By Geoff Ramsey, CRS, GRI
President, Greater Chattanooga REALTORS®
In the wake of last week's local residential market statistics, here's the associated national perspective.
Nationwide, total existing-home sales did not change from the previous month and remained at a seasonally adjusted rate of 5.34 million. Nationally, home sales are now down 1.5 percent from a year ago to 5.42 million.
The national median existing home price for all housing types is up 4.6 percent to $264,800, marking the 78th consecutive month of year-to-year gains.
Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist, recently said existing home sales appear to have hit a plateau with robust regional sales.
"Strong gains in the Northeast and a moderate uptick in the Midwest helped to balance out any losses in the South and West, halting months of downward momentum," he commented. "With inventory stabilizing and modestly rising, buyers appear ready to step back into the market."
Inventory remains a national concern not limited to Greater Chattanooga. Locally, inventory is down 13.2 percent, while across the country, inventory remained unchanged. Days on market across the nation is up slightly to 29 days, while in Greater Chattanooga, we're averaging 41 days.
Yun said, "While inventory continues to show modest year-over-year gains, it's still far from a healthy level, and new home construction is not keeping up to satisfy demand.
"Homes continue to fly off the shelves, with a majority of properties selling within a month, indicating that more inventory – especially moderately priced, entry-level homes – would propel sales."
Realtors in Greater Chattanooga continue to explore ways to address the inventory shortage and work to meet buyer demand for housing opportunities.
Get a more detailed look at home sales numbers and connect with a Realtor on www.gcar.net. Whether you're looking to buy, sell, or simply stay in-the-know with what's happening in Greater Chattanooga real estate, you can count on us to keep you in the loop.