Monday, June 5, 2023 / by Amy Brown
Monday market in minutes, Asheville area update
Good morning everyone and welcome to our Monday weekly market update!
Unusually so for this time of year, the market has become slightly stagnant with a reduction in pending sales down 16.7% from last year at this same time. This most certainly is reflective of the 14.5% decrease in inventory that we are experiencing along with higher interest rates keeping buyers on the sidelines.
On the upside though, prices are less this year than last year and even though inventory is lower there are some great homes to be had at fantastic prices. The average home price currently in the city of Asheville is $639,885, down 15.9% from May 2022 and $603,348 in Buncombe County, down 8.5% from 2022.
We are still seeing a very short days on market with the average home only taking 27 days to close. This is due to a decline in new mortgage purchases with more homes being bought on a cash basis leaving lenders and attorneys with more time to get closings pushed through quickly.
So let's alleviate some fear here. A CRASH IS NOT IMMINENT! Asheville is in a real estate protective bubble due to its desirability for lifestyle, low crime, and beauty. It would also take a huge uptick in inventory to throw the market back into balanced or even a buyer's market which we aren't anywhere close to that.
As long as demand remains high and inventory stays low, home values will continue to rise and the market will stay strong. So stop waiting for something drastic to occur. Any market shift, even a small one, takes MONTHS.
Enjoy your Monday, take a breath, and go look at some homes!
Unusually so for this time of year, the market has become slightly stagnant with a reduction in pending sales down 16.7% from last year at this same time. This most certainly is reflective of the 14.5% decrease in inventory that we are experiencing along with higher interest rates keeping buyers on the sidelines.
On the upside though, prices are less this year than last year and even though inventory is lower there are some great homes to be had at fantastic prices. The average home price currently in the city of Asheville is $639,885, down 15.9% from May 2022 and $603,348 in Buncombe County, down 8.5% from 2022.
We are still seeing a very short days on market with the average home only taking 27 days to close. This is due to a decline in new mortgage purchases with more homes being bought on a cash basis leaving lenders and attorneys with more time to get closings pushed through quickly.
So let's alleviate some fear here. A CRASH IS NOT IMMINENT! Asheville is in a real estate protective bubble due to its desirability for lifestyle, low crime, and beauty. It would also take a huge uptick in inventory to throw the market back into balanced or even a buyer's market which we aren't anywhere close to that.
As long as demand remains high and inventory stays low, home values will continue to rise and the market will stay strong. So stop waiting for something drastic to occur. Any market shift, even a small one, takes MONTHS.
Enjoy your Monday, take a breath, and go look at some homes!
