Good news for Scottsdale home buyers…depending on how you look at it…in a way.

Valley median home prices rose 3.6% in October, while Scottsdale median home prices rose only 2.3%.

But the story about housing affordability in Scottsdale ends here.
While the percentages look great for Scottsdale, the raw numbers tell a different story.

As of October, the median home price across the valley was $475,000, while the median home price in Scottsdale was just over $1.1 million.

“There are probably very few first-time buyers buying in Scottsdale.”

said Cheryl Bowden, president of the Phoenix Realtors Board of Directors. “You’re stepping up[people who are upgrading]. Or, obviously, when it comes to average selling price, some of you have legacy funds. Or you’re already making a good salary and This is a company (transfer).

But aside from Scottsdale home prices being much higher than the rest of the county (which can be a good or bad thing, depending on whether you’re a buyer or seller), Scottsdale’s real estate market is one of the best in the county. It’s doing better than. Overall.

“Scottsdale’s closed sales (total) were up 21.2%,” Borden said. “Maricopa County’s closed sales (total) is -15.6%. Days to sale in Maricopa County is +27.5% and Scottsdale is +21%.”

And that’s just a month-over-month number. The year-to-date numbers compare even better to the rest of the county.

For example, the average sales price in Scottsdale is up 9% year-to-date, while the average sales price in Scottsdale County is up 5%.

“Scottsdale is doing well in almost every way,” Borden said.

Meanwhile, interest rates have hovered around 7%, benefiting no one, Borden said.

But now that the presidential election is over, she’s looking for good things to happen in the market.

“Our chief economist (Lawrence Yun) said the worst of the downturn in home sales may be over,” Borden said. “Buyers are being given more options based on the fact that inventories are increasing after a year of record shortages,” he said.

Contact J. Graber at jgraber@iniusa.org. We invite our readers to submit citizen comments for and against this issue. Email AZOpinions@iniusa.org.