CHARLOTTE NC REAL ESTATE MARKET UPDATE – AUGUST 21, 2022

CHARLOTTE NC REAL ESTATE MARKET UPDATE –

AUGUST 21, 2022

 

The Charlotte housing market, like the broader US housing market, continued to cool last month, as rising mortgage rates and prices continue to challenge affordability. Many first-time home-buyers have been priced-out of the market in our 16-county region. Sales declined 21.5% year-over-year, as 4,252 homes sold last month, compared to the over 5,400 homes that sold in July, 2021.

This marks the 3rd month of declines, at a time of year when home-buying activity is typically wrapping up its strongest season. Sales were down 15.7% from the previous month (June). Housing statistics included in this report are completed transactions that include single-family and condo/townhomes only, according to data from Canopy MLS.

Pending contracts fell 14.6% year-over-year, reflecting buyer demand cooling. In July of last year, there were 766 more homes under Contract than last month. Month-over-month, Contract activity is down 4.7%. The only Charlotte area to show an increase was, surprisingly, Uptown, which was up 5.6%. The vast majority of Uptown sales are condominium sales and condo sales are down more than single family homes in the entire region. Uptown continues to show buyer interest that is relatively strong.

New listings, which rose year-over-year in both May and June, declined in July, falling 6% year-over-year. New listings were also down 6.7% compared to the previous month.  New listing activity and lower buyer demand over the last couple of months has helped to increase supply and inventory. As supply levels rise over time prices will most likely soften.

 

Charlotte NC Real Estate Market Update

 

Despite the slight increase in inventory and the lower buyer demand, we are still in a seller’s market. Buyers have more bargaining power now than at any point during the pandemic as a result. We are seeing more price reductions as the market continues to shift. This shift towards a healthier, more sustainable market is a positive on many levels.

Inventory has increased 23.9% compared to last year, pushing supply from 1.1 months in July 2021 to 1.4 months of supply last month – an increase of 27.3%. The subtle, but steady changes in supply, will help to cool rapid price appreciation over time.

Prices have continued to rise, as the average sales price ($458,000) rose 15.4% year-over-year, while the average list price rose 19.6% to $471,161. This brought the original list price received to sales price ratio to 100.3%, compared to July of last year of 101.8% and June, 2022’s 101.9%. Price reductions across the 16-county region totaled 3,529 in July, 2022, reflecting a significant year-over-year increase of 126.7%.

Time on market is starting to shift a bit as well, but still shows homes selling at a very rapid pace, leaving buyers little time for negotiation. Average days on the market were 15 days last month, which is only a slight increase from 14 days on the market in July, 2021.