Home sales in Stark surge from year ago

Homes in Stark County sold at a pace well above a year ago in November, and Realtors say tax credits are bringing buyers back to the market.The average selling price for November was $104,588, down about 4 percent from $108,861 in 2008, and down from October’s average price of $111,144, according to figures from the Stark County Association of Realtors.
The month-to month slip came after prices in October jumped 14 percent compared to 2008, But volume was strong this year, up 43 percent, with 304 homes selling, compared to 212 a year ago.“Our fourth quarter is much stronger than we anticipated,” said Linda DeHoff, president of DeHoff Realtors in North Canton. “We think much of this is awareness of the first-time home buyers” tax credit and a new credit added for homeowners who want to move up.“It’s pent-up demand,” by people who were waiting to buy a home, she said.Marty Galentine, president of the Realtors association, agreed.“When would-be first-time buyers who were sitting on the fence realized it truly was a great time to purchase a home, they jumped off the fence and into homeownership.”The statistics bear that out, she said. “Real-estate market conditions proved ideal for many entry-level buyers this year, and those buyers took advantage of historic opportunities to own a home.”DeHoff said the price drop, while not drastic, is evident. “We’re seeing, in some pockets, a decrease of 3 to 5 percent of the price,” she said.DeHoff Realtors uses “value-range pricing,” where the seller and the agent agree on a set price range for the house. That range could be as wide as $25,000, she said.When prospective buyers tell the agent the price they can afford, agents already know what houses are in that range. “It invites more traffic,” DeHoff said.The method was established in Australia “during a market like we’re having now,” she said.