In this week’s Atlanta Market Update it seems like we may have more good news. It’s true that home sale have slumped nationally, but we could be on the upswing. This is according to Skylar Olsen, senior principal economist at Zillow.
In a recent interview with Yahoo Finance, Olsen states “And that bottom is pretty much now”. Referring to the real estate market decline in since COVID-19 began. She and other economists predict a “check”-shaped or “V”-shaped recovery. Which means that it should go back up as quickly and steadily as it declined. Olsen goes on to say that home sales have dipped by 50-60% year-to-date since February, however they are starting to see the numbers of new listings creep back up.
The mortgage industry has also seen a significant rise in purchase mortgage applications in the past week. Applications are up 6% nationally. Up for the third week in a row. It appears that buyers are ready to get back out into the market and sellers may also be ready to move forward with their listings.
One question I’m getting asked a lot right now is, “why aren’t we seeing significant price decreases?”. That really comes down to basic supply and demand. Yes, we have seen a shortage of home sales since the beginning of COVID-19. However, we have not seen an increase of new homes into the market. So, the homes that are out there are in short supply and buyers are still having to fight over them.
I mentioned in my last Market Update that averages days on market here in the Metro Atlanta area was very low in the month of April. Which is a prime example of the high demand we are still seeing in the market right now. Interest rates are also still very low. This is another big reason that buyers are in the market right now.
Below are this week’s stats. All of these number are pulled directly from First MLS or Georgia. Keep in mind that closed sales data does not include transactions that have not yet been recorded. Recording can in some case take up to 2 weeks.
This weeks pending sales: 2134
This weeks new active listings: 2124
This weeks closed homes: 554
Moving forward we expect to see more movement in the Atlanta real estate market. This changes should come as buyers gain more confidence in the market and as sellers become more comfortable listing their homes in a more virtual environment.
This is not to say that we won’t be facing an uphill battle for the remainder of 2020. With unemployment at record numbers, much of the state of our market depends on whether or not Atlantans can get back to work in the near future. But, I remain hopeful with the knowledge that thus far our real estate market here in Atlanta has stayed the course.
Keep your head up Atlanta. Stay safe and stay well. We’re going to get through this thing together.