Savannah real estate market seems to be trending towards a recovery - a welcome development considering the wealth of bad news that has flooded the local economy in the last several months. It is not absolutely certain what direction Savannah real estate is going to take in the future, mostly because of the distinct haziness that clouds almost any prediction about the local economy. One component that must always be considered when deciding how to interpret reported data is the source of the information provided. Almost any party has a bias when it comes to the Savannah real estate market - realtors are obviously going to emphasize news that will benefit them and their sales financially, while the news media is likely to over-inflate sensational stories for the sake of higher ratings.
According to a blog written by Realtor Claudia Armbrister for the Realty Times, “With more than 7,619 active listings, not including more than 2500 new homes under construction and spec homes as of June 9, 2009, the trend has been towards a buyer's market, with a definite increase in sales overall!.” The article continues to characterize the current conditions of Savannah real estate as representing a strong buyers' market, which emphasizes supply heavily over demand. “Higher end homes are languishing in this “soft” market, with a high volume of bank-owned properties. Homes priced to sell and in great condition are usually under contract in 2-4 weeks, while others linger or incur increasingly lower offers, due to time on the market and the rising costs for sellers to 'hang on' for thata offer they want, and ultimately negatively affecting the bottom line.”
A July 9, 2009 article in the Savannah Morning News noted that the local inventory of foreclosures dropped sharply in the month of May. “A total of 620 Savannah-area homeowners filed for foreclosure in May, up from 423 in April, according to the real estate research firm First American CoreLogic. Yet agents who specialize in selling foreclosures have not seen a corresponding rise in listings.” This may be a result of banks being more proactive in trying to prevent foreclosures, or a response to government stimulus efforts.