New York home sales rise in April compared to a year ago

New York realtors sold more previously owned homes this April than the year-ago period, but fewer homes than in March of this year, according to preliminary figures from the New York State Association of Realtors (NYSAR).

Realtors sold 5,233 existing single-family homes in the state in April 2012, up 2.3 percent from April 2011, when they sold 5,115 homes. The year-over-year increase came despite sales slipping slightly between March and April of this year.

In March 2012, realtors sold 5,282 homes, or 0.9 percent more than in April. Even so, the latest month’s sales data is positive, according to NYSAR CEO Duncan MacKenzie.

“Although we did not experience month-to-month gains, the market appears poised for a strong summer compared to 2011,” he said in a news release. “Consumer confidence continues to improve, and affordability conditions remain very favorable.”

April’s statewide median sales price slotted in at $205,000. That’s up 5.3 percent from April 2011, when the median price was $194,650, but down 2.4 percent from March 2012, when it was $210,000.

Central New York home sales rose. The region’s median sales prices dipped from April of last year, but all other indicators were up in Broome, Oneida, and Onondaga counties.

In Broome County, 99 homes sold this April, a 22.2 percent increase from the same month last year and from March of this year, when 81 homes sold each month.

The median sales price for Broome County homes in April was $100,000, down almost 5 percent from $105,000 in April 2011. However, it was up 20.5 percent from March 2012, when the median home price was $83,000.

In Oneida County, realtors sold 105 homes in April. The result is 15.4 percent higher than April 2011, when realtors sold 91 homes. It is also nearly 13 percent higher than March of this year, when realtors sold 93 homes.

Oneida County’s median sale price was $107,900, 0.1 percent lower than the median sale price of $108,000 in April 2011. This April’s median sale price came in 24 percent above the median sale price in March, which was $87,000.

And, Onondaga County was home to 253 home sales this April, a 4.1 percent increase from last April’s total of 243. Home sales in the county were also almost 7 percent higher than they were in March, when they totaled 237.

The county had its own year-over-year decrease in median sale price, as that indicator fell 3.1 percent to $126,000 in April 2012. It had been $130,000 in April of last year. This April’s median price did rise 3.3 percent over the median price in March, which was $122,000.

Contact Seltzer at rseltzer@cnybj.com