Click here to view or print the entire monthly report compliments of the ACRE Corporate Cabinet.

Sales: According to the Baldwin County Association of Realtors/Multiple Listing Service, November residential sales in Baldwin County totaled 320 units, down 7.8 percent from last October. The recession hit Baldwin County early and hard with sales during November 2008 at 136 units, but overall sales have been on a slow and steady incline during the month since 2009. Year-to-date sales in November (4,828) were 12 percent above November 2014 (4,312). Two more resources to review: Quarterly Report and Annual Report

Forecast: November results were 28 units or 8 percent below our monthly forecast. Alabama Center for Real Estate’s (ACRE) year-to-date sales forecast through November projected 4,515 closed transactions while the actual sales were 4,828 units, a rise of 7 percent.

Baldwin County home sales fell 8 percent year-over-year during November.

Supply: The Baldwin County housing inventory in November was 2,859 units, a decrease of 4.8 percent from November 2014. The area’s housing inventory has declined by 51 percent from November peak in 2006 (5,872 units). There was 8.9 months of housing supply in November 2015 (6 months considered equilibrium for July NSA) versus 8.7 months of supply in November 2014. This is up slightly from the prior month’s 7.3 months of supply but down significantly (76.3 percent) from the November peak of 38.4 months of supply in 2008.

Demand: Baldwin County residential sales decreased 21.2 percent from the prior month. This direction is consistent with local historical data indicating that November sales, on average (2010-14), decrease from October by 9.9 percent.

Existing single family home sales accounted for 53 percent (down 11 percent from November 2014) of total sales while 8 percent (down 1 percent from November 2014) were new home sales and 39 percent (up from 27 percent in November 2014) were condo buyers.

Pricing: The Baldwin County median sales price in November was $207,264, an increase of 9.1 percent from last November ($190,000). The median sales price also increased 1.4 percent from the prior month. This data is consistent with historical data that indicate on average (2010-14) the November median sales price increases from October by 1.6 percent. The center highly recommends consulting with a real estate professional to discuss pricing as it can and will vary from neighborhood to neighborhood.

Industry Perspective: “Despite mixed housing and mortgage market data, our forecast for housing activity is little changed over the past several months,” said Fannie Mae Chief Economist  Dave Duncan. “The supply of existing homes remains lean amid slowing new single-family construction, putting significant upward pressure on home prices. While this helps boost home equity, it hurts affordability, especially for potential first-time homebuyers. Meanwhile, we expect mortgage rates to rise only gradually through next year, and an improving income trend should help support affordability. We foresee total home sales improving further in 2016, albeit at less than half of the 8 percent increase expected this year.” For full report click here.

The average home sales price in Baldwin County during November rose 2 percent over last year.

On average, homes sold during November in Baldwin County spent 162 days on the market.

November inventory has remained flat in Baldwin County over the past 3 years, dropping to 2,859 units during 2015.

The median sales price for Baldwin County during November rose 9 percent over last year.

Months of supply has been relatively flat over the past three years in Baldwin County during November, holding at around 9.0.

Year-to-date sales during November in Baldwin County rose 12 percent over the same period last year.

Sales are over 200 units higher this November than they were at the bottom of 136 units in 2008.

The Baldwin County Residential Monthly Report is work product developed in conjunction with the Baldwin County Association of Realtors to better serve gulf coast consumers. The ACRE monthly report is provided to illustrate the “general” market direction & trends when comparing prior periods with the most current residential data available. Real estate is local and statistics will fluctuate between areas within a city including subdivisions. ACRE recommends that you consult a local real estate professional for “specific” advice associated with your market. The Alabama Center for Real Estate‘s core purpose is to advance the real estate industry in Alabama by providing relevant resources in the areas of research, education and outreach.