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, Athens/Limestone County residential sales totaled 127 units during June, a decrease of 4 percent or 5 units below the same month in 2016. Home sales during June 2016 totaled 132 units. Two more resources to review: Quarterly Report and Annual Report.

For all Athens/Limestone County area housing data, click here.

Forecast: June sales were 15 percent or 22 units below the Alabama Center for Real Estate’s monthly forecast. ACRE’s 2017 sales forecast through June projected 732 closed transactions, while the actual sales were 744 units.

Supply: Athens/Limestone County housing inventory totaled 687 units, a decrease of 15 percent from June 2016. New-home inventory is down by 46 units year-over-year, while existing homes dipped by 72 units. June inventory was 0.4 percent below the prior month. This direction contrasts with historical data indicating that June inventory on average (2012-16) increases from May by 1.7 percent.

The inventory-to-sales ratio in June was 5.4 months of housing supply. Restated, at the June sales pace, it would take 5.4 months to absorb the current inventory for sale. This is a decrease of 29 percent from 5.9 months of supply in June 2016. The market equilibrium (balance between supply and demand) during June is considered to be approximately 6 months.

Demand: June residential sales were 23 percent below the prior month. This direction contrasts with historical data associated with June sales, which indicate a typical increase of 1.8 percent from May.

Pricing: The Athens/Limestone County area median sales price in June was $199,975, an increase of 22 percent from the previous June and 2.1 percent from May. This direction is consistent with historical data (2012-16) reflecting that the June median sales price on average increases from May by 3.2 percent. Pricing can fluctuate from month to month as the sample size of data (closed transactions) is subject to seasonal buying patterns. ACRE recommends consulting a local real estate professional.

Industry perspective: ““While second-quarter growth is poised to rebound, we expect growth to moderate through the remainder of 2017. Consumer spending, traditionally the largest contributor to economic growth, is sluggish and is lagging positive consumer sentiment and solid hiring,” said Fannie Mae Chief Economist Doug Duncan. “While labor market slack continues to diminish, wage growth is not accelerating and inflation has moved further below the Fed’s target. These conditions support our call that the Fed will continue gradual monetary policy normalization, announce its balance sheet tapering policy in September, and wait until December for additional data, especially on inflation, before raising the fed funds rate for the third time this year.”

Click here to generate more graphs from the Athens/Limestone June Housing Report, including Total Sales, Average Sales Price, Days on the Market, Total Inventory and Months of Supply. 

The Athens/Limestone County Residential Monthly Report is developed in conjunction with the Athens/Limestone County Association of Realtors to better serve North Alabama consumers.