Sales and median prices of existing homes in the Tucson area were virtually flat in April compared with March, even as the supply of resale homes fell, according to the latest figures from the Multiple Listing Service of Southern Arizona.
Meanwhile, building permits for single-family homes rose nearly 40 percent on a year-over-year basis, a separate report showed.
April saw 1,473 sales of listed homes, seven fewer than March but still up 6.6 percent from April 2015, according to the MLS.
The average sale price was $221,260 in April, up about 4 percent from March and up 5 percent from a year ago.
The median sales price — a measure that lessens the effect of the very high and very low prices — slipped to $176,000, down about a half percent from March but still 5 percent higher than in April 2015.
New listings fell nearly 9 percent from March, while total active listings dropped nearly 6 percent, says the listing service, which is a subsidiary of the Tucson Association of Realtors.
The average number of days homes stayed on the market was unchanged, at 57 days last month.
In the meantime, building permit activity remained strong in April.
The 263 single-family permits pulled in April represented an increase of 39.2 percent from April 2015, reported Ginger Kneup of Bright Future Real Estate Research.
Homebuilding permits are up nearly 34 percent for the year to date compared with 2015, her report said.
Kneup chalked up the increase in permit activity to local job growth, a marketing push by homebuilders to lure homebuyers out of the resale market, and openings of new communities.
Median pricing for new homes rose in April to $256,220, up 7 percent from a year ago and 4.6 percent higher than in March, Kneup said.
