Rocket City home sales in April up 13.5 percent over previous year
Huntsville home sales are moving in a positive direction, with increases in the number of homes sold for April as well as the year to date. (File)
Click here to view or print the entire monthly report compliments of the ACRE Corporate Cabinet.
Sales: According to the North Alabama Multiple Listing Service, Huntsville/Madison County residential sales totaled 528 units during April, an increase in sales growth of 13.5 percent or 63 units from the same period last year. Two more resources to review: Quarterly Report and Annual Report.
For all of Huntsville’s area housing data, click here.
Forecast: Closed transactions in April were 76 units or 16.8 percent above the Alabama Center for Real Estate’s monthly forecast. ACRE’s year-to-date sales forecast through April projected 1,569 closed transactions while the actual sales were 1,799 units, a favorable difference of 14.6 percent.
Year-to-date home sales in Huntsville rose 15 percent over the same period last year during April.
Supply: The Rocket City’s housing inventory totaled 2,766 units, a decrease of 9.6 percent from last April. New home inventory is up 146 units year-over-year, while existing single-family inventory is down 396 units.
The inventory-to-sales ratio in April was 5.2 months of housing supply. The market equilibrium (balance between supply and demand) is considered to be about 6 months during April. Huntsville continues to move in a favorable direction when it comes to its inventory-to-sales ratio. The market in April experienced a 2 percent increase in inventory when compared to March. Historical data indicates a typical 2.5 percent decrease from March to April.
Demand: Residential sales in April increased by 3.9 percent from March. This direction is consistent with seasonal patterns and historical data indicating that April sales, on average (2011-2015), increase from March by 4.8 percent. New home sales made up 21 percent of sales, down from 22 percent the previous April. Existing single-family home sales accounted for 77 percent of total sales, up from 75 percent in April 2015, while condos were 2 percent of sales, down from 4 percent during April 2015.
Pricing: The Huntsville median sales price in April was $173,975, an increase of 1.7 percent from April 2015 and up 0.7 percent from the prior month. This month-over-month direction is consistent with historical data (2011-2015) indicating that the April median sales price on average increases from March by 1 percent. Pricing can fluctuate as the sample size of data is subject to seasonal buying patterns. ACRE recommends contacting a local real estate professional to discuss pricing at the neighborhood level.
Industry perspective: “We can partially attribute the sizable gain in April in home-selling optimism both to a correction for last month’s unexpected dip and to typical seasonal strength in housing activity in the spring and summer,” said Doug Duncan, senior vice president and chief economist at Fannie Mae. “Even after accounting for these factors, continued tight housing supply has led to renewed strength in home price appreciation, making selling a home a more attractive prospect this year in particular. This improved sentiment could provide an extra boost of much-needed supply for the spring selling season.” For the entire report, click here.
The Huntsville/Madison County Residential Monthly Report is developed in conjunction with the Huntsville Area Association of Realtors to better serve North Alabama consumers.
