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Home sales were up 10 percent in 2015, according to the Tucson Association of Realtors.
That number pairs with a 4 percent increase in median price and home values to show a solid year in Tucson's real estate market.
Growth at that level can entice home buyers, but is not so high that it pressures them into the market.
“You don’t want to go about the process of choosing a home for your family with the increased pressure of thinking ‘Gosh, I’ve got to hurry and do this or prices will get away from me,'" said Tucson Association of Realtors CEO Marc Lebowitz. "A 4 percent growth is nice, healthy, sustainable growth.”
Lebowitz added 2016 should bring more of the same to the local residential real estate market.
He does see the possibility for one issue on the horizon, home inventory.
The number of homes for sale currently is about the same as are sold over a four-month time span. Lebowitz said a six-month inventory is a more balanced number.
Unless more homeowners decide to put their houses on the market, especially homes priced in a range that first-time buyers can afford, conditions in the coming year could start to favor sellers.
More homes fit for first-time buyers on the market could also mean more younger buyers, a group that has under-represented in the market in recent years.
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