Home sales in Big Bear for December 2008 (41 total) dropped 26% as compared to December 2007, and fell 18% from the November 2008 home sales number of 50.
Typically, November & December are the best two months of the year for closings/sales, but this year they ranked 5th & 3rd respectively as the slowest months for sales in 2008.
The median price for the homes sold was $262,000, up 9% from Nov. 2008, but down 5% from Dec. 2007. With such a limited amount of sales, any slight variation can throw these numbers around. So, even though the median price went up month to month, it is important to look closer at the numbers. Given there was one home sold over $2,200,000, and two others close to $1,000,000 during Dec. 2008, the median number was pushed a bit higher. This means some of the higher end homes sold last month as compared to the previous month.
There remains nearly $60,000 difference between the median asking price of $320,950 and the median sales price of $262,000. If you are trying to sell your Big Bear home in this market, then it will require an aggressive price. Sellers continue to need to be realistic with their pricing in this market. It is still the most important factor in getting a property sold.
If you don’t think bank owned / REO & short sale properties are competition, take a look at these numbers. Out of the 41 homes sales in December, 16 (39%, up 3% from last month) of the them were bank owned or REO while 2 (4%, down 5% from last month) were short sales. That is a total of 18 homes, or 44% (same as last month) of the total sales in December, that were “distressed” sales.
Again, while the bank owned properties may be driving real estate prices downward, there continue to be buyers ready & willing to jump on the opportunity to buy them. If you want to sell in this market, you need to price it like a bank owned property.
One important item to note, there are still buyers out there. It is common for the prospective buyers in this market to think that they are the only ones looking for property. They think they are special (like sellers used to think back in 03′, 04′ & 05′). The fact is, 41 people bought a home in Big Bear last month. The number may be less, but buyers are still out there. If you are looking at a property in Big Bear, and it is a “good deal,” there is a good a chance that you are not the only one looking at it, even in this market.
Big Bear Homes Sales – December 2008
| Month and Year | # Homes For Sale | Median Asking $ | # Homes Sold | Median Sales $ |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dec 2008 | 956 | $320,950 | 41 | $262,000 |
| Nov 2008 | 1032 | $325,000 | 50 | $240,287 |
| Oct 2008 | 1078 | $329,000 | 73 | $255,000 |
| Sept 2008 | 1109 | $328,500 | 82 | $224,500 |
| Aug 2008 | 60 | $282,500 | ||
| July 2008 | 62 | $205,000 | ||
| June 2008 | 62 | $247,500 | ||
| May 2008 | 67 | $290,000 | ||
| April 2008 | 50 | $299,500 | ||
| Mar 2008 | 1082 | $339,950 | 49 | $288,000 |
| Feb 2008 | 1049 | $345,000 | 34 | $249,950 |
| Jan 2008 | 1094 | $339,900 | 30 | $283,250 |
| Dec 2007 | 55 | $273,750 | ||
| Nov 2007 | 66 | $282,500 | ||
| Oct 2007 | 53 | $310,000 | ||
| Sept 2007 | 60 | $269,750 | ||
| Aug 2007 | 81 | $310,000 | ||
| July 2007 | 70 | $293,450 | ||
| June 2007 | 59 | $350,000 | ||
| May 2007 | 81 | $309,900 | ||
| April 2007 | 59 | $340,000 | ||
| Mar 2007 | 82 | $311,100 | ||
| Feb 2007 | 78 | $302,500 | ||
| Jan 2007 | 55 | $325,000 | ||
| Dec 2006 | 95 | $320,000 |
Year to Date Sales (1/1/2008 – 12/31/2008)
| Year | # of Homes Sold | Median Sales Price | Average Sales Price | Days on Market | List Price to Sales Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | 665 | $255,000 | $332,408 | 135 | 94% |
| 2007 | 786 | $310,000 | $403,812 | 124 | 95% |
| 2006 | 1155 | $319,500 | $400,232 | 83 | 97% |
| 2005 | 1802 | $290,000 | $355,918 | 68 | 98% |
| 2004 | 1905 | $235,000 | $276,716 | 76 | 98% |
| 2003 | 1646 | $188,000 | $228,284 | 41 | 98% |
Big Bear Home Sales – Year to Date Numbers
The number of homes sold this year ended up 121, or 16%, behind the 2007 sales numbers. 2008 will go down as slowest year for sales in Big Bear in over 20 years.
The median sales price for 2008 was down 18% from the 2007 median, and the average sales price was down 18% from 2007 as well.
Year to date sales were off more than 66% from 2004 numbers though the median & average sales prices for 2008 were still higher than 2004 by 8% & 17% respectively. That is some good news to end the year with!
* Note: The charts above will be updated on a monthly basis. It represents single family home sales in the Big Bear area, including Big Bear Lake, Big Bear City, Moonridge, Fox Farm, Sugarloaf, Erwin Lake, & Fawnskin. Data courtesy of the Big Bear MLS. These numbers do not include raw land or condos nor does not include homes in the Big Bear MLS that are located out of the Big Bear area.
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Big Bear Home Sales For November 2008
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