By Nathan Walldorf, ABR, GREEN, GRI, SFR, e-Pro
President, Greater Chattanooga Association of Realtors
We are in the thick of an exciting period of home buying and selling. This time of year often brings multiple offers that are near, at or even above asking price, depending on the factors of the home and submarket in question. And we are not surprised – nationally, it was widely predicted that we would see healthy sales activity during the second quarter of 2016. And in Greater Chattanooga, that certainly has rung true.
For the month of May, New Listings in the Chattanooga region decreased 6.0 percent to 1,313. Yet, Pending Sales were up 9.4 percent to 957. Inventory levels shrank 21.0 percent to 3,621 units.
Prices gained traction. The Median Sales Price increased 7.0 percent to $165,900. Days on Market was down 13.0 percent to 67 days. Sellers were encouraged as Months Supply of Inventory was down 28.1 percent to 4.6 months.
Although inventory is still being stretched thin in many pockets of Greater Chattanooga, low mortgage rates coupled with higher wages have built a relatively sturdy housing marketplace. How long that can continue without fresh supply remains an important question. However, conditions are seemingly good enough for serious buyers. With the current slow state of new construction for non-rental households, the road ahead could be tricky if demand remains high.