The Sussex County Association of Realtors reported a steady residential real estate market in 2015.
The figures indicate nearly $1.52 billion in southern Delaware real estate changed hands in 2015, which is a modest 1 percent increase over the previous year. The association reported that more than 5,000 properties were sold during the calendar year, up one percent from 2014.
The numbers were stronger in Kent and Sussex counties. However, both counties had been sluggish in recent years, while sales were strong in Sussex.
Sales in Sussex exclusively in the category of “single family homes,” which excludes commercial properties, lots and land, mobile homes and condominiums, were up 6 percent over 2014 figures.
“We’re continuing on this path of modest growth, and that’s really what we want to see here in southern Delaware year after year,” says association President Frank Serio. “We are fortunate to be buoyed by a strong coastal market, but overall the county is performing very well, as indicated by the fifth year in a row of positive data.”
Single-family home sales for 2015 accounted for more than $1 billion, with the average residential home in the county selling for a price of $359,395.
In total, 2,921 single-family homes were sold in Sussex County in 2015, with residential homes remaining on the market last year for an average of 86 days before sale.
“All in all, the data here is very positive and, most importantly, the rate of growth is slow and steady,” says Serio. “We may have had better overall years in the last decade but, as we later found out, it wasn’t sustainable. This steady rate of growth leads to a much healthier overall real estate market in Sussex County.”
The county also saw $307 million in townhome and condominium sales, nearly $23 million in mobile home sales and more than $105 million in sales of lots and land.
There were also 12 farms that were sold last year, with the average farm selling for approximately $475,000.
Commercial real estate, which has enjoyed a robust recovery of its own in the last couple of years, showed big gains again in 2015, with nearly $34 million in commercial sales being conducted in the county. A total of 64 commercial properties changed hands during the previous calendar year.
The data released by SCAOR is compiled from the Association’s Multiple Listing Service (MLS), which tracks all data regarding real estate transactions in Sussex County.
The Sussex County Association of Realtors was chartered in 1949 and has steadily grown in size, scope and mission during its more than six decades in Sussex County. It is a professional trade association with goals of carrying out a program of education and advocacy for real estate in the county.
SCAOR is a resource for the public, as well as a recognized advocate for property rights and property owners in Sussex County. The association also monitors legislative issues on the local, state and national levels that may impact home ownership in the area.
To read more about issues related to Sussex County’s real estate industry, visit SCAOR’s website at www.scaor.com.
