Phoenix: Prices, sales tumble, but that's 'getting back to normal'
Asking prices in the Phoenix area have dropped about 25% this year.
Existing single-family home sales tumbled 34% in the first nine months of the year compared with the same period last year, and condo sales were off 24%. Construction permits for single-family homes were down 23% through August.
The declines appear so dramatic because Phoenix's housing market last year (and for the past several years) was so hyperinflated. "Last year was just one of those atrocities that happens rarely," in terms of bidding wars and soaring prices. "I've never seen it before, and I've been doing this for 25 years. It was a very difficult time."
Sullivan says the market is "stabilizing and getting back to normal." There are now about 47,500 homes for sale. That's about an eight-month supply, about the national average.