Category Archives: buyers

Real Estate is Back… Here, too…

Thursday, 14 March 2013 08:28

Written by Lane Bailey

2 Comments

I have been saying it for a few months now… and it has been pretty apparent in the Gwinnett County area. Real Estate is back. This nifty infographic from Active Rain, where I am an Ambassador (I help other agents more effectively blog and such…) shows that agents across the country are really starting to feel confident that real estate is again strong.

As mentioned here during the depths of the down-turn, we wouldn’t really know that the market had turned until it was done. And just because I, and a few thousand of my real estate peers feel like real estate has returned to normal doesn’t mean that it can’t be derailed. But, for now…

Data provided by ActiveRain, the #1 social community for real estate professionals.

Sugar Hill, GA, Market Report, January 2013

Wednesday, 13 March 2013 10:01

Written by Lane Bailey

1 Comment

This map shows the incorporated and unincorpor...

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Market stats for Sugar Hill, GA , January, 2013 indicates that there were 105 homes on the market. Flat from last month. Overall, there is about an 4.3 month supply (3.4 last month). There were 16 sales, compared to 29 last month and 20 last January. Of course, then there were 159 listings on the market.

For Sugar Hill homes priced under $200k, there were 60 listings, with about 3.4 months supply. There were 13 sales this January, below last year for the same time (18). There were 18 sales last month. Inventories have been fluid, rising and falling. This time of year we often see a slight decrease in listings… but we are already very low. In fact, sales may be stifled by lack of inventory. Christmas slowed things down, as usual.

Sugar Hill Listings between $200k and $400k, there are 41 listings for sale, and about 7.2 months of supply. Last January there was a 10.1 month supply. There were 2 sales then, this year there were also 2. Last month had 10 sales. That makes three of the last five months look reasonably strong. We are in a slight Seller’s Market here again when the Holiday slowdown is over.

For listings in the $400k to $600k range, there were 4 homes on the market. The absorption rate was around 4.0 months, but with 1 sale this month, it is tough to calculate accurately. Obviously, a sale or two could make a BIG difference. I’ve finally started to see some consistency here. Hopefully we’ll have a little more action during the Spring selling season.

In the $600k to $800k, $800k to $1m and Above $1m (combined), the sales are too inconsistent to have a solid read on, but there were 0 homes listed for sale in these price ranges. No sales have been recorded in the last 2+ years.

Sugar Hill, GA is a suburb of Atlanta in Gwinnett County. The population is 2000 was 11,399, but that only included the area inside the city limits. The name comes from a bag of Sugar that spilled on a hill while in transit between Cumming and the railroad in Buford. And while it is actually a big market, it is in the shadows of Lawrenceville, Duluth and Suwanee… which all are nearby. That also makes it a great location, as it is close to everything that Gwinnett County, GA has to offer.

I have a page dedicated to Sugar Hill Market Data.

Atlanta Metro Zillow Home Value Index

Atlanta Metro Home Values – Interactive chart

Sugar Hill, GA, Market Report, March 2012 (lanebailey.com)
Sugar Hill, GA, Market Report, February 2012 (lanebailey.com)

Suwanee, GA, Market Report, January, 2013

Tuesday, 12 March 2013 12:27

Written by Lane Bailey

2 Comments

Market stats for Suwanee, GA, January, 2013 indicate that there were 332 properties on the market (up from 308 last month). Overall, there was about a 4.7 month supply of properties (up from 3.8 last month). January had 50 sales. Compared to January, 2012 (40), this year was up, but inventory was down compared to 2011 (468). There were 81 sales last month, so this month was down a good bit. There is generally a dip in January, so the drop in sales isn’t really alarming.

In the Under $200k arena, there were 77 listings in Suwanee, GA, with about a 3.3 month supply (compared to 4.4 months supply last year). This January’s sales were 15 (17 last year, 32 last month). It used to be a county leader, though, for now it is moving back to one of the best price/locale segments again. The next level up is coming up fast, though. Sales were likely limited by constricted inventory. Last year at this time, there were 131 listings.

Between $200k and $400k, there were 167 listings for sale (201 last year, 148 last month), and 5.0 months of supply. Sales in January, 2013 were 27 (33 in December), compared with 16 for the same period in 2012. Sales have been consistent for the last few months, but have fallen off somewhat for the last five months. I’d like to see get up to around 40 sales or so for the next couple of months. This shouldn’t be a “peaky” market/price segment. Unlike most of the county, this is the largest price segment in the area, and its direction plays a major part in how the area looks. Make no mistake, this is still solidly in Seller’s Market territory.

From $400k to $600k, there were 42 homes on the market. The absorption rate was at 4.7 months (3.6 in December). There were 5 sales in January (11 last month)… flat from 5 last year at this time. Looking at the three month average, there were 27 sales this year and 15 for the same period last year. This segment has become dramatically stronger in the last couple of months.

In the $600k to $800k arena, there are 24 listings, with about a 10.3 month supply. Sales at this level are not consistent, but there was 3 sales this month (3 last month). Looking at one month makes the numbers jump around. For the last three months, sales were 7… For the same time last year, the sales were 0. With the huge decrease in listings over the last couple of months, I was looking for this to become one of the strongest $600k-$800k area in the county. It is fairly strong right now… but still not where it could be.

The range from $800k to $1m, there are 7 homes listed and 10.5 months of inventory on the market. There were only 4 sales at this price level in 2011. There were 7 in 2012. This is a tough segment to try to sell in right now, but if inventory stays low, it won’t be quite as rough. But there still needs to be some more sales activity. There was 1 sale each in March, July, August, September, October, November and December.

In Suwanee, GA, Above $1m, there are 17 properties listed. The current absorption rate indicated about 15 months of inventory, but because of the smaller numbers of sales, this could be significantly impacted by just a couple of sales. In this segment, we should be seeing reduced inventories… There were 25 homes listed in this segment at this time last year. There were 0 sales in January, but 3 in the Nov-Jan time frame, same as the year before.

Suwanee, GA is a suburb of Atlanta in Gwinnett, Forsyth and (just a little bit) in Fulton Counties. The population is 2000 was 8,725, but that only included the area inside the city limits, and it had seen tremendous growth since that census. Money Magazine rated Suwanee in the “Top 10 Best Places to Live” in 2007, and it is one of the wealthiest parts of Georgia. Recently, the City of Suwanee has revamped their old town, adding a large park with a bandshell, condos, town homes and small businesses. It is also home to North Gwinnett High School, Peachtree Ridge and Collins Hill. I have a page dedicated to Suwanee Market Data.

Atlanta Metro Zillow Home Value Index

Atlanta Metro real estate info

Lilburn, GA Market Report, December 2012

Friday, 08 March 2013 10:50

Written by Lane Bailey

0 Comments

Market stats for Lilburn, GA, December, 2012, indicate that there were 217 properties on the market, down 27 from last month. Overall, there was about an 4.3 month supply of properties and 50 properties that closed (sold) in December. It was a decrease from last year’s sales (54) and a decrease from November (51 sales). The Absorption Rate notched down slightly. Lilburn had been among the weakest of Gwinnett County, GA, cities I track. But, at 4.25 months of inventory, it is reasonably strong now. Six months is considered balanced, lower is a seller’s market and higher is a buyer’s market.

In the sub-$200k arena, there were 150 listings, with about an 3.8 month supply with 38 sales. This represents most of the sales in the market area. Sales were flat from last month (38), but slightly down from last year (43). While the Absorption Rate isn’t as low as many other areas, sales are strong, and I’m think we are in a comeback for Lilburn. At 3.75 months of inventory, with a few months of similar stats, we’re there.

Between $200k and $400k, there are 59 listings for sale, and about 5.9 months of supply. This segment had been quite weak for months, and had stalled a little, but came back with a vengeance… only to stall a bit again. There were 11 sales compared to 12 last month and 11 last year. Lilburn has never been seen as a luxury market. The decrease in listings has really helped. I’m still not as confident about this portion of the Lilburn market coming back quite yet… It is strengthening, just not as consistently as I’d like. July month was quite strong. April was strong… At least we are ever so slightly in Seller’s Market territory.

From $400k to $600k, there are just 6 homes on the market. The absorption rate is 6.0 months. There was 1 sale in December. Poised for a comeback, but an increase in listings and weak sales don’t give the right ingredients for that to happen. To start with, we can’t have 7 month blank spots in sales (none from Aug11 through Feb12). If we can keep up a sale each month on average, this one will be back. Right now, low listings numbers give the appearance of strong activity.

From $600k to $800k, $800k to $1M and Above $1M, there are 2 listings (combined), but too few sales to have any sort of reliable number of months of inventory. March posted the first sale since August, 2010. It was in the $600-$800k range. One of the listings is above $1M and one between $800k and $1M, and there is no market activity in the last 12 months for those ranges…

Lilburn is in Gwinnett County, GA, just outside of Atlanta. As of the 2000 Census, there were 11,307 people in Lilburn, but that is only including people in the city limits, and there has been a lot of growth since 2000 in Gwinnett County. It was incorporated in 1910. Lilburn is home to Parkview High School, and also has students in the Brookwood, Berkmar and Meadowcreek clusters. It is also home to Killian Hill Christian School, Providence Chrisian Academy, St. John Neumann Catholic School and Parkview Christian School. Possibly the most famous resident of Lilburn is General Beauregard Lee, a groundhog with a better winter prediction record that Puxatawnee Phil up in PA. Dominique Wilkins, formerly of the Atlanta Hawks also lives in Lilburn.

Atlanta Metro Zillow Home Value Index

Atlanta Metro Home Values – Interactive chart

I have a page dedicated to Lilburn Market Data.

Lilburn, GA Market Report, April 2012(lanebailey.com)
Lilburn, GA Market Report, May 2012(lanebailey.com)
Lilburn, GA Market Report, July 2012
Lilburn, GA Market Report, August 2012
Norcross, GA, Market Report, September 2012
Lilburn, GA Market Report, September 2012

Norcross, GA, Market Report, December 2012

Thursday, 07 March 2013 10:32

Written by Lane Bailey

0 Comments

Market stats for Norcross GA, December, 2012 indicate that there were 130 properties on the market, down 15 from last month. Overall, there is about a 2.9 month supply of properties. The last year has been fairy strong… it hasn’t slowed much, if at all. December saw 36 sales, below par compared to the 55 for November, and compared to the 53 for December last year.

In the sub-$200k arena, there were 74 listings, with about 2.5 month supply. Sales are down from last month and down from a year ago in this segment, which is the main driver of sales in this area (22 v 46 in Dec11 & 37 Nov12). For the last eleven months, the AR has been tilted in favor of sellers. This still looks like one of the strongest price/area segment in Gwinnett County, GA. At well under a 3 month A/R, this is VERY strong for sellers.

Between $200k and $400k, there were 38 listings for sale, and about 3.1 months of supply. This segment had been weakening for the last few months. But, the 11 sales was up from last year’s 4 sales, but was a little below last month’s 15 sales. Even though it isn’t as gangbusters as some of the other areas, it is certainly better than the 28 months of inventory we had in December, 2010. I’m still waiting for this segment to stop bouncing around so much, though.

From $400k to $600k, there were 16 homes on the market. The Absorption Rate is around 6.9 months. The AR had been fairly steady for months, then shot WAY up in January. December’s 3 sales were flat from the 3 last month and up from last year’s 2 sales. This had actually been a pretty good area for homes in this price range to sell… The good news is that it only takes a few sales to put it back in a balanced range long term. In June we were at just 5.1 months of inventory and two months ago it was 42 months…

In the $600k to $800k arena, there was 1 listings on the market. The Absorption Rate is at 3.0 months of inventory… but with only 4 sales in 2010 and 4 sales in 2011, obviously it is easy to bump one way or the other. One reason for the strong looking Absorption Rate last month was that there were so few listings. February had 1 sale. The were 0 sales for Dec12, 0 for Nov12 and 0 for Dec11.

The range from $800k to $1m, there was 0 home listed on the market and 0 sales in December. There were no sales last year. Unfortunately there isn’t enough data for a good A/R number.

Above $1m, there was 1 property listed. But because of the smaller numbers of sales, the absorption rate could be significantly impacted by just a couple of sales. There is simply not enough activity for an A/R figure. The last sale was January 2011.

Norcross, GA is a suburb of Atlanta in Gwinnett County. The population is 2000 was 8,410 but that only included the area inside the city limits, and it has seen tremendous growth since that census. The City of Norcross revamped their old town a long time ago, and it has served as a model for other towns in the area. It is also home to Meadow Creek and Norcross High Schools. One of the things that Norcross is known for locally is the beautiful older homes in the downtown area. They have maintained their historic flair quite successfully.

I have a page dedicated to Norcross Market Data.