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, Marshall County home sales in December were 18.5 percent above December 2015 at 64 sales for the month. Sales for the full year in Marshall County were 6.7 percent above the same period in 2015. Another resource to review is the Annual Report.

Click here to check out all Marshall County housing data.

Marshall County home sales through December rose nearly 7 percent compared to 2015.

Forecast: December sales were four units or 6 percent above the Alabama Center for Real Estate’s (ACRE) monthly forecast. ACRE’s year-to-date sales forecast through December projected 828 closed transactions, while the actual sales were 856 units, a favorable difference of 3 percent.

Supply: Marshall County housing inventory totaled 495 units, a decrease of 8 percent from December 2015. December inventory decreased 7 percent from November. This direction is consistent with historical data that indicate December inventory on average (2011-15) decreases from November by 5 percent.

The inventory-to-sales ratio has improved to 7.7 months of supply. Restated, at the December sales pace, it would take 7.7 months to absorb the current inventory for sale. The market equilibrium (balance between supply and demand) is considered to be approximately 6 months during December, so continued improvement would be welcome news for market participants.

Pricing: The Marshall County area median sales price in December was $118,500, a decrease of 2 percent from December 2015’s $120,800. The December median sales price was 3 percent above the November median sales price. Historical data indicate that the December median sales price on average (2011-15) increases from November by 5 percent. Pricing can fluctuate from month to month as the sample size of data is subject to seasonal buying patterns. ACRE recommends contacting a local real estate professional for additional market pricing information. 

Industry perspective: “The tenor of our forecast effectively remains unchanged: signs of cautious consumers this quarter, rising interest rates, the renewed increase in the U.S. dollar to a 14-year high, and heightened uncertainty in the political sphere suggest conservatism in our outlook,” said Fannie Mae Chief Economist Doug Duncan. “While we are encouraged that confidence is rising across investors, consumers, businesses, economists and homebuilders, much of it appears to be in anticipation that the forthcoming Administration and the new Congress will enact fiscal policies and deregulation that will help spur growth. While we believe that some pro-growth policies could be adopted next year, it would take time for them to benefit the economy, barring any offsetting initiatives such as more restrictive trade policies.”

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

The Marshall County Residential Monthly Report is developed in conjunction with the Marshall County Board of Realtors to better serve area consumers.