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 March were 23 percent above March 2016 at 86 sales for the month. Home sales in March 2016 totaled 70 units. Another resource to review is the Annual Report.

Click here to check out all Marshall County housing data.

Forecast: March sales were six units or 7 percent below the Alabama Center for Real Estate’s (ACRE) monthly forecast. ACRE’s 2017 sales forecast through March projected 195 closed transactions, while the actual sales were 188 units.

Supply: Marshall County housing inventory totaled 510 units, a decrease of 9 percent from March 2016. March inventory decreased 0.4 percent from February. This direction contrasts with historical data that indicate March inventory on average (2012-16) increases from February by 2 percent.

The inventory-to-sales ratio has improved to 5.9 months of supply. Restated, at the March sales pace, it would take 5.9 months to absorb the current inventory for sale. The market equilibrium (balance between supply and demand) is considered to be approximately 6 months during March.

Pricing: The Marshall County area median sales price in March was $117,500, an increase of 9.3 percent from March 2016’s $107,500. The March median sales price was 0.4 percent below the February median sales price. Historical data indicate that the March median sales price on average (2012-16) increases from February by 8 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: “Our economic forecast remains in a conservative holding pattern as we await word on the particulars of the new Administration’s plans for fiscal stimulus,” said Fannie Mae Chief Economist Doug Duncan. “In the meantime, economic sentiment from most industry stakeholders continues to reach new heights: consumers, as demonstrated by our National Housing Survey, are more positive than at any time since the survey’s inception in 2010 about the direction of the economy, while homebuilders’ optimism remains near an 11-year high. Tight inventory remains a boon to home prices and Americans’ net worth, but it also continues to price out many would-be first-time homebuyers. However, our research suggests that aging millennials, now boasting higher real wages, are beginning to narrow the homeownership attainment gap.”

Click here to generate more graphs from the Marshall County March 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.