By Geoff Ramsey, CRS, GRI
President, Greater Chattanooga Realtors®
Many sellers and builders are in a good position for financial gains, as the economy continues to favor putting existing homes on the market and building new homes for sale. We are finally beginning to see some upward movement in new listings after at least two years of a positive outlook. There may not be massive increases in inventory from week to week, but a longer-term trend toward more new listings would be a good sign. Low inventory should continue to create a competitive situation for buyers, causing price increases over the next several months.
New Listings in the Chattanooga region increased 6.1 percent to 1,202. Pending Sales were up 6.4 percent to 970. Inventory levels shrank 27.6 percent to 2,331 units.
Prices continued to gain traction. The Median Sales Price increased 3.5 percent to $179,000. Days on Market was down 5.0 percent to 57 days. Sellers were encouraged as Months Supply was down 30.0 percent to 2.8 months.
This winter and spring exhibited unseasonal weather patterns in much of the country. As the season change to something more palatable, wages and consumer spending are both up, on average, which should translate positively for the housing market. Being quick with an offer is still the rule of the day as the number of days a home stays on the market drops lower. If that wasn’t enough for buyers to mull over with each potential offer, being aware of pending mortgage rate increases is once again in fashion.
Get a more detailed look at April 2018’s Home Sales numbers and connect with a Realtor. 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.