As we move into the fall market certain trends are starting to emerge.  If you're thinking of moving; whether that means buying a new home,  selling a home, or both, it is important to know the current state of the market in order to make educated decisions.

Currently, there are 116 single family homes on the market in Andover.  These range from a 2 bedroom, 1 bathroom cottage listed for $199,900 to a 22 room, 9 full baths, one half bath contemporary listed for $4.5 million.  To drill down further, 95 of those 116 available homes are priced over $500,000.  That means that inventory is top heavy and as we have seen, homes priced under that $500,000 are more scarce and thus, in demand.

Another metric that is important to note when evaluating the market are things like average list price, average days on market and average price per square foot.  These measurements tell us what we can expect and whether what we are asking for or paying for is in line with what the market is bearing.  Currently, the average list price of all 116 single family homes for sale is $856,304.  These homes are staying on the market an average of 113 days.  The average price per square foot is $241.  There are the occasional exceptions, but these averages should provide a guide from which you can temper your expectations.

Currently, there are 27 single family homes under agreement which means they have a signed purchase and sale agreement and are waiting to close.  Those range from a 5 room 2.5 bath ranch that is listed at $250,000 to a 12 room 5 bedroom, 4 full bath, 3 half bath colonial listed at $1,900,900.

The past 90 days sales give us some great data, too.  In just the past 3 months there have been a total of 137 single family homes sold.  The average list price of those homes sold was $692,638.  Interestingly, the average sale price of those same homes was $682,276.  That's just over a $10,000 difference.  That means that listing prices are right on, so if you want to buy, it's important that you are prepared to pay close to, if not at, asking price.  For sellers this means that you can expect to get close to your asking price, provided you're staying in line with the average price per square foot and adjusting based solely on comparables in the neighborhood.

All in all, the market has certainly been on an upswing!  If you're looking to make a move, the fall is the perfect time, as we don't know what old man winter has in store for us this year!