Click here to view or print the entire monthly report compliments of the Alabama Center for Real Estate Corporate Cabinet. Join the Center mailing list here.

Sales: Alabama home sales totaling 5,671 units during August were an increase of 7 percent from the same month a year ago. Two more resources to review: Quarterly Report and Annual Report.

Forecast: August sales were 10.9 percent or 558 units above the Alabama Center for Real Estate‘s (ACRE) monthly forecast. ACRE’s 2017 sales forecast through August projected 36,957 closed transactions, while the actual sales were 39,671 units.

Supply: The statewide housing inventory during August was 27,477, a decrease of 8 percent from August 2016 and 34.8 percent below the August peak in 2007 (42,150 units). There were 4.8 months of housing supply in August (6 months is considered equilibrium), which represents a drop of 14 percent from August 2016 (5.6 months).

August inventory decreased from July by 1 percent. This direction is consistent with historical data that indicate August inventory on average (2012-16) decreases from July by 0.4 percent.

Seeking balance: The metro markets in Alabama representing 70 percent of all sales continued to trend toward greater seller bargaining power with 4.3 months of supply. Outside the metro markets, Alabama’s midsized markets are reporting 5.2 months of supply, while rural areas are reporting 6.6 months of supply. There have been significant improvements from inventory peaks experienced during the recession. The supply of quality inventory in the past has affected sales, according to some boots-on-the-ground professionals.

Industry perspective:  “For the first time in 2017, we have increased our full-year growth outlook. The upgrade reflects economic activity gaining momentum at the end of the second quarter, though we see a great deal of uncertainty surrounding the forecast,” said Fannie Mae Chief Economist Doug Duncan. “The list of uncertainties now extends beyond the geopolitical and legislative, as the effects of Hurricanes Harvey and Irma will require time to untangle. Historically, natural disasters that hit heavily populated areas led to substantial near-term declines in economic activity but meaningful rebounds in subsequent quarters due to rebuilding efforts. Thus, economic growth in the second half of 2017 could still average a slightly stronger pace than the first half. Unfortunately, we continue to expect home sales to be flat during the second half of the year compared to the first half due to strong home price appreciation and lean inventories.”

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

The Alabama Residential Monthly Report is developed in conjunction with the Alabama Association of Realtors and its local associations.