More Good News On The Real Estate Front, If You Are Considering Selling Your Home

The median selling price of homes in Metro Detroit rose 18.2 percent to $152,200 year-over-year in July, according to

figures released Monday by Realcomp, the Farmington Hills-based Multiple Listing Service for Southeast Michigan.

It marked the 17th straight month of double-digit growth. While prices continued to rise, sales slowed, with 5,085 homes sold throughout Metro Detroit in July 2014, compared with 5,283 homes sold in the same month last year. Realcomp defines Metro Detroit as Wayne, Oakland, Macomb and Livingston counties.

While not broken down for Metro Detroit, on-market inventory across all of Realcomp's coverage area, which includes all of southeast Michigan and a small part of northern Ohio, was up 19.7 percent on an annual basis in July.

Average days on market for homes fell to 40 days last month, from 58 days in July 2013, and marked the quickest pace of sales so far in 2014.

Here’s a closer look at how each Metro Detroit county fared on an annual basis in July:

Wayne
The median selling price grew 29.8 percent to $99,000, while total units sold dropped 9.9 percent to 1,702 homes.

Oakland
The median selling price rose 9.9 percent to $207,675, while total units sold edged up 1.5 percent to 1,956 homes.

Macomb
The median selling price climbed 22.2 percent to $132,000, while the number of units sold slid 5.2 percent to 1,107 homes.

Livingston
The median selling price increased 6.1 percent to $196,350, while the total units rose 6.7 percent to 320 homes.

In the Grosse Pointe area, in which Realcomp includes all of the Pointes and Lake Township, total sales by units dropped 21.4 percent to 77 homes sold in July. The median selling price in the Pointes rose 16.5 percent year-over-year to $262,500.

For the Detroit area, which includes the city of Detroit, Hamtramck, Harper Woods and Highland Park, the median selling price grew 18.5 percent to a mere $16,601. Home sales by units plummeted 20.9 percent to 336 homes.

ARE SERVICE PLANS AND HOME WARRANTIES WORTH THE COST?

Extended warranties, or service plans, offer consumers longer terms of coverage on service, repair and replacement for their home's appliances than the standard out-of-the-box warranty from the manufacturer.

These warranties are highly profitable for retailers, as they deliver 50% profit, but they also run up the total cost of your washer, dryer, or or refrigerator by as much as $118, according to Consumer Reports.

Are service plans actually worth it? You can argue the benefits both ways.

In the fast-paced world of home electronics, future technology will far outclass today's products by the time the extended warranty expires. Digitaltrends.com states that household electronics have seen great improvements in product reliability, making the price of most extended warranties about the same as a repair bill. The same is true with most appliances today too.

Consumer Reports data concludes that products "usually don't break during the two-to-three-year period after the manufacturer's warranty expires and the service plan is in effect." And if they do break, the repairs, on average cost only $16 more than the service plan. Most defects will reveal themselves within the first year of use, while the manufacturer's warranty is still good.

If you're tempted to buy a service plan, follow this rule -- the cost of the warranty should be no more than 10% of the purchase price. That said, extended warranties should be purchased for some items, including those that are difficult to repair or high-priced items that would be painful to replace.

Or you could buy a home warranty for about $500. Explains Amy Hoak, correspondent for MarketWatch, "A home warranty is a service contract that commonly covers the repair or replacement of your home's appliances and systems, including your heating and air conditioning systems."

No matter which appliance breaks, you make one call and the service plan call center dispatches the appropriate repairperson. The problem is that service providers pay for these leads, which means they make less money, so be prepared to be upsold to a "cleaning" or more expensive repairs.

In addition to the annual fee, you'll also pay a $60-$75 service fee when a contractor is dispatched to your home.

Home Warranties are ideal for rental properties and as incentives for homebuyers, and they come in handy when multiple appliances break down, saving an average repair bill of $840 or a replacement at an average of $1,200, says Hoak.

Ultimately the choice and risk are yours to assume. Extended warranties or home warranties can be worth the cost in terms of peace of mind, but only if it's for a product you don't intend to change for a few years.

And if you decide to skip the warranty, be prepared to shoulder the cost for assessment (service calls), repair (time in labor plus parts) and shipping.

Consumerreports.org says you shouldn't have to pay extra to get manufacturers or retailers to stand behind their products, but sometimes, you have to. If you have older products and systems, a home warranty may be your best bet.