Falling Fast: New York Mortgage Demand in Albany Housing Market

The number of single-family homes sold by real estate agents in the Albany housing market fell 1 percent in 2006, the first time in nine years there was a year-over-year decline in total sales.

A total of 10,387 homes sold through the Capital Region Multiple Listing Service last year, which covers Albany, Montgomery, Rensselaer, Saratoga, Schenectady and Schoharie counties.

The 1 percent drop was the first time sales fell on a year-over-year basis since 1997, when a similar 1 percent decline occurred.

Even with the decline, the association described 2006 as a strong year for the New York mortgage market because the number of sales was the second-highest total since the trade association began compiling regional sales data in 1988.

Association officials also said the decline was smaller than the 6 percent drop it had anticipated entering the year due to a slowdown in the national housing market.

Officials also noted the average and median prices increased 4 percent and 5 percent, respectively. This could explain why hopeful buyers in the region are priced out at the moment.

The average price was $220,020.

Although prices increased, the pace has slowed considerably compared to the hot market from 2003 to 2005, when appreciation rates were 12 percent to 14 percent annually - and borrowers were still applying for local mortgage loans.

“Projections for 2007 nationally are for the housing market to recover from its 2006 dip,” said James Ader, chief executive officer. “But the Capital Region did not experience that same dip. So we expect sales to continue to be strong and appreciation to match that of 2006.”

The National Association of Realtors reported Jan. 25 that 6.48 million existing homes sold last year, an 8.4 percent drop from 2005, when a record 7 million existing homes sold. The median price for all types of single-family homes nationally was $222,000, a 1.1 percent increase over 2005.