Category Archives: sellers

Buford, GA, Market Report, December 2012

Monday, 04 March 2013 10:00

Written by Lane Bailey

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Market stats for Buford, GA, November, 2012 indicate that there were 274 properties on the market, a reduction of 48 from last month. Overall, there was about an 3.9 month supply of properties (Absorption Rate or A/R). There were 67 sales for December, down from 69 last month but well up from the 83 sales last Dec11. It isn’t the strongest market in Gwinnett, but the A/R is nothing to sneeze at. It is still solidly in Seller’s Market territory.

In the sub-$200k arena, there were 133 listings, with a 2.7 month supply. This is the largest price segment in this market area, so strength here usually equals strength across the whole local market area. Sales were down from last month 41 (v 50 last month), and well down compared to last year (53 sales in Dec11). But, the A/R is WAY under the 6 months that would be considered fairly balanced… pointing towards a solid seller’s market. This time of year I’m not terribly concerned about a little weakening.

Between $200k and $400k, there were 102 listings for sale, and about 5.3 months of supply. The 25 sales recorded were up from the 19 last month but flat from the 25 sales last year for December. This had been one of the weaker segments in the county, but had improved dramatically until last month it was fairly balanced, though tilted towards buyers… now it is back in Seller’s Market territory.

From $400k to $600k, there were 20 homes on the market. The absorption rate is 15.0 Months. There have been 4 sales in the last 3 months (3 for October, 0 for November and 1 for December). When the market is rolling, there should be 3-5 sales a month during this part of the year. Just for comparison, there were 10 sales in the Oct-Dec period in 2011. This segment has been bouncing all over the place… but it is pretty weak right now.

In the $600k to $800k arena, there were 7 listings. Absorption Rate is (again) 36+ months… but it jumps around a lot. Sales in this range are pretty sporadic, but steady when looking at the long-term. The drop in inventory over the last few months from 14 homes to 7 has made things look less slow… but there were 7 sales in this segment last year including 3 sales in March, 1 in June and 0 in December.

The range from $800k to $1m, there were 3 homes listed. Trends are hardly definable. Listings are down. June recorded the first sales since December, 2010. There were 0 sales in December. But it still has a 12.0 month Absorption Rate.

Above $1m, there were 9 properties listed. There was sale in the segment in April… of 2009…and then May, 2011… and 2 sales in June, 2011… also 1 in July and September. There was 1 sale in October, but 0 sales in December. So, we have 27 months of inventory. I hope, but am not expecting, sales to be more consistent.

Buford, GA is a suburb of Atlanta in Gwinnett and Hall Counties. The population is 2000 was 10,668, but that only included the area inside the city limits, and it had seen tremendous growth since that census. Buford is home to Lake Lanier, one of Georgia’s premiere recreational areas, and Lake Lanier Islands. Recently, the City of Buford has revamped their old town. It is also home to Buford (Buford City Schools aren’t a part of Gwinnett County Schools), Mill Creek, Mountain View and Lanier High School (Lanier will open for the 2010-11 school year).

I have a page dedicated to Buford Market Data.

Buford, GA, Market Report, April 2012(lanebailey.com)
Buford, GA, Market Report, May 2012(lanebailey.com)
Buford, GA, Market Report, July 2012
Buford, GA, Market Report, August 2012
Buford, GA, Market Report, September 2012
Buford, GA, Market Report, October 2012

Buford, GA, Market Report, March 2012 (lanebailey.com)
Buford, GA, Market Report, February 2012 (lanebailey.com)
Buford, GA, Market Report, December 2011 (lanebailey.com)
Buford, GA, Market Report, November 2011 (lanebailey.com)

Atlanta Metro Zillow Home Value Index

Atlanta Metro Home Values – Interactive chart

Sugar Hill, GA, Market Report, December 2012

Friday, 01 March 2013 13:00

Written by Lane Bailey

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This map shows the incorporated and unincorpor...

Image via Wikipedia

Market stats for Sugar Hill, GA , December, 2012 indicates that there were 105 homes on the market. An increase of 2 from last month. Overall, there is about an 3.4 month supply (3.9 last month). There were 29 sales, compared to 28 last month and 31 last December. Of course, then there were 158 listings on the market.

For Sugar Hill homes priced under $200k, there were 64 listings, with about 2.8 months supply. There were 18 sales this December, below last year for the same time (24). There were 22 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.

Sugar Hill Listings between $200k and $400k, there are 38 listings for sale, and about 5.2 months of supply. Last December there was a 11.3 month supply. There were 7 sales then, this year there were 10. Last month had 5 sales. That makes three of the last four months look reasonably strong. We are in a slight Seller’s Market here.

For listings in the $400k to $600k range, there were 3 homes on the market. The absorption rate was around 3.0 months, but with 1 sale this month (and May, August, October and November single sales being the only others since last November), it is tough to calculate accurately. Obviously, a sale or two could make a BIG difference. I still hope to see some consistent activity in this segment.

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)
Sugar Hill, GA, Market Report, January 2012 (lanebailey.com)
Sugar Hill, GA, Market Report, December 2011 (lanebailey.com)

Suwanee, GA, Market Report, December 2012

Thursday, 28 February 2013 12:00

Written by Lane Bailey

2 Comments

Market stats for Suwanee, GA, December, 2012 indicate that there were 308 properties on the market (down from 332 last month). Overall, there was about a 3.8 month supply of properties (down from 4.2 last month). December had 81 sales. Compared to December, 2011 (74), this year was up, but inventory was down compared to 2011 (468). There were 79 sales last month, so this month was up a little bit, but nothing like August.

In the Under $200k arena, there were 77 listings in Suwanee, GA, with about a 2.6 month supply (compared to 4 months supply last year). This November’s sales were 32 (46 last year, 24 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 may have been limited by constricted inventory.

Between $200k and $400k, there were 148 listings for sale (209 last year, 154 last month), and 4.1 months of supply. Sales in December, 2012 were 33 (40 in November), compared with 21 for the same period in 2011. Sales have been consistent for the last few months, but have fallen off somewhat for the last four months. I’d like to see it stay 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 36 homes on the market. The absorption rate was at 3.6 months (5.6 in November). There were 11 sales in December (11 last month)… way up from 6 last year at this time. Looking at the three month average, there were 30 sales this year and 18 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 (1 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 1. 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 not where it could be.

The range from $800k to $1m, there are 6 homes listed and 6.0 months of inventory on the market. There were only 4 sales at this price level last year (1 in April, 2 in July and 1 in August). 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 and 1 sale in December.

In Suwanee, GA, Above $1m, there are 17 properties listed. The current absorption rate indicated about 10.2 months of inventory, but because of the smaller numbers of sales, this could be significantly impacted by just a couple of sales (2 for April, last previously recorded). In this segment, we should be seeing reduced inventories… There were 25 homes listed in this segment at this time last year. There were 2 sales in August, October and November and 1 sale in December.

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 Home Values – Interactive chart

Market Report Changes…

Wednesday, 27 February 2013 09:00

Written by Lane Bailey

1 Comment

I’m making a big change for the market reports from January, 2013, forward.

English: Chart showing the median and average sales prices of new homes sold in the United States by month/year. Based off of US Census Median and Average Sales Price of New Houses Sold Data. Please note that the sales price includes land. Also, the average from 1963-1974 inclusively, is annual, and not monthly. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Instead of tracking average Days on Market (DoM), I’m going to track median DoM. It might not seem like much of a change, but I’m seeing segments where the average is 100+ days, while the median 50 or 60 days. The reason for this is that the average is giving too much weight to a few outlier properties that might have 500 or more days on the market.

A while back, FMLS, the primary provider of the data I analyze, changed the way THEY calculated DoM. The started tracking the property for total days on market instead of just the most recent listing.

While FMLS’s policy change made the data more accurate for individual listings, it also made it much less relevant for the market trends. The median data is more accurate for market trends because it lowers the effects of the outliers.

I discontinued posting the DoM data in the market reports a while back because it ceased being useful, but I have continued to track it. Moving forward, while I still probably won’t include the DoM data directly in the reports, I will allude to it as I see trends develop.

Enjoy…

Lilburn, GA Market Report, November 2012

Tuesday, 26 February 2013 11:00

Written by Lane Bailey

0 Comments

Market stats for Lilburn, GA, November, 2012, indicate that there were 244 properties on the market, down 4 from last month. Overall, there was about an 4.6 month supply of properties and 51 properties that closed (sold) in November. It was a increase from last year’s sales (41) and a decrease from October (52 sales). The Absorption Rate notched up slightly. Lilburn had been among the weakest of Gwinnett County, GA, cities I track. But, at 4.55 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 173 listings, with about an 4.1 month supply with 38 sales. This represents most of the sales in the market area. Sales decreased a bit from last month (44), but slightly up from last year (36). 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 4.09 months of inventory, with a few months of similar stats, we’re there.

Between $200k and $400k, there are 62 listings for sale, and about 6.0 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. But it would be hard to follow up July. There were 12 sales compared to 7 last month and 5 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…

From $400k to $600k, there are just 6 homes on the market. The absorption rate is 6.0 months. There was 1 sale in November. 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 3 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.