Well Q3 '23 is in the books and it's time for the latest Atlanta real estate market update. Here, we look back year over year and compare Q3 '23 to Q3 '22. The charts look back to Q3 '20 for a broader perspective, but the data results show changes year over year. The six major "greater Atlanta area" counties are considered; there are multiple versions of "Atlanta" but for continuity we keep it to these six (Cherokee, Cobb, Dekalb, Forsyth, Fulton, Gwinnett). We'll answer the "how many, how long, and how much" questions.
How is the Housing Inventory in Atlanta?
- Like the nation, numbers are down for active listings, under contract and sold homes
- The number of contracts and closings recovered from the low in Q4 '22
- Fewer listings than a year ago, but a modest increase in spring
- We continue to see a clear split in well presented, accurately priced homes and the "also ran" overpriced, less appealing ones
- Sales were in the 10K-12K range from Q4 '22 on, this might be the expected range moving forward
How Long does it take to Sell a Home in Atlanta?
- This provides a good overview of the pandemic fueled market
- Q2 '22 was the height of the frenzy, we see the impact of rate shock
- Dazed and confused buyers snapped back in the spring of '23
- Current DOM remains below 30 days; sellers (of those properly presented homes) remain in control
Are Home Prices Rising in Atlanta?
- YOY and looking back 2 and 3 years, home prices are rising in the greater Atlanta market
- Prices will always fluctuate, best to look over several quarters to account for seasonal variations
- Medians are best, they tend to reduce the impact of outliers in a data set
- Averages are OK as a broad indicator and to support median conclusions
The Bottom Line
The Atlanta housing market remains healthy. Do not pay attention to the nonsense broadcast by the national media, real estate is a local and micro market business. These data sets indicate broad trends, we like to start wide and dig into the micro markets. Every single piece of real estate is different. Every single transaction is different. Some data lags - like closings and contracts. Many times closing price does not reflect closing costs, inspection adjustments and/or other concessions. All of these are considered when we go "stubby pencil" with our clients.
Last and one of the single most important things - use an experienced and candid agent for any transactions. Consider the "have to try that that to fail so epically" flops and failures of Zillow, Opendoor, Redfin, Compass and many others. So many buyers that failed to use skilled buyer agents will lose money when they try to sell. Consider the number of dangerously incompetent hobby agents out there that jump in "as something to do" over the last two years. Consider that buying or selling a home is likely one of the largest financial transactions of a life time. Spend 10 minutes and Google your agent AND their company...
Posted by Hank Miller on
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