Piedmont Market Update

After a very slow start, the quarter is ending with a bang. Only one home sold (that is, the transaction ''closed'') in January--a two-bedroom/one-bath home for $699,000. Five homes sold in February, some of which were homes that had been on the market through the slower portion of last year. These sold in an average 89 days, and for $1.117 million.

In March, ten homes sold across the price spectrum for an average $1.502 million ($479/sf), at just a bit over the original price, in an average 21 days. Two of these sold for cash.

Turning to the 18 homes that are pending right now, and excluding the two distressed sales that have been awaiting final closing instructions for months, the average days-on- market has been only 19 (typically, homes that sell within the first 15 days sell at or above the asking price, and we have a number of pending homes that went into contract in less than a week--including 301 Pala in my own Golden Rectangle neighborhood which I understand garnered 16 offers). Some of these homes have sold promptly, after having been on the market during last years prime selling season--without an offer then.

As you know, I'm not one to throw these words around, but most of us in the business would say that Piedmont homes are selling like hotcakes this spring. If you're on the fence about a sale, don't forget that our low-interest-rate government guaranteed loans up to $729,750 will be a thing of the past for homes closing after September 30th (meaning those that go into contract sometime in August). The conforming limit is scheduled to drop to $625K, and policies around broader interest rates and the future of Fannie and Freddie are all in flux now. We think that buyers are seeing those shifts on the horizon too, and have decided that now is the time to literally make a move.

See this quarter's data by transaction below (click on the image to enlarge).