April Home Sales Show Improvement

April home sales rebounded after a dismal March, signaling a possible upswing in the market.

Though the number of home sales closed in April was the largest this year, it was behind last year’s pace.

Twenty-three fewer homes were sold last month than in April 1996, with last April’s dollar volume outpacing this year’s by $2.7 million, according to the Spokane Association of Realtor’s Multiple Listing Service.

Year-to-date figures show that the number of sales in 1997 is lagging behind 1996 by 115 homes - a decline of about 8 percent. Sales in April 1997, however, topped those from the prior month substantially. Sales of 312 homes closed in March, compared with 450 in April.

Greg Benner, president of the Realtor’s Association and the sales manager of Tomlinson Black South, attributes the increase in business to the weather. Buyers who have been waiting for the weather to change are starting to go house hunting, he said.

“I really believe it’s pent up,” Benner said. “Buyers and sellers really hunker down in that kind of weather.”

Linda Besse, of Prudential Crane Valley, agreed.

“I think a lot of people were just kind of holding off,” Besse said. “Even homes that have been sitting for a while are selling.”

Activity was strongest in Northwest Spokane, where 132 homes sold, generating $14.2 million. The South Hill’s sales produced the most revenue though, with 125 homes selling for an average price of $124,900 - the highest in Spokane County.

The Spokane Valley continued to top the pack with the number of new homes sold. Of the 125 houses sold there, 29 - or 23 percent - were new.

, DataTimes ILLUSTRATION: Graphic: Home sales