The Alabama Center for Real Estate created the following rankings based on year-over-year (YoY) growth in total residential sales during January.
1. Athens – 16.5 percent
2. Dothan – 13.3 percent
3. Tuscaloosa – 12.1 percent
4. Huntsville – 7.9 percent
5. Phenix City – 7.7 percent
Alabama – up 1.1 percent
United States – down 9 percent
Athens: Total residential sales in the Athens area increased 16.5 percent year-over-year (YoY) from 103 to 120 closed transactions. The January median sales price increased 21.7 percent from $195,000 to $237,312. Dollar volume also increased an impressive 42.9 percent from $21.9 million one year ago to $31.3 million in January. Mirroring statewide and regional trends but to a greater degree, inventory decreased 25.6 percent from 524 residential listings one year ago to 390 in January. Months of supply decreased from 5.1 to 3.3, while average days on market (DOM) improved from 82 to 52. Even though the area has a very strong new construction market, inventory in the Athens area is likely to remain tight as January marked 33 consecutive months of YoY inventory declines.
Dothan: Total residential sales in the Dothan area increased 13.3 percent YoY from 90 to 102 closed transactions. The January median sales price decreased 7.3 percent from $139,650 to $129,500. Dollar volume, however, increased 4.4 percent from $14.1 million one year ago to $14.8 million in January. Mirroring statewide trends but to a greater degree, inventory in the area decreased 15.2 percent from 1,042 residential listings one year ago to 884 in January. Months of supply decreased from 11.6 to 8.7, while average DOM improved from 163 to 150. Going forward, expect inventory in the Dothan area to remain tight as January marked seven consecutive months of YoY inventory declines.
Tuscaloosa: Total residential sales in the Tuscaloosa area increased 12.1 percent YoY from 124 to 139 closed transactions. The January median sales price increased 2.5 percent from $175,500 to $179,900. Dollar volume also increased an impressive 23 percent from $26.5 million one year ago to $32.5 million in January. Going against statewide trends, inventory in the area increased 1.8 percent from 839 residential listings one year ago to 854 in January. Months of supply decreased from 6.8 to 6.1, while average DOM improved from 58 to 53, making Tuscaloosa the fourth fastest selling market in the state during January. Going forward, keep an eye on inventory as January’s modest gain of residential listings broke a 43-month streak of YoY inventory declines. Stay tuned to see if inventory gains continue in the Tuscaloosa area, which have the potential to ease home price appreciation, creating opportunities for more buyers to enter the market.
Huntsville: Total residential sales in the Huntsville area increased 7.9 percent YOY from 443 to 478 closed transactions. The January median sales price increased 13.7 percent from $189,000 to $214,950. Dollar volume increased an impressive 20.7 percent from $94.2 million one year ago to $113.6 million in January. Mirroring statewide trends and regional trends but to a greater degree, inventory in the area decreased 28.3 percent from 1,823 residential listings one year ago to 1,308 in January. Months of supply decreased from 4.1 to 2.7, while average days on market (DOM) improved from 76 to 49, making Huntsville the fastest selling market in the state during January. Going forward, expect the strong seller’s market (2.7 months of supply) to continue as January marked 47 consecutive months of YoY inventory declines, with the last gain happening in February 2015.
Phenix City: Total residential sales in the Phenix City area increased 7.7 percent YoY from 65 to 70 closed transactions. The January median sales price increased 20.6 percent from $126,900 to $153,000. Dollar volume increased an impressive 26.9 percent from $9.2 million one year ago to $11.6 million in January. Mirroring statewide trends but to a lesser degree, inventory in the area decreased 2.3 percent from 432 residential listings one year ago to 422 in January. Months of supply decreased from 6.6 to 6.0, while average DOM improved from 115 to 108. Going forward, it is likely that strong price appreciation in the Phenix City area will continue as January marked 12 consecutive months of YoY median sales price gains, with an average gain of 16.5 percent from February 2018 to January 2019.
