It's interesting all the news in the paper that our market is down 21% compared to last year.  I guess numbers say whatever you want them to say. I also know that those of us working in this market day in and day out may have a different take on the activity than the numbers show.  Let's look at the first quarter of 2006 vs 2007, putting East Baton Rouge, Acsension, and Livingston Parishes as our market.

Year        New Listings      Sold Properties         Average Sold Price       Average Days on Market

2006       3260                       2454                            $174,092                           76

2007        3712                       1904                            $191,035                           67

Compare these numbers to the entire 2006 year end stats:

2006      13,542                      10,293                         $186,964                            65

While it is true that our closings are down so far for this year, the days on market statistic is stable, and the average sold price keeps climbing - a nice steady growth.  Everyone who thought our market would have crashed by now knows that isn't going to happen soon.  Are some price ranges stronger than others?  Sure!  But that was always the case.  We have a very healthy real estate market in our area.  It's a great time to buy and sell property - so call me today and let's get started!!!!