Events and trends in the real world of the metro Albuquerque real estate market appear heading in a good direction.

Rio Rancho generated the big news during  June with a 20% increase in sales of detached homes over June of 2008.  June sales in Rio Rancho were also up 35% from May.

For the entire metro area, the  median and average sales price rose in May for both detached homes and for townhouses and condominiums. During  June, prices for detached homes increased again.

Metro homes are selling faster. The number of days it takes for a home to sell averaged 89 days during the first quarter of 2009 and dropped to 83 days for the second quarter.

While there remains plenty of choice for buyers, the 5,480 metro homes offered for sale during  June were 768 fewer than a year earlier. That's a 12% decline. A smaller inventory of homes for sale is a key factor in bringing the metro market back to a balance where homes sell in a timely manner.

During  June, 1,564 metro homes were newly listed for sale. That's 17% below June of 2008 and the lowest June new listings figure in five years. The 1,472 new listings during May were a whopping 44% fall from the peak of May 2007.

For June, the sale of 933 homes was pending. A pending sale means the seller has accepted an offer and the closing process is under way. The June performance was 8.9% above both May 2009 and June 2008.

June was the first time pending sales have a shown a year over year increase in more than a year. As of June, the number of pending sales has increased for five of the past six months. An increasing number of pending sales suggests that the number of closed sales will continue to grow.  

The sale of 649 homes was completed during June. That performance was 12% less than June 2008. While sales remain behind 2008, the rate of year-over-year decline has dropped since February when sales were 36% less than a year before.  June sales were up 14.7% from May. The number of closed sales has increased every previous month of 2009.