ARIZONA DAILY STAR:  Weds., July 8, 2009

June home sales post gains

By Josh Brodesky

 

Tucson's housing market closed out the first half of the year with solid numbers, posting monthly gains in June for home sales while active listings continued to fall, the Tucson Association of Realtors' Multiple Listing Service reported.

While sales are up and inventory is down, prices more or less held steady — another positive sign for the market.  The June median sales price for a home was $165,000, down just less than 3% from May but still within the price range of the last six months. Meanwhile, the average home price jumped slightly from $202,747 to $208,952 from May to June, a gain of about 3%.

MLS President Kimberly Clifton characterized June as a record-breaking month for the year, particularly when it comes to absorbing the housing inventory.

"We still have a long way to go but the numbers show a positive sign," she wrote of the inventory.

Year-over-year numbers show inventory is down by about 23% as active listings in June dropped to 6,261.   Meanwhile, year-over-year home sales were up by about 6.5% with 1,139 home sales.