RUIZ REPORT
BUNCOMBE COUNTY December,2024Vol58.
Understandingthelocalrealestatemarketisoneofthemostimportantaspectsofbuyingorsellingahome.Whether you’redebatinghowmuchtoofferorifyoushouldacceptanofferyou’vereceived,marketknowledgeispower!
Makinganinformeddecisioninvolvesstayingcurrentwithboththe“macro-market”aswellasthe“micro-market”for youruniquesituation.OurKellerWilliamsProfessionalsagentspridethemselvesinbeingalocalmarketexperts,and oneofthemostimportantthingswecandoforourclientsistoempowerthemwiththatsameinformation.
Withthatinmind,we’vecommissionedthismonth’sRuizReporttomakesureyou’reasuptodateaspossiblewith currentmarketconditions,usingaccuratedatadirectlyfromtheMLS.Clickinganyofthepricerangesonslide4will takeyoutoavailablepropertiesonourwebsitesowecangetstartedASAP!
Pleaseenjoythearea’smostinformativemarketreport,onus.Don’thesitatetosendusane-mailatorgiveusacallat 828-254-7253ifyoushouldhaveanyquestions.
Sincerely,
JeffStewart TeamLeader
At A Glance: Activity
(vs. last month) (vs. this month last year)
NEW LISTINGS UNDER CONTRACT HOMES SOLD
Buncombeadded15morenewlistingstothemarketthanittookoff (putundercontract),whichincreasedtheoverallsupply.Home sales(closings)increasedinDecember,justrememberthatmanyof thosehomeswentundercontractinapreviousmonth.
At A Glance: Velocity
(vs. last month) (vs. this month last year)
MEDIAN DOM MO. ACTIVE LISTINGS MO. INVENTORY
Thetotalnumberofactivelistingsdecreased7%comparedto November,50%ofhomeswentundercontractin30-daysorless, andatthisratethere’sabout3.0-monthsofsupplytogoaround. DecemberwasaSeller'smarket.
At A Glance: Pricing
(vs. last month) (vs. this month last year)
TheaveragepriceofahomeinBuncombeCountywas $17kmore thanitwasthistimelastDecember.Onaverage,propertiessoldfor 96%oftheirlistpriceatthetimetheofferwasmade,and91%of thepricetheyoriginallylistedfor.
Buncombe In December
Learn the lingo
ActiveListings:Thisisthetotalnumberoflistings thatwereforsaleatanygivenpointduringthemonth.
UnderContract:Thisisthetotalnumberoflistings thatacceptedanoffertopurchaseduringthemonth.
UnderContract(%):Thisisthe“UnderContract” columnrepresentedasapercentageofthecounty.
PendingRatio:Thisratioiscalculatedusinga snapshottakenat11:59pmonthelastdayofthe month.Itusedtoshowapricerange’scompetitiveness bycomparingthenumberoflistingsundercontractto thetotalnumberoflistingsonthemarketatthetime thesnapshotwastaken(active+undercontract).
Monthsofinventoryrepresentshowlongitwould taketodepletethecurrentinventoryassumingnonew homesareputonthemarket.It'scommonlyusedto determinethehealthofaparticularmarket.
Between0-4monthsofinventoryisconsidereda seller'smarketbecausesupplyisrelativelylow,which meansthatsellershavemorecontroltosettermsor raiseprices.5-7monthssignalsa balancedmarketthereisahealthymixofbuyersandsellers.8ormore monthsofinventoryindicatesabuyer'smarket, whichmeansbuyershavemorenegotiatingpower
Volume & Activity
➔ The number of active listings decreasedby 7% in December. Total Active listings, the numberofpropertieslistedforsaleatany point during the month, was up 21% comparedtolastyear.
➔ Total homes under contract decreased 9% from last month, but Buncombe had 11% morehomesundercontractinDecember thanitdidthistimelastyear.
➔ Overall volume was down 3% from last monthbutup17%fromthistimelastyear.
Listings & Pendings
➔ New listings decreased 32% from last month, but were up 29% from last December’snumbers.
➔ 9%lesshomeswentundercontract, but Buncombe had more homes going under contractthanthismonthlastyear,up11%.
➔ ProTip:keepinganeyeonthedifference between homes added to the market (new listings) and those taken off (by goingundercontract)isthebestwayto gaugesupply&demand!
Home Prices
➔ The average home price in Buncombe County decreased 2%, but homes were valued 3% higher compared to last December.
➔ Thepositivehomevalueappreciationtrend seemstobeholdingdespiteinterestrates. Pro Tip: monthly price fluctuations are less indicative than annual trends for understandingmarketshifts!
➔ Theconsistentlyhigheraveragevs.median home price tells us that Buncombe’s high-end market is strong, with prices significantly higher than the rest of the market. Themedianpriceisthe“middleprice,”meaninghalfofthehomessoldduringthemonthwerecheaperand halfweremoreexpensivethanthemedian.Theaverageprice isthetotalsalesdividedbynumberofsales.
Days On Market
➔ Homes went under contract 30-days faster, on average, than they did in November,andthemediandaysittookto signapurchasecontractwas30-days(!!!).
➔ Homesbetween $200-249ksoldfastest inDecember,withamedian3-daysonthe market, followed by homes in the $500-599krange,whichtookamedianof 11-days.
➔ Homes in Buncombe are selling quickly due to a combination of extremely low inventoryandhighdemandforhomes.
ThemedianDOMisthe“middleDOM,”meaninghalfofthehomesduringthemonthwentUCfasterandhalf tooklongerthanthemedian.TheaverageDOM isthetotalDOMdividedbynumberofsales.
Contract To Close
➔ Contract to close time took an average of 3-days less compared to last month, which was 2-days faster compared to last December.
➔ Homes valued valued greater than $2M took among the longest to close. Decemberclosingsdataputthatsegment ataround68-days,onaverage.
➔ Homes valued valued between $200k-249k closed fastest, closing in ~31-days,onaverage.
Contract To Ca$h
➔ Sellers got paid an average of 34-days fasterafter listing their homes according toDecembersalesdata,but7-daysslower thanDec.,2023.
➔ This overall decrease was due to decreases in both time spent during the contract to close process as well as time spentonthemarket(DOM).
➔ Homes valued valued between $500k-599k sold fastest, averaging 65-days,followedbythevaluedbetween $250k-299k price range which took 72-days,onaverage.
ThemedianContracttoCa$histhe“middlenumber,”meaninghalfofthehomesthatclosedduringthemonth gotpaidfasterfasterandhalftooklongerthanthemedian.TheaverageContracttoCa$h isthetotaltimeit tookacrossallpricerangesdividedbynumberofsales.
Methodology
DataforthisreportwaspulledfromCanopyMLSforSingleFamilyandCondo/Townhousepropertieson January 3rd, 2024. Realtors are required to update their transactions on the MLS within 48hrs, so while mostrecordsforthemonthshouldhavebeenaccountedfor,anyupdatesthatoccuredafterthereport was pulled will not have made the cut. This should not have a material effect on the data given the overallvolumeoftransactions.
Pleasesendmeane-mailifyouhaveanycomments,questions,requests,orcorrections.
Seebelowforsomerelevantformulas.
MonthsInventory= Pending= ActiveListingsThisMonth 12-MonthPendingHomesAverage UnderContractEndOfMonth ActiveEndOfMonth