1st Quarter 2022
Our latest market update starts below and was published on April 27, 2022. You can also skip down to our section of real-time Real Estate Statistics for the Asheville Area.
The first quarter of 2022 has been a continuation of the trends of 2021. In other words, we continue to see rising prices, extremely limited inventory, and a lot of unsatisfied demand. The Asheville real estate market saw homes continue to sell quickly and fierce competition among buyers for the most desirable properties. And of course, as we enter the listing season we’re certainly keeping an eye on rising mortgage rates.
By the end of 2020, it was possible for a well-qualified buyer to get a 30-year mortgage with a rate just under 3.0%. Today, that same buyer might be qualified around 5.0%. That’s still historically low, but it’s a significant jump from where rates were. By the time of our next quarterly update (in July), we may have enough data to see what effect mortgage rates are having on the market. But anecdotally, we have seen buyers becoming even more motivated to buy, so they can lock in before rates get higher than they are today.
Inventory Remains Low Even as the Listing Season has Started
Our last several market updates have mentioned low inventory, and that continues to be the case in the Asheville market. The number of homes for sale hit a record low at the end of March, with only 373 on the market county-wide. That’s even lower than at the end of the year on December, when we would expect inventory to be low!
This translates into less than a one month supply of homes available for sale. This is as low as we’ve ever seen this metric, and it’s great news for sellers, who are enjoying minimal competition when putting their homes on the market. This low competition is a great reason to consider selling your home and taking advantage of the current market.
The Number of New Listings has Dipped to Start the Selling Season
We previously saw the number of new listings increase to pre-pandemic levels, even though they didn’t stay on the market long enough to build up the market’s inventory. However, the first quarter of 2022 saw a dip in the number of homes listed compared to the number of new listings in 2020 and 2021.
Less Inventory has Led to a Dip in the Number of Sales
The lack of homes to buy has led to a slight drop in the number of closed sales in the 1st quarter. This does not seem to show a decline in demand; there simply aren’t enough homes to buy. Those that are listed are selling quickly, and for over the asking price in many cases (more on that in a moment).
Sellers are Getting their Price
Beginning last fall, the median sale price (as a percent of list price) in the Asheville market topped out at 100% of list price. That’s median – so many homes are selling for OVER asking price.
And the median sales price continues to rise. For the first time ever, the median sale price in Buncombe County topped $400,000. In the city of Asheville, the median was $420,000.
One of the most attractive metrics for home sellers is the quick selling times we are seeing in this market. The median days on market decreased steadily all last year and seems to have bottomed out at right around 1 week on the market. For many of our seller clients, we have been marketing their homes as “Coming Soon,” which can generate some buzz even before the “days on market” starts to tally.
Land Sales Are Still Strong
Pending land sales across the Asheville area have been quite strong the pandemic started, even though they have dropped a bit since last year. 2020 and 2021 were record years for land sales, so even with the drop year-to-date in 2022, land sales are still strong.
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Asheville & Black Mountain Area Real Estate Trends and Statistics
At Freestone Properties, we’re a little bit geeky. We love statistics, especially when they help to identify trends in the market. The statistics in this section of our website are updated in real-time. We’ve included many different charts and graphs based on geographic area, price range, square footage range, and other factors. The graphs are interactive, so hovering your mouse over the graphs will show the detailed figures.
We hope you find this information useful if you’re considering selling your home or considering moving to the Asheville area. Keep in mind that statistics such as days on market, sale-to-list-price ratio, price per square foot and other figures can vary greatly depending on a lot of factors. Each property is different, so contact us to discuss a specific property.
Residential Real Estate Statistics and Trends by Geographic Area
Buncombe County Statistics (Countywide Data)
Arden Statistics
Asheville Statistics
Black Mountain Statistics
Brevard Statistics
Candler Statistics
Fairview Statistics
Hendersonville Statistics
Montreat Statistics
Swannanoa Statistics
Weaverville Statistics
Residential Real Estate Statistics and Trends by Property Type in Buncombe County (Countywide Data)
Land
Luxury Homes ($1 Million and Above)
Distressed Properties (Includes Foreclosures and Short Sales)
If you’d like to see a specific statistical graph that we haven’t provided, please ask us to create it.
