Lubbock, Texas

For Lubbock, Texas, February was another favorable month for realty. This is based on number of houses sold this February compared to February last year – an amazing 30 percent increase this year. And 288 houses were purchased this February.

Things were also favorable for sellers because the median price of houses also went up substantially during the same time period, an increase of 13.5 percent at $166,500.

Of course this huge increase in the price of homes is very rough for so many home buyers, especially those of modest income. As one can imagine, it is very difficult for quite a few people to enter the home market.

Also, with high prices of rent in the nation today, it becomes more challenging for those who want to enter the home market to save enough money. For example, many young couples who want to start a family are having a difficult time fulfilling their wish for a dream home.

Getting back to Lubbock housing data, there was a huge increase in the number of active home listings February of this year compared to February of 2017 – a rise of nearly 23 percent.

Also, there was a rise in the home inventory count from 2.3 months last year February compared to this year February of 2.9 months. A very good indication of whether or not we have a seller’s market or buyer’s market is this inventory number.

It will take time for us to see if we are moving in the direction of balance in the market. However, in the majority of ranges of home prices, at this time, Lubbock clearly still is a seller’s market. It has been estimated that a balanced market would be a home inventory of 6.5 months.

For February of this year, the number of days houses were on the market was 79. This is a plus indicator – in general home real estate transactions are going well in Lubbock, Texas during the time a house is in the market.