Morgan County April year-to-date home sales up 13 percent over last year
Decatur-area home sales in April were up both month-to-month and year-over-year. (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, Morgan County (Decatur) residential sales totaled 138 units during April, an increase of 29 percent or 31 units above the same period last year. Another resource to review is the Annual Report.
Click here for all of ACRE’s Morgan County residential data.
Forecast: April sales were 34 units or 32 percent above the Alabama Center for Real Estate’s monthly forecast. ACRE’s year-to-date sales forecast through April projected 361 closed transactions, while the actual sales were 437 units, a 21 percent positive difference.
Morgan County year-to-date home sales have increased through April by 13.5 percent when compared to the same period last year.
Supply: Morgan County area housing inventory totaled 776 units, a decrease of 11 percent from April 2015. Inventory was also 2.9 percent above the prior month. Historical data indicates April inventory on average (2011-15) increases from March by 0.5 percent.
The inventory-to-sales ratio during April was 5.6 months of housing supply. Restated, at the April sales pace, it would take 5.6 months to absorb the current inventory for sale. The market equilibrium (balance between supply and demand) is considered to be approximately 6 months during April. Last April, the months of supply stood at 8.2 months, so the 31.2 percent decrease points toward a market favoring sellers. The months of supply has now declined 64.5 percent from the April peak reached in 2011 (15.8 months), which is encouraging news.
Demand: April residential sales were 14 percent above the prior month. This is consistent with historical data, which indicates April sales on average (2011-15) increase from March by 0.7 percent. The average days on market until a listing sold was 130 days, down 9.1 percent from last April.
Pricing: The Morgan County median sales price during April was $132,500, which is 15.2 percent above April 2015’s $115,500 and 18.3 percent ($112,000) above the March median. This is consistent with historical data (2011-15) that indicate the median sales price increases 6.9 percent from March. Differing sample size from month to month can contribute to statistical volatility, including pricing. ACRE recommends consulting with a local real estate professional to discuss pricing, as it will vary from neighborhood to neighborhood.
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 Morgan County Residential Monthly Report is developed in conjunction with the Morgan County Association of Realtors to better serve area consumers.
