Welcome to the CTAR Market Statistics Blog.

This page was developed for real estate agents to help them advise their clients on past and current market conditions. The information can also be used to assist agents in developing their business marketing strategies by providing information on CTAR area growth (area 11,12,13, 41 etc) and segment growth (SFH, condo, townhouse, etc). In future postings we will review subdivision growth for various CTAR areas. We welcome your suggestion and comments. Please email me at CarlCaldeira@comcast.net.

The first posting reviews the CTAR area market for the past 10 years.

During this time we’ve seen a tremendous development of our Charleston area real estate market. In 1998 there were 7,623 units sold, a sales volume of $1.2 billion, an average sales price of $158,462, with 2941 units in inventory and an average months inventory of 4.63 months. In 2008 the market had 8,893 units sold, $2.6 billion in sales volume, an average selling price of $292,247 with 11,382 units in the inventory and 15.36 months inventory. In 2005 the market reached its highest unit sales and volume sales levels.

Let’s take a detailed look of the statistics between 1998 and 2008. The greater Charleston area (CTAR MLS all areas) in 1998 had 7,623 unit sales. In 2002 the market started to take off. The unit sales increased from 8,316 to a record high of 18,075 in 2005 (an increase of 217% or 72% per year for 3 years. In 2005 the real estate market reached an all time high unit sales. In 2006 there was a 1,304 unit decrease to 16,771. Then over the next 2 years the market dropped from 16,771 to 8,893 units or a decrease of 188% (average 94% decrease per year)

The greater Charleston market area reached an all time high dollar sales volume of $5,022,485,847 in 2005 up from $1,207,959,788 in 1998 for a 415% increase over the 6 year period (avg 69% / year). From 2006 to the end of 2008 the total volume declined to $2,599,251,589 or 193% (avg. 97% / year).

One of the most notable things about the greater Charleston area market is its ability to maintain a growth in average sold price and median sold price through 2006 even as unit sales took a huge drop. Some markets around the country have seen sales price decreases of 50%.

The average sales price increased from $158,462 in 1998 to $298,604 2006 or 188% (avg. 20.9% over 9 years). The average sales price declined to $292,247 in 2008 by 2.2%. The median sales price for the area was $122,550 in 1998 and by 2007 it rose to $207,500 or 169% (avg. 18.8% / year). The median price fell to $200,000 in 2008 or 3.75%. We will see what 2009 brings in sales price decreases, but to date we have been able to maintain our home value on average for the whole area. We should also note that some price ranges have had more discounting and some CTAR areas have lost more value.

The average days on market(DOM)is primarily driven by the demand of homes compared to the supply of homes. In 2005 there were 18,075 units sold with an average unit inventory of 4,489 which resulted in a days on market (DOM) of 45 days. In 2008 there were 8,893 units sold with an average inventory of 11,382 and 103 DOM.

The inventory grew from 4,382 units in 2004 to 11,382 units at the end of 2008 or 260% (65%/year for 4 years). At the height of the unit sales in 2005 the months inventory was at its lowest point 2.98 months. By 2008 the average months inventory rose to 15.36 months. Months inventory is the expected average time to sell a new listing. It is calculated by the amount of homes sold per month divided by the total unit inventory.