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The average price of homes also jumped about nine percent to $149,014, compared to last year. The home sales activity generated $179 million in the Dayton area, a significant increase of more than 39 percent versus compared to the same month in 2015.
Michael Martin, the president of the Dayton Board of Realtors, said the sales increase can be attributed to decreased unemployment rates and the anticipation of rising interest rates in the future.
“The trend is increasing as the economy improves,” he said.
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Listing entries in November totaled 1,300, down from October's 1,546. This is common as fewer homes are put on the market as the holidays approach, according to the board. The numbers are also down from November 2015, when 1,341 single-family and condominium listings were added to the system.
Another big influence of home sales last month were the results of the presidential election. Martin said change is good for consumers, and it also means small business owners might be more likely to buy commercial space as well. The incoming Trump administration has touted less control and regulation over businesses, Martin said.
“I think it had a positive impact,” he said. “Especially with the stock market at its highest ever.”
Year-to-date sales and sales volume followed a similar pattern as the monthly sales. The 14,861 sales reported is a 10 percent increase compared to last year. A sales volume through November of $2.1 billion increased 16 percent over 2015’s $1.8 billion.
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Herman Castro, a real estate agent for Inrongate Inc. in Springboro, said this has been the best single month in about five years for him. He said the increase in sales are the result of a good economy and low interest rates. Homes in Clearcreek Twp. and Springboro and the south part of the Dayton area are selling particularly fast.
“A good market can change at any point,” he said. “But based on what we’ve seen, we think 2017 will be a good year.”
Overall in the Midwest, existing-home sales decreased 2.2 percent to an annual rate of 1.33 million in November, but are still 18.8 percent above a year ago. Dayton mirrors national trends as home sales push up throughout the U.S. November’s sales pace is now the highest since February 2007, and is more than 15 percent higher than a year ago at the same time.
Realtors can expect a small slump in December, as most people don’t want to sell their house during the holidays, Martin said.
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Lawrence Yun, chief economist for the National Association of Realtors (NAR), said the last three months have pushed sales over the edge before the new year. In the U.S., the median home price in November was $234,900, an increase of nearly 7 percent from November 2015. November’s price increase marks the 57th consecutive month of year-over-year gains, according to the NAR.
“The healthiest job market since the Great Recession and the anticipation of some buyers to close on a home before mortgage rates accurately rose from their historically low level have combined to drive sales higher in recent months,” Yun said.
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