July home sales are up 39 percent in the Triangle, compared to the same period last year. That number comes from Durham, Johnston, Orange and Wake County sales.
As home sales have increased, inventory has gone down, by over 10 percent. Currently, the region has just a three month supply of homes on the market based on current trends.
Stacey Anfindsen, a market analyst with Birch appraisal Group, says these numbers need perspective.
"The reason that the percentages are so good is that they're really compared against the period when there really was not a lot of activity," he said. What's happening, he pointed out, is not so much the makings of another bubble, but more of a return to 'normal.'
Anfindsen says we should expect smaller numbers next quarter. "Hopefully inventory will flatline and increase a little bit, but the sales increase is going to slow down." Anfindsen also feels all the current housing isn't good for everyone. "There's still a lot of people who bought their homes in 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009," said Anfindsen.
"Their house prices have still not come back to what they paid for it, so there's a whole block of sellers who are not on the market."
Home prices overall are up, though. The average price of a home sold in July was up almost 5 percent from last year, to $251,300.
Anfindsen says when housing does well, we all do. "There's so many things that are tied to house prices: equity lines, car loans, interest rates," he said. "Just the whole health of the financial system is tied in large part to the level of house prices."