SPRINGFIELD (February 6, 2003) Sales of existing single-family homes rose strongly during the fourth quarter of last year while 2002 easily set a new annual record, according to the Capital Area Association of REALTORS® (CAAR).

There were a total of 3,229 existing home sales during 2002, up 1.8 percent from the previous record of 3,172 set in 2001. Existing-home sales during the fourth quarter of 2002 exhibited the strongest fourth quarter sales pace on record with 774 units sold. This represents an increase of 7.8 percent over the 718 units sold during the fourth quarter of 2001.

CAAR President Barbara Krueger said the interest-rate picture remains bright. "In recent weeks, the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage has moved lower, briefly dipping below 6.0 percent. Right now there's very little pressure on interest rates to move much higher, so we expect to have favorable affordability conditions for some time to come," she said.

The Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corp. reported that the national average commitment rate for 30-year, conventional, fixed-rate mortgages was 6.08 percent during the fourth quarter of 2002, down substantially from the 6.78 percent rate at this time in 2001.

The Capital area median existing single-family home sale price for the fourth quarter of 2002 was $89,900, a 5.8 percent increase over the previous year's fourth quarter median price of $85,000. The median is the midpoint in the price range; half the homes sold cost more, half cost less.

Fourth quarter 2002 sales of all property classes combined (i.e., commercial, industrial, farm, residential, vacant land) reveal sales of 918 during the fourth quarter of 2002, up 18.1 percent from the 777 sales reported during the same period of 2001. Total dollar volume of all real estate sold increased 23.7 percent with $95.1 million sold during the fourth quarter of 2002 as compared to $76.9 million during the same period last year.

Krueger said 2003 should be a good year for home buyers and sellers. "After setting two consecutive annual records, the housing market will be settling into a somewhat slower but historically healthy pace," she said. "With only a modest rise in mortgage interest rates projected, we think 2003 will be in the top three years for sales.

The Capital Area Association of REALTORS® is the Voice for Real Estate in the Capital Area representing more than 700 members involved in all aspects of the real estate industry. The Capital Area’s Resource for Real Estate Information can be found at www.seehouses.com.

On February 10th at 10:00 a.m. the Capital Area Association of REALTORS will release its comprehensive home sales report for 2002 which lists unit sales and median sale prices by individual community.