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Sales: There were 62 residential sales in the Lake Martin area during May, down 18.4 percent from 76 sales in the area one year ago. May sales were 25 percent above the five-year average of 50 sales. Two more resources to review: Quarterly Report and the Annual Report.
For all of Lake Martin’s area housing data, click here.
Forecast: May sales were five units or 7.5 percent below the Alabama Center for Real Estate’s monthly forecast. Through May, 248 total residential sales have been recorded, 13 below expectations. ACRE’s sales forecast projects a total of 684 sales in the area during 2018; there were 665 actual sales during 2017.
Supply: The Lake Martin area housing inventory in May was 441 listings, an increase of 1.8 percent from a year earlier. May inventory increased by 2.1 percent from the prior month. Historical data from 2013-17 indicate that May inventory on average increases from April by .5 percent.
Demand: Residential sales increased by 10 units or 19.2 percent from the prior month. This trend is consistent with historical data from 2013-17 that indicate May sales on average increase from April by 4.8 percent. Listings selling in the Lake Martin area during May averaged 126 days on the market before selling. This represents an improvement of 36 percent from one year ago, when the average was 198 days.
Seeking balance: The inventory for sale divided by the current monthly sales volume equals the number of months of supply. Most real estate professionals consider the market to be in balance at approximately 6 months of supply. There were 7.1 months of housing supply in May, down from 8.3 months in April.
Pricing: The Lake Martin area median sales price in May was $325,000, an increase of 66.7 percent from one year ago. The current median price in the area is 37.8 percent above the five-year average for May sales. Pricing can and will fluctuate from month to month because of changing composition of actual sales (lakefront vs. non-lakefront) and the sample size of data (closed transactions) being subject to seasonal buying patterns. ACRE recommends contacting a local real estate professional for additional market pricing information.
Industry perspective: In both Alabama and the United States, the spring home-buying season has been affected greatly by very low inventory levels. April residential listings decreased 10 percent in the state and decreased 6 percent nationwide from one year ago. Residential sales in Alabama, however, increased 16 percent from one year ago, which is impressive considering the 10 percent drop in inventory. Home price appreciation cooled off somewhat as the statewide median sales price increased 2 percent from one year ago, while it increased 7 percent during the first quarter of the year. Going forward, home sales prices are expected to continue their upward climb during the summer as inventory levels are likely to repeat the declines that were seen during the spring.
Click here to generate more graphs from the Lake Martin area May Housing Report, including Total Sales, Average Sales Price, Days on the Market, Total Inventory and Months of Supply.
The Lake Martin Residential Monthly Report is developed in conjunction with the Lake Martin Area Association of Realtors to better serve area consumers.