Metro real estate market cools

ALBUQUERQUE (KRQE) - The deep slump in the real estate market is a prime cause of the national financial crisis, and the latest numbers for Albuquerque home sales show the once-hot market has cooled way down.

The Greater Albuquerque Association of Realtors has just released its October 2008 review showing the number of residential real estate deals closed was down 52 percent compared to October of 2005 when the market was hot.

At the same time the number of homes on the market was up more than 150 percent compared to October of 2005 thanks to the economic slowdown.

Still Cathy Olson, the chairman of the Realtors association, said that while the numbers aren't as good as they were several years ago, they're not nearly as bad as they are in other parts of the country.

The median sales price is holding steady now at about $225,000

And it's still only taking about two months to sell the average home even though it's not as easy to buy these days in what has obviously become a buyer's market.

"With the credit crunch, there's a little bit more scrutiny when it comes to your credit scores," Olson said.  "We want to make sure that you have a job, and every Realtor knows that they really need to counsel people when it comes to what they can afford."

Olson said it's taking less than two months to sell condos and townhomes in the Albuquerque market.  Condos and townhomes actually saw an 18 percent increase in sales prices from last month, she added.

Albuquerque appears to be dodging the nation's wave of foreclosures.  In Las Vegas, Nev., for example, one out of every 65 homes is in foreclosure.  In Albuquerque it's one out of every 3,000.