NOTE: This information and data was provided by the Cromford Report.
 
One large indication homebuyers and investors look at when buying Phoenix real estate is current values versus “crash” values. The lowest values were in August of 2011, but measuring value and price gets a little trickier.
 
The value of a property is left to appraisers, which still boils down to an educated opinion. However, home prices are much easier to work with, as a price is concrete. Those numbers are much easier to come by, as Maricopa County recorders office is rich with public information that is easy to chart.
 
For starters, the homes that haven’t sold are difficult to put a value on. Furthermore, the prices of homes that have sold over the course of the downturn have had many influences, including the amount of distressed properties on the market.
 
In 2011, the majority of homes selling were short sales, REO’s, and pre-foreclosures. Now, those make up less than 25% of the monthly sales.
 
So, the following chart will break down each category and you can see the average monthly sales price per square foot. The chart compares each type of transaction as a snapshot from August 2011 and May 2013, respectively.
 

 

The Overall number is going to be exaggerated percent change, because you can see the market has recently shifted to normal sales and new homes sales.
 
So, one takeaway that is a better measurement is too look at the amount of change in “Normal” sales, which is 20.7%.
 
Homes bought from HUD, the Lenders (as REO), and through Trustee’s sale have increased quite a bit. Short sales and new homes have increased only slightly.
 
Again, when you try to compare prices since we hit bottom, the mix as a wholes shows quite a huge % increase, but the gain is swayed mostly by a few categories.
 
If you’re looking to buy a home or put a finger on the pulse of what’s happening with all the recent price increases, remember that breaking down sub-markets but sub-categories is crucial to understanding how prices are actually moving.
 
Tracy (G+) is an Arizona Short Sale Realtor, Investor, Rehabber, and Foreclosure Expert.
 
She also is an avid blogger, vlogger, contributor to Real Estate Magazines, and hosts Real Estate Rescue, a radio show dedicated to the distressed property market.