The HATCHER REPORT: February 2022

THE HATCHER REPORT FEBRUARY 2022 A MONTHLY HOUSING MARKET REPORT

BY SOVEREIGN REALTY & MANAGEMENT

IN THIS ISSUE February 2022 Monthly Insights & Statistics Developers & Investors, The Market Needs You!

Monthly Insights & Statistics FEBRUARY 2022 On the surface, a prolonged sellers’ market may seem like a cause for the real estate industry to celebrate, and most certainly for sellers, it undoubtedly means something different for prospective homebuyers, especially first-time and lower income buyers.

Homeownership is at risk for a lot of our citizens. And it’s not completely out of our hands. Real estate professionals, sellers, developers, and local governments all have a role to play in fostering balance in the market.”

We’re heading toward two years of consistently recording decreases of 20% or more in our inventory levels for metro Atlanta, with February inventory dropping further below one month to 0.9 months of supply.

The median home sales price for the metro area is at $380,000 and prices have increased by double-digit percentages from the previous year consecutively since August 2020, emphasizing concern about exacerbating the affordable housing crisis that has become a nationwide issue.

As COVID-19 restrictions ease and the Spring market surges forward, “we’re unlikely to see the shift we’re looking for in these trends anytime soon. I am urging REALTOR members to step up to the plate, issuing a call to action. “Sellers are in the proverbial driver’s seat, but there is a growing gap in understanding about how some of the newer options for selling homes will impact the market long term. We play a crucial role in educating sellers, and as advocates for homeownership and private property rights, we should also be taking a seat at any table where community planning and development is taking place.” We need to ensure we’re fiercely guarding the American dream.”

by Karen Hatcher, CPM®, CEO & Broker

Februray Market Snapshot

Atlanta REALTORS® Association (ARA), the largest association of its kind in Georgia, released its February 2022 Market Brief on residential housing statistics for 11 area counties in metropolitan Atlanta. The Market Brief, compiled by First Multiple Listing Service (FMLS), provides the only regionally-focused synopsis of monthly sales and home prices for single-family residential properties.

Atlanta REALTORS® Market Brief is designed to offer an overview of the Atlanta residential market by providing a synopsis of sales and home prices, and covers 11 counties: Cherokee, Clayton, Cobb, DeKalb, Douglas, Forsyth, Fulton, Gwinnett, Fayette, Henry and Paulding. The numbers in the reports are updated each month to reflect any additional recordings from the previous month. Each month, the numbers reported for the previous month are updated to reflect additional recordings.

DEMAND: February residential sales were at 5,073, up 15.2% from last month and a decrease of 5.0% from the previous year. As we approach the spring selling season, I anticipate sales increasing as Sellers realize their gains from appreciating property values.

Annual Comparison February 2022

February 2021

% Change

Total Home Sales

4,289

5,338

-5.0%

Median Sales Price

$380,000

$313,000

21.4%

Average Sales Price

$445,000

$378,000

17.7%

Monthly Comparison February 2022

January 2022

% Change

Total Home Sales

5,073

4,403

15.2%

Median Sales Price

$380,000

$375,000

1.3%

Average Sales Price

$445,000

$437,000

1.8%

SUPPLY: Atlanta area housing inventory totaled 6,095 units in February, a decrease of 15.2% from February 2021. New listings totaled 6,634, down 3.8% from February 2021 and up 6.9% from the previous month. The month’s supply over a 12-month period decreased to 0.9 months.

For comparison, a healthy housing market is between 4-6 months of supply. Anything above 6 months is a “Buyer’s Market” due to large inventory, and anything below 4 month’s is considered a “Seller’s Market”. Less than a month’s supply of inventory will continue to keep prices high.

Largest Metro Counties Sales Comparison Total Units Sold

Median Sales Price

Cobb

862

$390,500

$440,500

Dekalb

771

$342,000

$408,000

Fulton

1,271

$377,000

$513,000

Gwinnett

894

$377,500

$412,000

Trend

Average Sales Price

Trend

PRICE: Average and median sales prices continue to outpace 2021’s figures, with positive gains. The median sales price in February was $380,000, an increase of 21.4% from last February. The average sales price was $445,000, up 17.7% from the previous year.

As expected, although last month was the first time in many months, metro Atlanta showed a decrease month over month for December 2021 and January 2022 where the median sales price decreased by -0.5% to $375,000 and average sales price decreased by -1.2% landing at $438,500. February median sales price increased by 1.3% and average sales price by 1.8%.

Developers & Investors, the Market Needs You!

BY KAREN HATCHER, CPM®

The housing narrative can paint the picture that institutional investors are the reason there is low inventory and housing prices are soaring. Although they are a slice, they are not the whole pie. In my last issue, I revealed 6 things that are contributing to low housing inventory, couple that with the latest documentary from 60 minutes that released this week and now pile on the news today that the Atlanta Federal Reserve Bank has just deemed metro Atlanta an unaffordable according to their Southeastern Rental Affordability Tracker. If you are an investor or boutique property portfolio investor, you may start to think you are adding to the problem. But, we need you!

In fact, more boutique developers and house flippers right now can help us add more inventory to the housing market that we need and help remove blighted property from neighborhoods that are just now seeing investment and new home owners entering their communities.

I recently phoned a long-time developer friend of mine who had stepped away from speculation building due to getting burned in the last down and has only been working exclusively with home owners building new custom homes or additions since. Even for him, the wounds were still too fresh to rip the band-aid off now, but told me to send him some properties and data and he would take a look. Unfortunately, this story rings true for a lot of builders and developers that were very active during the last boom. But, it’s time for you to get in the game. If you are thinking about investing in real estate, buy and hold, fix and flip, or new construction, now is the time and I can help, providing you in depth market data that you need to make a well informed investment.

I keep hearing in the news about this big reset that is supposed to be coming and what will happen with rising interest rates. The difference with this market we have been experiencing is that people have jobs and businesses are hiring. Interest rates may be rising, but they are still low. Therefore, future homeowners can save to buy a home and rent until they are able to purchase. Those that have additional money to invest and want to diversify their current investments or hedge against inflation should do so. Well, if you made that bet over the past 2 years, you are already seeing big positive gains from your real estate investments.

If you are new to investing and want to learn more or want dedicated guidance providing you education and consultation along the way, please join my upcoming cohort Cracking The Wealth Code starting this summer. More news on that soon!