Did Lancaster County go out with a bang or a whimper in December 2009?

Let’s take a look:

The short answer – a bit of a whimper.  Both sales and prices fell just short of 2008 numbers, which given our last few months was a bit disappointing.  Average days on the market for home listings was down 7 percent, which combined with an 8% drop in expiring listings were bright spots in an otherwise lackluster December.

Looking at the past 3 years of home sales, we see how December 2009 fared:

Following the red line, we see that home sales in 2009 were trending well against past years up until December, where they fell below both 2008 and 2007.  Note where the January numbers start (at the left of the chart).  We started 2009 at about 175 homes sold – it will be interesting to see what happens with January 2010.

I am preparing a comprehensive home sales annual report for 2009 which will be available to my clients and the media.  If you are interested in a copy of the report, which will go into more detail regarding sales trends and examine sales, prices and many other metrics by town & school district, please leave me a contact or email.

What’s going to happen in 2010 Lancaster Real Estate action?  Look for my upcoming 2010 real estate predictions in this space.