September, 2009 Houston will have its first increase in year to year same month single family home sales since August, 2007. Nineteen more homes were sold in August, 2007 compared to August 2006. For 24 months each month’s sales have been lower than the same month the previous year.

This morning at 9:00 AM, sales already recorded in MLS were 112 more than recorded in September 2008, an increase of almost 3%. The last day of the month is usually the most active day for sales and normally 10% to 15% of a month’s sales are recorded after the month ends. We can expect September sales to be near 15% better than 2008.

We should not over estimate the impact of this increased sales number. September 2009 is being compared to the month in which Houston was ravaged by Hurricane Ike. However, we also must not under estimate the impact of this news. While it is true September was affected by Hurricane Ike, September is also the month in which the national recession found Houston. Sales of single family homes the following four months were little better than September. November had 7% fewer sales than September and January, 2009 had 22% fewer.

If there are no significant negative developments in the economy, the last four months of 2009 and the first month of 2010 all should show increased sales when compared to the same month the previous year.

While never doubting the media’s ability to take the best of news and find a cloud, these increased sales figures should contribute to Buyers’ increased confidence.