Indiana Housing Recovery is Underway
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Our latest edition of Carpenter Reports, a review of quarterly housing activity, has just been released. In it, we see that the central Indiana housing market is in full recovery mode.
The fourth quarter of 2012 saw near record unit sales in housing and that momentum is building steam. Despite the impact of the national elections and the looming “fiscal cliff” Hoosiers purchased 20.3% more homes in central Indiana in the fourth quarter of 2012 than in the same quarter of 2011. Marion County experienced a 15.8% increase year-over-year.at the central Indiana housing market is in full recovery mode.
In addition to units rising, the average sales price (ASP) in 10 of the 11 Counties surveyed rose. The average increased 4.6%.
At the same time, the inventory of homes on the market continued to shrink, creating a better balance between buyers and sellers and a healthier market overall. Housing inventories fell 14.6% year-over-year. Marion County, the largest, dropped 15.9%. We believe this reflects a continuation of bank-owned and distressed properties working their way through the market and being absorbed by investor-buyers.
These are all very good signs and reflect a continuation of the trends we’ve been tracking all year. In fact, the trends are building momentum as we enter 2013.
At Carpenter, we continue to be optimistic about the future of housing in central Indiana. We do anticipate some mild volatility as the Federal government works through the continuing “fiscal cliff” issues, but do not see it derailing the momentum already established.
