The Charlottesville Area Association of Realtors has just released it’s Year End Market Report this morning, and it includes some very valuable information that home buyers and sellers should really be aware of. … Some people have suggested that the first time home buyer credit hasn’t been effective, but I have completely disagreed with that, and while this data isn’t a clear indicator that the credit is working, it would suggest that more first time buyers (in the below $300,000 price range) have been in our market in Q4 2009, than we are typically used to. … The average price per square foot of finished space in homes is not a scientific number, but a downward trend over the years clearly indicates a decrease in prices (and vice versa). … The current $143 per square foot is the lowest number since 2004. According to the CAAR Year End market Report, our inventory of homes is slowly declining. Of course this was the main aim of the First TIme Home Buyer tax credit, and we are all anxious to see what will happen to inventory once it expires.