Home appreciation strong in 2005

I get tired of hearing how the housing bubble is going to break any day now. We've been hearing this for about a year and a half. Appreciation remains strong here in Central Ohio and Sales remain relatively brisk. Yes, I think it will slow down soon but not so much that even the average consumer will take much notice.

here are the latest numbers from the Board of Realtors



April 2005 Home Sales

(May 18, 2005) The average sale price of a Central Ohio home last month was $173,143 - up 1.3 percent over April of 2004. However, the average sale price year to date stands at $170,094, up 4.4 percent from the same period last year according to the Columbus Board of REALTORS®.
"We generally average about a four percent appreciation on homes here in Central Ohio," says Doug McCloud, President of the Columbus Board of REALTORS®. "However, over the past year or so, we’ve experienced a slight softening in higher priced home sales and a tremendous increase in the more affordable home sales, thereby bringing the average price down a bit."
The number of homes sold in April, 2005 was down a slight 1.4 percent over one year ago. April residential home sale statistics indicate that 2,255 homes were sold last month versus 2,286 last year. The number of homes sold, January through April, is 7,217 which is .6 percent lower than the same period last year.
"Home sales are actually well ahead compared to the past five years," offers McCloud. "The fact that we’re keeping pace with last year this time is exceptional since last April we had a torrent of home sales - over 15 percent higher than the previous year."