The Alabama Center for Real Estate created the following rankings based on median price appreciation in February.
1. Wiregrass Region – 29 percent
2. Morgan County – 15 percent
3. Montgomery – 15 percent
4. Lee County – 13 percent
5. Athens – 12.2 percent
Statewide Average: 3.0 percent
National Average: 3.6 percent
Wiregrass Region: Home values are on the rise in the Wiregrass Region as it led all markets in the state in median price appreciation during February. Median sales price increased 29 percent year-over-year (YoY) from $110,500 in 2018 to $142,500 currently. Inventory shortages in the area played a significant role in driving prices upwards. Residential inventory in the area was down 21.9 percent during February, while the statewide inventory dropped 8.9 percent YoY. With rising prices and declining inventory in the Wiregrass Region, it is not surprising to see average days on market drop from 175 to 125 days, a 28.9 percent decrease. Lastly, the Wiregrass Region currently has 7.0 months of supply, down 28.6 percent from 9.8 months in February 2018.
Morgan County: Decatur is one of ACRE’s top 5 markets to watch in 2019. The median sales price in the Decatur area increased 15 percent YoY from $126,000 to $144,900. Continuing with statewide and regional trends, inventory in the Decatur area decreased 32.3 percent year-over-year, declining from 526 to 356 units listed. Homes in the area are selling 22 days faster than last year, dropping from 97 to 75 days on market. The market currently has 3.6 months of supply, a 39.1 percent decrease from the 5.8 months last year.
Montgomery: Montgomery area price appreciation saw a similar boost to Decatur. The Montgomery YoY median sales price increased 15 percent from $137,650 to $158,284. Montgomery also went mirrored statewide inventory trends as residential listings decreased 7.8 percent YoY during February, with units listed dropping from 1,966 to 1,812. Residential sales in the Montgomery area improved 21.5 percent YoY from 274 during February 2018 to 333 currently. Homes in the area are only selling 2 days faster than one year ago, but months of supply decreased 24.2 percent to 5.4 months.
Lee County: Alabama’s fourth-fastest rising home values are found in the Lee County area. Driven in part by a strong new construction market in the area, median sales price increased 13 percent YoY, improving from $215,000 last February to $243,056 currently. Contrary to the areas talked about previously, Lee County actually saw an increase in their units listed, months of supply, and days on market. While the days on market slightly increased to 72 days, Lee County’s days on market is still 11 days below the national average of 83 days. Lastly, their dollar volume comes in north of $34.2 million dollars, down 3.9 percent YoY.
Athens: Heading back up north, Athens rounds out the top five in YoY price appreciation in February. The Athens YoY median sales price increased 12.2 percent, improving from $184,900 last year to $207,510 currently. Like the top 3 areas, Athens mirrored statewide trends in inventory. Athens inventory declined 24.5 percent YoY, decreasing from 485 to 366 units listed. Similarly, days on market decreased 23.3 percent, improving from 73 to 56 days. Lastly, months of supply improved as well, equaling 2.5 months. Dollar volume increased 6.6 percent YoY, marking 38 consecutive months of YoY dollar volume gains.
