May home sales in the Peoria area showed a fifth consecutive increase as homebuyers closed on homes that qualified for the tax credit incentive that ended on April 30th.
According to the Peoria Area Association of Realtors®, homes sales for May 2010 were 492 compared to 422 for May 2009, a significant monthly increase of 17 percent. May home sales were also up 4.5 percent from homes sold in April 2010.
“Interest rates haven’t been this low since Eisenhower was President,” said Peoria Area Association of Realtors® President Bill Embry. “What people have to keep in mind is how much interest rates are a factor when purchasing a home. Even a one percent increase can change a buyer’s borrowing power by ten percent. Given the historically-low interest rates, our good inventory of homes, and the stability of the Peoria market, there is no better time to buy a home.”
Embry added, “As the national economy picks up steam and consumer confidence returns to the market, buyers will recognize that this is a great time to make the move.”
May Average Sale Price. The average sale price for homes in the Peoria area showed an increase of one percent over the same period last year. Average sale price in May was $133,565 compared to May 2009 at $132,198. Monthly numbers also showed that the May average sale price was up by five percent compared to April.
May Median Sale Price. The median sale price for homes showed a slight decrease of one percent over last year. Median sale price in May was $117,500 compared to May 2009 at $118,500. April median sale price was $110,000, an increase of nearly seven percent.
Inventory. There were 481 more homes on the market at the end of May compared to a year ago. Peoria currently has 3,043 homes for sale compared to 2,562 in May 2009. There was a slight increase of only 51 homes compared to inventory numbers in April.

MONTHLY PRINCIPAL & INTEREST PAYMENT
FACTOR (Per $1,000)
RATE 15 YEAR 30 YEAR
4.75%          7.78        5.22
5.00%       7.91       5.37
5.25%       8.04       5.52
5.50%       8.17       5.68
5.75%       8.30       5.74
6.00%       8.44       6.00
6.25%       8.58       6.16
6.50%       8.72       6.33
6.75%       8.85       6.49
7.00%       8.99       6.65
7.25%       9.13       6.82
7.50%       9.27       6.99
7.75%       9.41       7.16
8.00%       9.56       7.34

AFFORDABILITY INDEX – A 1% Interest Rate increase equals a 10% decrease in purchasing power!
$150,000 Mortgage @ 5.0% Interest = $805.50
$135,000 Mortgage @ 6.0% Interest = $810.00
$121,500 Mortgage @ 7.0% Interest = $807.98

MAY HOME SALES & AVE. SALE PRICE
YEAR HOME SALES AVE. SALE PRICE MEDIAN
2010       492       $133,565       $117,500
2009       422       $132,198       $118,500

2010 MONTHLY HOME SALES
JANUARY 198
FEBRUARY 246
MARCH 415
APRIL 471
MAY 492

2010 INVENTORY NUMBERS
MARCH 2,873
APRIL 2,992
MAY 3,043