Wednesday, October 16, 2019 - by Kim Bass, president, Greater Chattanooga Realtors
With the kids back in school and the weather cooling, the housing market begins its annual cooldown as well. Nationally, buyer and seller activity remained strong, buoyed by low mortgage rates and a strong economy. The market fundamentals suggest no significant changes from recent trends, other than the seasonally tempered pace we see this time of year. As we move into the final three months of 2019, buyers will find fewer homes coming on the market, but also less competition for those homes.
In Washington, there are discussions around a broad overhaul of the housing finance system, including the re-privatization of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac and reforms to federal agencies involved with financing substantial portions of the mortgages made every year. Many of these policy conversations and eventual changes will take months or years to be implemented, and their impact is not yet clear. Halloween decorations are beginning to adorn homes around the country, but our real estate market this fall is looking far from scary.
New Listings in the Chattanooga region increased 7.0 percent to 1,126. This increase is typical after the usual summer slowdown.
Pending Sales were up 8.9 percent to 879. With the increase in Pending Sales outpacing New Listings, inventory levels shrank 10.9 percent to 2,816 units.
Prices continued to gain traction. The Median Sales Price increased 10.8 percent to $209,190. Days on Market was up 19.0 percent to 50 days. Sellers were encouraged as Months Supply of Inventory was down 15.8 percent to 3.2 months.
Markets may change, but Realtors’ commitment to serving our clients doesn’t. Navigating a market that can shift quickly is just one reason why consulting a Realtor is so important. We keep a watchful eye on trends locally and nationally that might affect our clients and community. That’s Who We R.