AGENT MLS HOME FINDER

The Birmingham real estate market seems to be making something of a recovery, although the fundamental indicators of the region are not enough to declare a full-blown reversal in the market’s fortunes. According to a November 23, 2009 article in the Birmingham Business Journal, “Home sales in Alabama last month experienced the first positive year-over-year increase since July 2007, said the Alabama Center for Real Estate. According to the center’s statewide home sales report, 3,589 homes sold in the state in October. That’s nearly 3 percent higher than September and more than 13 percent higher than October of last year. The center’s Executive Director Grayson Glaze said in an e-mail the last time the month of October saw a positive year-over-year percentage was four years ago, when it was nearly 15 percent.”

On the other hand, a number of Birmingham homes for sale are so-called “short sales”, at least according to a November 12, 2009 article by Jerry Underwood in The Birmingham News. The article noted that “Foreclosure activity across Alabama rose slightly in October compared to the month before, according to RealtyTrac, a firm that monitors mortgage defaults. RealtyTrac counted 2,447 default notices, scheduled foreclosure auctions and bank repossessions in Alabama last month, up 1.5 percent from September. The rise from October 2008 was 193 percent, a figure that could be swelled by more thorough reporting, the firm said.” Another article in the Birmingham News published on November 5, 2009 found that “Foreclosure rates for the Birmingham area rose during September, mortgage researcher First American CoreLogic said today.”

A November 29, 2009 article published by WZTV Fox 17 indicated mixed figures for real estate in Birmingham. According to the piece, originally published by the Associated Press, noted that “Recent sales data shows Birmingham’s housing market is coming back but experts say it’s too early to get overly excited about an uptick. Last month, metro area home sales showed their first year-over-year increase in well over a year. The Birmingham Association of Realtors said 933 homes were sold, up 13 percent from October 2008…For October, the Birmingham area’s median price rose 8 percent over the year-ago period to $142,500, while the average price fell 5 percent to $160,266.”