Market Report For Week Ending May 6, 2023

For Week Ending May 6, 2023

Data current as of May 15, 2023

Mortgage interest rates fell slightly following the Federal Reserve’s recent decision to raise its benchmark short-term interest rate by a quarter percentage point this month, its 10th interest rate hike since March 2022. According to Freddie Mac, the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 6.39% the week ending 5/4/23, up from 5.27% a year ago. Many economists expect mortgage interest rates will continue to soften over the year due to cooling inflation.

In the Asheville region, for the week ending May 6:

• New Listings decreased 24.5% to 311
• Pending Sales decreased 18.2% to 225
• Inventory increased 16.6% to 1,695

For the month of April:

• Median Sales Price increased 2.2% to $383,360
• List to Close increased 17.7% to 93
• Percent of Original List Price Received decreased 3.5% to 97.0%
• Months Supply of Homes for Sale increased 46.2% to 1.9

NEW LISTINGS ARE DOWN BY 19.3% OVER THE PAST 3 MONTHS

SALES ARE DOWN BY 19%

INVENTORY IS UP BY 28%

DAYS ON MARKET ARE UP BETWEEN 29-55% SINCE JANUARY MONTH OVER MONTH

MEDIAN SALES PRICE IS UP 10% OVER THE PAST 12 MONTHS

% OF ORIGINAL LISTING PRICE RECEIVED  DOWN BY 3.5% IN APRIL

Prices are remaining firm for now with a 10% increase over the past 12 months. Buyers are negotiating on average 3% below list price.

Is this a WAIT AND SEE moment? We can be somewhat optimistic that interest rates will start to come down over the year. Which will create more momentum in the market. Potential sellers who are currently financed below 4% might start warming up to the idea of cashing out equity earned over the last few years as interest rates “soften”.

Cash buyers have a real opportunity right now if the right property comes up. Even though we are seeing an increase in inventory the total months supply of homes for sale is low. There is not a lot to choose from. We are starting to see some motivated sellers and some opportunties for buyers.

The market is moving slowly - but it is moving. Desirable well priced homes are seeing multiple offers. Most sellers are having to exercise a little more patience and cooperation with buyers than we’ve seen over the past few years. If you’re thinking about selling your house, you should know the number of homes for sale right now is low. That’s because, this season, there are fewer sellers listing their houses for sale than the norm. If your current house truly doesn’t fit your needs anymore and you’re ready to move, don’t miss this chance to stand out. When fewer sellers are putting their homes up for sale, buyers will have fewer options, so you set yourself up to get the most eyes possible on your house.