Numbers Don't Lie

As a young girl, my dad always told me "numbers don't lie".  I was always a little skeptical.   My eyes would glaze over as he would shoot math problems across the dinner table directed at my siblings and me.

As an adult, I know my dad was right all those years ago.   It is especially true if you look at the home sales on the near west side of Madison,   For several months, I've written about the housing market on the near west side of Madison.  While other areas of the country, and even the city, complain about a down market, I've been saying "Not here!".  Homes sales in the popular neighborhoods of Sunset Village, Westmorland and Dudgeon-Monroe have been robust, even crazy in some instances.  It seems that the near west side of Madison is a popular place to live!

Now that we are firmly planted in the second half of 2011 (so hard to believe!), I decided to take a look at sales from the first half of 2011 and compare them to sales for the first six months of last year.  I looked at the number of sales, average sales price, average list price, days on the market as well as the sales price to list price ratio (see all the stats below).

What the numbers revealed was interesting and also reaffirmed what I've been saying.  For instance, in Sunset Village, the sales price: list price ratio is 95 percent for 2011, the same ratio as 2010.  In Westmorland, four of the seven homes that have sold in 2011 were sold for over the list price with the average days on the market only 34 days!  And in Dudgeon-Monroe, two homes sold in 2011 for at the asking price.  In all three of these neighborhoods, prices have inched up over the past year, too.

Now, I should also say that all is not sunshine and roses.  Smaller homes in all three of these neighborhoods (2 bedroom, 1 bath) aren't moving as quickly.  And total sales for these neighborhoods is down compared to a year ago.  But overall, sales are brisk, homes are selling quickly and home values in these neighborhoods are increasing.

All in all, not bad numbers!  As my dad would say, "numbers don't lie."

Westmorland

January 1, 2010-June 30, 2010

Total Sales: 17

Sales over list price: 2

Average sale price	$246,188
Average list price	$239,036
Days on Market	34
SP/LP Ratio	102%

January 1, 2011-June 30, 2011

Total Sales: 7

Sales over list price: 4

Average sale price	$273,500
Average list price	$271,614
Days on Market	34
SP/LP Ratio	101%

Sunset Village:

January 1, 2010-June 30, 2010

Total Sales: 10

Sales over list price: 0

Average sale price	$227,440
Average list price	$237,490
Days on Market	93
SP/LP Ratio	95%

January 1, 2011-June 30, 2011

Total sales: 15

Sales over list price: 0 (2 sold for list price)

Average sale price	$243,530
Average list price	$254,340
Days on Market	83
SP/LP Ratio	95%

Dudgeon-Monroe

January 1, 2010-June 30, 2010

Total sales: 14

Sales over list price: 1 (4 sold for list price)

Average sale price	$364,448
Average list price	$349,990
Days on Market	58
SP/LP Ratio	98%

January 1, 2011-June 30, 2011

Total Sales: 8

Sales over list price: 0 (1 sold for list price)

Average sale price	$363,475
Average list price	$375,425
Days on Market	55
SP/LP Ratio	96%

For information on other neighborhoods in the city, visit the hyper-local neighborhood blog at What's Happening in My Neighborhood.