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, August residential sales in Baldwin County totaled 524 units, up 16.7 percent from last August. Year-to-date sales are 3 percent above the same period last year. Two more resources to review: Quarterly Report and Annual Report.

For all of Baldwin County’s housing data, click here. 

Year-to-date residential sales in Baldwin County are up 3 percent through August compared to 2015.

Forecast: August results were 53 units or 11 percent above the Alabama Center for Real Estate’s (ACRE) monthly forecast. ACRE’s year-to-date sales forecast through August projected 3,561 closed transactions, while the actual sales were 3,755 units, a favorable difference of 5 percent.

Supply: The Baldwin County housing inventory in August was 2,944 units, a decrease of 4.4 percent from August 2015. The area’s housing inventory has declined by 53 percent from the August peak in 2006 (6,242 units). There was 5.6 months of housing supply in August (with 6 months considered equilibrium for August) vs. 6.9 months of supply in August 2015. The inventory-to-sales ratio was unchanged from July.

Demand: Baldwin County residential sales decreased 0.8 percent from July. This direction contrasts with local historical data indicating that August sales, on average (2011-15), increase from July by 6.5 percent.

Existing single-family home sales accounted for 63 percent of total sales (unchanged from August 2015), while 10 percent were new home sales (down from 11 percent during August 2015) and 27 percent were condo sales (up from 26 percent).

Pricing: The Baldwin County median sales price in August was $219,900, an increase of 5 percent from last August ($209,500). The median sales price increased 6 percent from the prior month. The data is consistent with historical data that indicate on average (2011-15) the August median sales price increases from July by 0.3 percent. ACRE highly recommends consulting with a real estate professional to discuss pricing, as it will vary from neighborhood to neighborhood.

Industry perspective: “Consumers have a fairly optimistic 12-month outlook on housing at the end of the summer home-buying season, supported by increased job confidence and more favorable expectations regarding their personal financial situations compared with this time last year,” said Doug Duncan, senior vice president and chief economist at Fannie Mae. “The return to a slight upward trend in the HPSI (Home Purchase Sentiment Index) during the spring and summer is, thus far, in line with our forecast, which calls for 4 percent growth in home sales in 2016 to the best level since 2006 and continued improvement for 2017.” For the full report, click here.

Click here to generate more graphs from the Baldwin County August Housing Report, including Total Sales, Average Sales Price, Days on the Market, Total Inventory and Months of Supply. 

The Baldwin County Residential Monthly Report is developed in conjunction with the Baldwin County Association of Realtors to better serve Gulf Coast consumers.