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Lawrenceville, GA Market Report, January 2013

Monday, 18 March 2013 10:53

Written by Lane Bailey

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This map shows the incorporated and unincorpor...

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Market stats for Lawrenceville, GA, January, 2013, indicate that there were 683 properties on the market, down 7 from last month. Overall, there was about a 3.5 month supply of properties. In 2012, sales for January were at 213, so 166 sales was a big decrease, year over year. Last month’s sales were at 215. Coupled with the decrease in inventory, things are still looking pretty good. Normally the market picks up from January-Feruary through about June-August. This month we are OK, but some are arguing that constrained inventories are still holding back sales or we could be looking even better.

For Lawrenceville, GA, Homes Under $200k, there are 543 listings, with about a 3.1 month supply of homes. Sales were down from January, 2012 (154 v 205), although sales may very well be off because of constrained inventories. Last year in this segment, there were almost 1000 listings v under 600 now. This segment is easily the lion’s share of sales for the area. With the 3.04 month A/R, it is solidly in Seller’s Market territory. The low Absorption Rate (AR) is due to very strong sales, coupled with dramatically lower listing inventories. Month over month sales were down from 191 in December.

Between $200k and $400k, there are 123 listings for sale, and about 7.5 months of supply. Oddly, this had one of the mid-pack segments in the county, now it’s on the weak side. The 11 sales for January, 2013 edged the 7 from last year, but was very weak compared to the 21 sales last month. But, we had been close in Buyer’s Market territory here, but have slipped back to Seller’s Market territory.

From $400k to $600k, there are 11 homes on the market. The absorption rate is around 6.6 months. However, with the level of sales in this segment, a couple of sales added or subtracted can have a HUGE impact. There was 1 sale for January, the Absorption Rate has dropped from 78 months June11, through good, but sporadic sales. This is acting like a luxury market and the A/R is jumping all over the place… with just a few sales (A/R was 34 nine months ago). While the long term trend was looking a little better, now it is still pretty choppy.

In the $600k to $800k arena, there are 4 listings, with about 12 months of supply. As with the next lower priced segment, a couple of sales makes a big difference and there were 0 sales in January. There were only 6 sales at this level in all of 2011, 2 of them were January. There was 1 sale in January 2012, 1 in May, 1 in October and 1 in December.

Between $800k and $1M, and Above $1M there are 2 homes listed (combined) and not enough sales data to give an accurate absorption rate. Until this month, there had only been one sale in this range in the last 3 years (Aug, 2010), according to FMLS. But, there was 1 sale in July, but none in August. It was over $1M, if that makes a difference…

Lawrenceville is in Gwinnett County, GA, just outside of Atlanta. As of the 2000 Census, there were 22,937 people in Lawrenceville, but that is only including people in the city limits, and there has been a lot of growth since 2000 in Gwinnett County (2008 estimates from the Census Bureau peg population around 29,000). It was incorporated in 1821. Lawrenceville is home to Central Gwinnett High School, and also has students that the Mountain View and Archer clusters. It is also home to Gwinnett Technical College and Georgia Gwinnett College. Another recent addition to Lawrenceville is that it is home to the Gwinnett Braves, playing at the Gwinnett Stadium on GA20 between I-85 and GA316. Possibly the most famous resident of Lawrenceville was Oliver Hardy. As a small boy he lived in Lawrenceville with his parents for a short time. Lawrenceville was also home to Junior Samples. Some of its other residents included Jeff Francouer, Brian McCann and Jennifer Ferrin.

Atlanta Metro Zillow Home Value Index

Atlanta Metro real estate info

I have a page dedicated to Lawrenceville Market Data.

Lawrenceville, GA Market Report, March 2012 (lanebailey.com)
Lawrenceville, GA Market Report, February 2012 (lanebailey.com)
I’m Always Up For a Good Surprise.. (lanebailey.com)
Gwinnett County Public Schools Making Changes… (lanebailey.com)

Buford, GA, Market Report, January 2013

Friday, 15 March 2013 09:14

Written by Lane Bailey

1 Comment

Market stats for Buford, GA, January, 2013 indicate that there were 285 properties on the market, an increase of 11 from last month. Overall, there was about an 4.4 month supply of properties (Absorption Rate or A/R). There were 58 sales for January, down from 67 last month but up from the 52 sales last Jan12. 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 131 listings, with a 3.2 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 32 (v 41 last month), and well down compared to last year (42 sales in Jan12). 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 113 listings for sale, and about 5.5 months of supply. The 21 sales recorded were down from the 25 last month but way up from the 8 sales last year for January. 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 slightly further into Seller’s Market territory.

From $400k to $600k, there were 27 homes on the market. The absorption rate is 13.5 Months. There have been 6 sales in the last 3 months (0 for November, 1 for December and 5 for January). When the market is rolling, there should be 3-5 sales a month during this part of the year. Just for comparison, there were 8 sales in the Nov-Jan period in 2011-12. This segment has been bouncing all over the place… but it is reasonable right now.

In the $600k to $800k arena, there were 5 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 5 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 January.

The range from $800k to $1m, there were 2 homes listed. Trends are hardly definable. Listings are down. June recorded the first sales since December, 2010. There were 0 sales in January. But it still has a 12.0 month Absorption Rate.

Above $1m, there were 7 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 January. So, we have 21 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, March 2012 (lanebailey.com)
Buford, GA, Market Report, February 2012 (lanebailey.com)

Atlanta Metro Zillow Home Value Index

Atlanta Metro Home Values – Interactive chart

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

Image via Wikipedia

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.