CONDO VIEW

During 2022 there was a long-awaited and dramatic shift in the housing market. In July 2023, the Federal Reserve raised interest rates for the 11th time in 17 months, to combat inflation. Mortgage rates have gone from around 3.25% in January 2022 to over 7%, drastically increasing the monthly cost of financing a home purchase and therefore reducing a Buyer’s “purchasing power.”

Most notably this market shift has caused a substantial decline in the number of closed transactions. The total number of single-family attached home sales year to date (“YTD”) through June 30th declined by 23% in 2023 as compared to 2022. This is consistent with the decline in number of transactions we saw in the last half of last year.

While the number of closed transactions for attached homes declined pretty significantly, the average sales price for condos YTD increased slightly in metro- Atlanta. The average sales price through June 30, 2023, was $378,997 vs. $372,932 for June 30, 2022. This represents a nominal increase in Average Sales Price of 2%.

Unlike single-family homes where the inventory of available homes has dropped, the inventory of available “attached homes” has increased. The active inventory of attached homes in metro Atlanta increased from 1,839 on June 30, 2022, to 2,157 at the end of June 2023, representing a 17% increase in available homes. We are still lower than historical inventory levels (e.g. December 2014 the listings were 2,751), but if this increase in inventory continues, eventually we will see a reduction in sales prices and longer time on the market.

In Midtown condominiums, we saw a 41% decline in the number of closed sales YTD from June 2022 to June 2023. During that same time frame, we saw the average sales price in Midtown increase slightly from $428,846 to $430,545 (less than half a percent increase) and the average sold price per square foot increased from $369 to $376 per square foot.

In Midtown, there was an increase in the total days on the market from an average of 37 days in 2022 to 51 days in 2023. The sales price to original list price ratio, a measure of how close sellers are getting to their asking price, decreased from 99.87% in June 2022 to 97.52% in June 2023. This means properties began selling slower and sellers started negotiating slightly more.

While it is hard to predict future real estate trends, we want our clients to understand what is happening in the market, so they will understand pricing and how quickly a home will likely sell in the community where they live or hope to live. We hope this report will help with that. If you would like a more in-depth analysis of a specific area or want to determine the value of your home, our neighborhood real estate experts are here to help.

We know the Atlanta market. Your building is our business.

Randal Lautzenheiser, Managing Broker and Owner

Len

Kwilos, Agent and Owner

David Vannort,

Agent and Owner