Real estate is still happening, as I tell my friends and family, just in a different way.
I love statistics. I enjoy seeing the metrics of home sales. Each week, I view the market activity on our multiple listing service and compare it to the numbers from previous years. Up until COVID-19, I would see a sharp rise in market activity and selling prices.
Then COVID-19 happened, and some things changed. Other things didn’t.
Selling prices continued to increase. Not only that, the available inventory went down, which means fewer houses available for sale. When the pandemic unfolded, homesellers decided to wait to list their property. Many people thought real estate would suffer on a national and local scale. However, I’m seeing some interesting data from our MLS.
For the week ending May 16, pending home sales increased 31.2% to 311. That’s right; homes that were in the process of being sold actually increased by almost a third from this point last year. At this week last year, 237 properties were under contract. This year, 311 properties were under contract. That’s a big jump.
This shows that people are moving into our area and are looking for their next home in the greater Chattanooga area.
Looking for more evidence? How about the number of homes currently for sale in our area? This past week showed local housing inventory decreased 26.3% to 2,135. This point a year ago, there were nearly 2,900 properties on the market.
What does this mean? This means that people are looking for homes to buy, but there are fewer properties available.
And those listing their property without a Realtor as a way to save money should think again. Individuals who use a Realtor to sell their property get an average of 98.5% of their list price. This means Realtors work to get the most for their clients in this highly competitive environment.
Realtors work every day to help their clients get the most for their investment. Regardless of the market conditions, we make sure we represent homebuyers and sellers to make sure that we meet their needs. That’s who we R.
Greater Chattanooga Realtors is The Voice of Real Estate in Greater Chattanooga. A regional organization with more than 2,000 members, Greater Chattanooga Realtors is one of 300 local boards and associations of Realtors nationwide that comprise the National Association of Realtors. Greater Chattanooga Realtors services Hamilton and Sequatchie counties in southeast Tennessee and Catoosa, Dade and Walker counties in northwest Georgia. For more information, visit www.gcar.net or call 423 698-8001.