Charlottesville's Housing Crash: Graph of Sales 2000 - 2011

As the mid-year Market Reports are about to be released, let's call a spade a spade.  Sales of single family homes YTD in the City of Charlottesville have crashed.  Every month of 2011 shows significant declines not just from Homebuyer Tax Credit-fueled 2010, but also from previous years.  See most recent numbers here. 

Culprits: Pricing that hasn't reverted to "reality," old housing stock (better RE in the County), savvy buyers, underwater sellers who paid too much and can't lower their prices, and the wider economy.

Some will say Charlottesville's declining sales numbers, which are currently below those of the Year 2000, are the "New Normal" Reversion to "non-Bubble" sales.  No.  Certain details contradict this notion:

• In 2000-2001 sales were heavy and fast: DOM were consistently 5, 10, 30 days.
• Prices were already climbing.
• The housing stock has increased since then--think the new cul-de-sac developments.
• The City's population has increased since 2000, but homebuying has not.

Sales 1 Jan - 1 Jun 2000-2011

 As may be seen in the chart of full-year sales 2001 -2010, Charlottesville, mid-year, is less than halfway to 2010's total.  2011 will end far below 2010's total, and thus below the year 2000--in fact, sales levels will be back to the 1990's.