Buyer demand still strong across the Asheville region

Press release from Canopy Realtors Association:

CHARLOTTE, N.C. – October home sales declined 13.7 percent year-over-year across the Asheville region, as 1,215 homes sold compared to 1,408 homes that sold across the 13-county region this time last year. Month-over-month, sales compared to the month of September are down 2.9 percent. These are completed transactions, according to Canopy MLS that include single family and condo/townhome data only.

Buyer demand as displayed by pending sales is still strong, and rose 7.7 percent year-over-year, as buyers continue to seek homes within the area.  There were 1,476 homes under contract by report time, compared to 1,371 properties under contract this time last year. Contract activity compared to September was up by 4.2 percent month-over-month. As these contracts convert to closings over the next 45 to 60 days, sales should continue to be steady.

New listing activity decreased by 7.2 percent year-over-year, a sign that seller confidence is falling, mostly due to the seasonality of home sales, which is typical for the mountain region, as the winter selling season sets in. Seller confidence has been strong over much of the year and year-to-date figures show new listing activity for the first ten months of the year ahead of year-to-date 2020 figures by 10.3 percent, which means the market is poised to have more listings by spring.

Dave Noyes, a Canopy MLS Board of Directors member and Broker/Realtor® with eXp Realty said, “With only two months left in the year, the Asheville region has experienced tremendous growth this year. Demand has been strong because buyers desire homes within the region and the price increases that we’re seeing, are due to the high demand, amidst tighter supply. Further, the region being a strong second-home, vacation market has also elevated housing demand.”

Inventory across the region remains low, with 1,937 homes for sale at report time or 1.6 months of supply. This time last year the region had 3.1 months of supply.

Both the median sales price ($345,000) and the average sales price ($440,768) rose 9.5 percent and 15.5 percent year-over-year respectively, while the average list price rose 13.2 percent year-over-year to $472,622.  This brought the original list price to sales price ratio to 97.3 percent in October. Days on market until sale continue to show how quickly homes are moving, as homes averaged 34 days on market until sale in October 2021. In October 2020 homes averaged 70 days on market.

The Asheville region includes Burke, Buncombe, Haywood, Henderson, Jackson, Madison, McDowell, Mitchell, Polk, Rutherford, Swain, Transylvania and Yancey counties.

Asheville MSA

Metro-Asheville home sales also declined in October, falling 13.8 percent year-over-year as 809 homes sold across the MSA compared to 939 that sold this time last year. Similar to the region, pending sales continue to remain steady, as buyers brought 988 homes under contract during the month, an increase of 6.7 percent over the number of contracts written in October 2020. New listings declined 8.4 percent year-over-year as sellers only listed 938 homes for sale versus 1,024 listed in October 2020.

Buyers seeking homes in the MSA, will continue to face headwinds of decreasing affordability and tight supply, that continued to fall in October. The MSA had 1,230 homes for sale in October, which is down 35.7 percent compared to inventory for the same period last year or 1.5 months of supply at report time. Both the median sales price ($375,845) and the average sales price ($466,208) rose 13.9 percent and 18 percent year-over-year respectively, while the average list price rose 15.9 percent year-over-year to $512,291. Sellers across the four-county MSA received 97.9 percent of asking prices for their homes this past month, while homes continued to sale quickly, averaging 31 days on market until sale.

Noyes added, “The outlook for next year continues to be healthy, as national housing experts continue to signal that we should see more stabilization of supply-chain issues, which should help with inventory.  Overall, the market should be similar to this year, which means continued growth amidst the growing pains of high demand and decreased affordability. Historically low mortgage rates, though increasing, will still prevail and should help buyers offset prices.”

Buncombe County

Sales in Buncombe County declined 15.3 percent year-over-year as 444 homes were sold in October 2021, versus 524 that sold in October 2020.  Pending sales activity shows buyers drove 530 homes under contract, an increase of 2.9 percent year-over-year compared to the 515 homes under contract this time last year.  New listings declined 7.4 percent year-over-year as sellers brought 528 homes to market during the month versus 570 homes that were listed during the same period last year. Inventory is still critically low, declining 39.8 percent year-over-year, leaving 641 homes for sale or 1.4 months of supply. The dynamic of low inventory continues to impact prices, largely due to buyer demand. Both the median sales price ($399,000) and the average sales price ($524,568) rose 14 percent and 24.7 percent year-over-year respectively, while the average list price rose 17.1 percent year-over-year to $569,618. Sellers in Buncombe, received 98.4 percent of asking prices, as indicated by the original list price to sales price ratio, while their homes averaged 27 days on market until sale in October 2021.

Haywood County 

Haywood County home sales declined 14.5 percent year-over-year as 124 homes sold versus 145 that sold in October 2020. Pending sales, continue to show buyer demand is steady, rising 5 percent year-over-year as 147 properties went under contract during the month, while new listing activity declined 7.1 percent compared to last year as sellers listed 145 homes for sale. Inventory fell by 31.8 percent year-over-year leaving 206 homes for sale at report time or 1.7 months of supply.  Both the median sales price ($325,000) and the average sales price ($379,003) rose 26.5 percent and 20.3 percent year-over-year respectively, while the average list price rose 21.4 percent compared to last year, to $429,042.  Sellers received 95.2 percent of asking prices in October 2021, according to the original list price to sales price measure and homes were on market an average of 43 days during the month.

Henderson County 

Home sales in Henderson County decreased 14.9 percent year-over-year as 212 homes sold versus 249 that sold in October 2020.  Pending contract activity shows buyer demand for homes remains strong in Henderson County, rising 10.8 percent year-over-year as buyers drove 266 homes under contract. New listings however declined 14.9 percent compared to last year as only 222 homes were brought to market, which is 39 less homes than what was listed in October 2020.  Inventory remains tight, falling 30.2 percent year-over-year and leaving 321 homes for sale at report time or 1.5 months of supply. Both the median sales price ($355,000) and the average sales price ($403,065) rose 7.6 percent and 4.5 percent year-over-year respectively, while the average list price of $450,435 was 16.3 percent higher than last October. This brought the original list price to sales price ratio to 98.7 percent as sellers received close to asking prices in October, while enjoying faster days on market that showed homes averaging 25 days on market until sale.

Madison County

(Due to small sample size of homes for sale, percentages of change can look extreme.) Sales in Madison County rose 38.1 percent year-over-year in October as 29 homes sold compared to 21 that sold in October 2020. Pending sales increased 45.2 percent year-over-year as buyers, still seeking homes close to metro-Asheville drove 45 homes under contract during the month, compared to 31 that were under contract this time last year.  New listing activity also rose by 16.2 percent year-over-year as 43 homes were added to inventory versus 37 that were listed in October 2020.  However, inventory is low and declined 23.1 percent this past month, leaving 62 homes for sale or 2.3 months of supply.  Prices were mixed in October. The median sales price of $415,000 rose 11.3 percent year-over-year while the average sales price ($404,987) declined 2.4 compared to last year. The average list price decreased 23.1 percent year-over-year to $409,663. Sellers received 95.9 percent of asking prices in October 2021, as indicated by the original list price to sales price ratio. Days on market showed homes averaging 72 days until sale versus 117 days in October 2020.

Other counties around the region

Burke County closed sales were unchanged compared to last October as 72 homes sold, while buyer demand continued to push higher, rising 43.8 percent year-over-year as 115 homes went under contract during the month.  New listing activity was also positive in October and increased 8.4 percent year-over-year as sellers listed 103 homes for sale. Inventory fell by 33.6 percent year-over-year leaving 99 homes for sale or 1.2 months of supply. This scenario of high demand amidst dwindling supply, will cause prices to increase. Both the median sales price ($215,000) and the average sales price ($313,351) rose 19.4 percent and 37.7 percent year-over-year respectively, while the average list price declined 2.3 percent compared to last year to $260,939. The original list price to sales price measure showed sellers receiving 97.2 percent of asking prices in October while homes sold quickly, and averaged 26 days on market until sale.

(Due to small sample size of homes for sale, percentages of change can look extreme.) Jackson County sales remained unchanged compared to last year as 29 homes sold. Pending contract activity declined as well, falling 17.1 percent year-over-year as 34 homes went under contract compared to 41 this time last year. New listing activity also declined 31.6 percent as 26 homes were listed versus 38 listed in October 2020.  Prices were mixed, with the median sales price ($269,100) falling 28.2 percent year-over-year, while the average sale price rose 4.2 percent year-over-year to $535,919.  The average list price declined 8.3 percent year-over-year to $323,697, which brought the original list price to sales price ratio to 97.5 percent in October. Inventory is down 55.2 percent year-over-year leaving 60 homes for sale at report time or two months of supply. Homes averaged 47 days on market until sale in October 2021, versus 83 days this time last year.

McDowell County home sales decreased in October falling 24.5 percent year-over-year as 37 homes sold versus 49 in October 2020. Pending contract also slipped a bit, falling 2.3 percent year-over-year as 43 homes went under contract while new listing activity was unchanged as sellers listed 49 homes for sale. Inventory fell 27 percent year-over-year, leaving 89 homes for sale or 2.1 months of supply. Prices were mixed with the median sales price ($289,000) rising 12.1 percent compared to last year, while the average sales price declined 16.2 percent over last year to $263,376. The average list price rose 43.5 percent year-over-year to $382,701 in October.  This bought the original list price to sales price ratio to 96 percent, while homes sold quickly, averaging 33 days on market until sale.

(Due to small sample size of homes for sale, percentages of change can look extreme.)

Mitchell County had 19 homes sold in the month of October 2021, which is down 13.6 percent year-over-year. Pending contract activity increased 22.7 percent year-over-year as 27 homes went under contract compared to 22 that were under contract this time last year. New listings increased by 41.2 percent year-over-year as sellers listed 24 homes for sale compared to 17 listed in October 2020. Inventory dropped 45.8 percent year-over-year leaving 45 homes for sale or 2.5 months of supply. Prices increased. The median sales price of $283,000 rose 15 percent compared to last year while the average sales price of $312,621 increased 9 percent year-over-year. The average list price of $345,475 rose 26.4 percent year-over-year, which brought the original list price to sales price ratio to 90.5 percent in October. Days on market until sale showed homes averaged 123 days on market in October 2021.

Polk County home sales in October increased 7 percent year-over-year with 46 homes sold versus 43 homes that were sold in October 2020. Pending sales are up 4.4 percent as buyers drove 47 homes under contract during the month versus 45 that were under contract for the same period last year. New listings however fell 30.4 percent year-over-year as sellers listed 32 homes for sale versus 46 homes that were newly listed in October 2020. Inventory is tight and fell 29.1 percent leaving 73 homes for sale or 1.9 months of supply.  All  price indices increased in October. Both the median sales price ($342,700) and the average sales price ($418,423) rose 2 percent and 4.3% percent year-over-year respectively, while the average list price increased 12.7 percent year-over-year to $506,441. This brought the original list price to sales price ratio to 96.6 percent during the month of October 2021, which shows sellers received most of asking prices during the month. Homes sold fairly quickly in October as homes averaged 26 days until sale versus 123 days in October 2020.

Home sales in Rutherford County declined 25.9 percent in October with 83 homes sold compared to 112 that sold in October of 2020. Pending sales indicate an abundance of buyers and increased 32.9 percent as 109 homes went under contract during the month versus 82 that were under contract this time last year. New listing activity is unchanged with 98 homes listed by sellers during the month. Inventory Is tight and declined 30.8 percent leaving 119 homes for sale or 1.4 months of supply. Inventory is pressuring prices. Both the median sales price ($253,500) and the average sales price ($361,143)  increased 16.3 percent and 22 percent year-over-year respectively, while the average list price increased 3.3 percent year-over-year to $322,141.Just brought the original list price to cells price ratio to 95.8 percent in October 2021. Homes sold quickly in Rutherford County as days on market until sale showed homes on market an average of 25 days.

(Due to small sample size of homes for sale, percentages of change can look extreme.)

Swain County had very little activity during the month of October 2021, with just four sales reported compared to four sales in October 2020. Pending sales activity decreased 58.3 percent as five properties went under contract during the month, compared to twelve under contract this time last year.  New listing activity decreased by 53.3 percent year-over-year, as sellers brought seven properties to market versus 15 in October 2020.  With so little inventory on market, prices rose significantly. Inventory fell to 16 homes for sale at report time or 2.5 months of supply at the current sales pace. The median sales price ($453,000) and the average sales price ($436,750) increased 125.1 percent 84.4 percent year-over-year respectively.  The average list price rose 55.1 percent compared to last October, to $637,700.  This brought the original list price to sales price ratio to 92.9 percent in October. Homes averaged 50 days on market in October 2021 versus 174 days on market in October 2020.

Transylvania County home sales decreased 21.6 percent year-over-year as 76 homes sold versus 97 homes that sold in October 2020. Pending sales also declined 22.1 percent compared to last October, as buyers drove 67 homes under contract during the month versus 86 homes that were under contract in October 2020. New listing activity also declined by 6.2 percent year-over-year as sellers listed 76 homes for sale versus 81 homes that were listed in October 2020. Inventory is tight and declined 41.7 percent year-over-year leaving 120 homes for sale or 1.9 months of supply. Prices were mixed during the month. The median sales price ($338,750) decreased by 5.9 percent year-over-year while the average sales price of $500,658 increased 9.1 percent year-over-year.  The average list price increased 8.3 percent year-over-year to $556,609. This brought the original list price to sales price ratio to 96.6 percent showing sellers in Transylvania County receiving close to asking prices during the month. Homes averaged 47 days on market until sale during the month of October 2021.

Yancey County home sales decreased 2.4 percent year-over-year as 40 homes sold compared to 41 that sold in October 2020. Pending sales show buyers are in the market for homes end Yancey as activity increased 24.2% year-over-year with 41 homes under contract new listing activity was also positive and increased 4.5% year-over-year as sellers listed 46 homes for sale vs 44 that were listed in October of 2020. Inventory declined 49.7% year-over-year leaving 86 homes for sale or 2.7 months supply. Prices were mixed. The median sales price of $343,000 increased 12.5% year-over-year while the average sales price decreased 9.6% year over year to $386,534. The average list price rose 30.3 percent year-over-year to $519,779.