Sales: According to the Lake Martin Area Association of Realtors, April waterfront sales decreased 18.2% year-over-year from 33 to 27 closed transactions. Following seasonal trends, sales increased 12.5% from March. Sales are now down 27.4% year-to-date.
For all of the Lake Martin Waterfront housing data, click here.
Inventory: Total homes listed for sale declined 11% year-over-year from 91 to 81 listings. Months of supply increased from 2.8 to 3.0, reflecting a market where sellers generally have elevated bargaining power.
Pricing: The median sales price in April was $880,000, an increase of 19.6% from one year ago and an increase of 22.7% from March. The differing sample size (number of residential sales of comparative months) can contribute to statistical volatility, including pricing. ACRE recommends consulting with a local real estate professional to discuss pricing, as it will vary from neighborhood to neighborhood.
Lake homes sold in April averaged 62 days on the market (DOM), 27 days faster than April 2021.
Forecast: April sales were 3 units, or 9.3%, below the Alabama Center for Real Estate’s (ACRE) monthly forecast. ACRE projected 30 sales for the month, while actual sales were 27 units. ACRE forecast a total of 95 residential sales year-to-date, while there were 82 actual sales through April, a difference of 14%.
Statewide Summary: Home sales cooled off in April, falling 6.0% from one year ago. Fast-rising mortgage rates, rising home prices, and inflation have resulted in a slower pace of buyer activity. More declines are expected in the coming months as home sales are likely to return to pre-pandemic levels. Slowing home sales will encourage home price growth to readjust towards more sustainable rates while also encouraging a gradual increase in supply.
Home sales prices continue to trend upwards with the statewide median sales price reaching the highest level on record in April ($234,100), an increase of 16.0% from one year ago. As demand slows, price growth is expected to moderate to the 8-10% range by the fourth quarter of 2022.
After reaching a record low in February 2022, inventory is beginning to trend upwards. April listings increased 24.2% from March and increased 4.3% from one year ago, the first year-over-year inventory gain at the statewide level in over seven years. Inventory is expected to continue growing but at a slow pace as sales activity cools. The imbalance between supply and demand, however, continued in April with just 1.5 months of supply, while a balanced market has 4-6 months of supply.
National Summary: According to the National Association of Realtors (NAR), existing home sales declined for the third consecutive month in April, falling 2.4% from March (seasonally adjusted annual rate). Sales increased from the prior month in the Northeast and Midwest, while they slowed in the South and West regions. Year-over-year, national home sales declined 5.9%.
The median sales price for all housing types was $391,200, rising 14.8% year-over-year and marking 122 consecutive months of year-over-year gains. Rising home prices are largely a result of low housing inventory amid sustained demand. Existing home inventory totaled 1,030,000 listings at the end of April, up 10.8% from March 2021 and down 10.4% from 1.15 million listings one year ago. April’s 2.2 months of supply (MOS) increased from 1.9 during March but is down slightly from 2.3 one year ago.
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The Lake Martin Area Waterfront only report is developed in conjunction with the Lake Martin Area Association of Realtors to better serve area consumers.
