP codes for home sales based on sales-to-list price ratio have diversified significantly this quarter, according to national real estate brokerage ZipRealty's (
-- Phoenix (85035) and neighboring Glendale (85307) join four California ZIP codes -- San Diego's Rancho Bernardo (92127), Los Angeles proper (90022) and its Arleta district (91331) and Oakland (94608) this quarter. -- Southern Florida's Davie (33328), Dallas/Forth Worth's Grand Prairie (75050), Greater Seattle's Everett (98205) and New York's Whitestone, Queens (11357) round out the top ten list.
These are the areas where sellers are fetching the highest offers (measured by sales-to-list price ratio) among 33 markets served by ZipRealty.
On the cold end of the spectrum, where sellers are accepting on average 70 to 80 cents on the dollar, six of the 10 ZIP codes selling the most below asking price based on sales-to-list price ratio are located in Florida for the second consecutive quarter -- Jacksonville (32209), Miami Beach (33140), Palm Beach (33480), Miami (33183), North Miami (33181) and North Fort Myers (33903). New Hope, Pa., (18938), Denton, Texas (76208), Georgia's Stone Mountain (30083) and once again Atlanta (30326) join the Florida ZIP codes to round out the coldest markets for the third quarter.
Also according to the report released today, Phoenix and four nearby cities -- Scottsdale, Chandler, Gilbert and Mesa -- continue to rank as the most popular cities for homebuyers, according to the number of home searches on [ www.ZipRealty.com ] in Q3 of 2009. These Arizona cities are rounded out by the Las Vegas community Summerlin and suburb Henderson, Atlanta, and Florida's Orlando and Kissimmee.
"As California buyers and sellers -- including banks holding distressed properties -- start to see more eye to eye on pricing, we're starting to see signs of stabilization in housing markets across the state," said Leslie Tyler, vice president and chief home hunter for ZipRealty. "Meanwhile in Phoenix, an area that's seen tremendous buyer interest all year due to its low pricing, we're finally starting to see that interest become action as buyers compete for distressed properties listed at historically low prices."
"In Southern Florida, where homes continue to sell for two-thirds of asking price on average, buyers and sellers still appear to be watching for the bottom of the market," continued Tyler.
Also according to the report, distressed properties (foreclosures and short sales) in only one of the country's five most affected markets -- Sacramento -- are selling faster, by an average of 30 percent, than they did in Q3 2008, possibly due to a reduction in inventory of more than 30 percent from September of last year. Homes in two other hard hit regions, Las Vegas and Southern California, are spending longer on the market than they did in Q3 2008 by an average of 11 percent and 18 percent respectively, while homes in Ft. Myers/Naples, Fla., and Phoenix are spending on average the same amount of time on market as one year ago. For more detailed information about distressed properties' days on market, visit [ http://www.ziprealty.com/whitepaper/homehunterreport/thirdquarter2009.pdf ].
Hottest Cities by Search Activity
Based on the volume of total number of searches in areas serviced by ZipRealty.com, areas where prices have been hardest hit continue to dominate as the most popular destinations for homeseekers. The Phoenix metro claimed five of the top 10 most searched areas by ZipRealty.com users nationwide. Las Vegas suburb Henderson and community Summerlin again ranked in the top 10 this quarter, while Atlanta held its place in the list and Kissimmee joined nearby Orlando to round out the most searched-for areas by ZipRealty.com users.
All of the top 25 most searched U.S. areas were in Sunbelt and Sunshine states, including 11 in Nevada, seven in Arizona, four in Florida, two in Texas and one in Georgia. For the exact ranking of these 25 cities, as well as the top-five most searched ZIP codes in 10 major markets served by ZipRealty, visit [ http://www.ziprealty.com/whitepaper/homehunterreport/thirdquarter2009.pdf ].
Hottest/Coldest ZIP Codes by Sale-to-List Price Trends
Also according to the "Home Hunter Report" data, homes sold in the Rancho Bernardo community of San Diego (92127) are fetching the highest sales-to-list price ratio for sold homes during Q3 at 125 percent.
In addition to Rancho Bernardo, ZIP codes fetching the highest sale-to-list price ratio include Davie, Fla., (33328), Grand Prairie, Texas (75050), Commerce (Los Angeles), Calif., (90022) and Everett, Wash. On the other end of the spectrum, neighborhoods with the lowest sales-to-list price ratios include Denton, Texas (76208), where homes are selling on average for 30 percent below asking price on average, along with Stone Mountain, Ga., (30083), North Ft. Myers, Fla., (33903), Atlanta (30326) and Miami, Fla., (33183).
A sampling of the highest and lowest sales-to-list price ratios in several ZipRealty markets include the following:
Market Hottest Coldest ------ ------- ------- Boston Chelmsford (01863) Los Gatos/Monte Sereno 100.2% (92.26%) San Francisco Bay Area Oakland (94608) Healdsburg (95448) 105.65% 93.34% Chicago Near South Side (60616) Glencoe (60022) 99.57% 85.06% Las Vegas Aliante, N. Las Vegas Downtown Las Vegas (89086) (89109) 102.87% 88.83% Miami Port Saint Lucie (34953) Miami (33142) 98.75% 77.48% New York Metro Whitestone, Queens Great Neck (11021) (11357) 88.80% 108.55% Phoenix Glendale (85307) Paradise Valley (85253) 107.64% 86.14% Seattle Everett (98205) Bellevue (98005) 109.31% 88.88% Southern California Commerce, Los Angeles Malibu (90265) (90731) 85.35% 118.53%
Hot and cold ZIP codes for all 33 markets that ZipRealty tracks in this report are available here: [ http://www.ziprealty.com/whitepaper/homehunterreport/thirdquarter2009.pdf ].
About the Report [ http://www.ziprealty.com/whitepaper/homehunterreport/thirdquarter2009.pdf ]
Each quarter, ZipRealty compiles real estate listing and sales data from the Multiple Listing Services offered in 33 of the 36 major U.S. metropolitan areas in which the real estate brokerage operates. The data pulled and cited within this report is for the third quarter of 2009, beginning July 1, 2009, through September 30, 2009.
This report is intended to convey information on the general market conditions where ZipRealty operates, not on ZipRealty's operating results. ZipRealty's operating results may be materially different from the general trends shown in this report. Please do not draw any conclusions about ZipRealty's operating results based on the information contained in this report but instead refer to ZipRealty's earnings releases and periodic reports as they are made public.
About ZipRealty, Inc.
ZipRealty is a full-service residential real estate brokerage firm. The Company utilizes its user-friendly Web site and employee real estate agents to provide home buyers and sellers with high-quality service and value. ZipRealty's Web site provides users with access to comprehensive local Multiple Listing Services' home listings data, as well as other relevant market and neighborhood information. The Company's proprietary business management system and technology platform help to reduce costs, allowing the Company to pass on significant savings to consumers. Founded in 1999, the company operates in 36 major markets in 22 states and the District of Columbia. For more information on ZipRealty, visit [ www.ziprealty.com ] or call 1-800-CALL-ZIP.