Just this morning I was in a discussion with many local business owners, real estate practitioners, and community bankers about how the local real estate market seems to have been influenced by the false reporting from the media. National and local media has been hyping a "housing bubble" for over a year now and yet our local Atlanta market seemed to be an exception to the bubble. In Atlanta we have strong job growth, population increase, low interest rates, low cost of living and a good quality of life to offer. We also avoided inflated appreciation and maintained a steady growth in appreciation for 10+ years. Yet today building permits are down and new home sales are slowed. Is it because of all the bad press from media outlets about the real estate market?
Did the media cause this real estate slow down in new construction?
I stumbled an article today about how the media skews the public perception about the real estate industry…
The article goes on to explain false assumptions about the Ohio real estate market, but I wanted to take this opportunity to share some facts about our Georgia Real Estate Market from the Norton Agency and their North Georgia’s Intelligence Market Watch:
GEORGIA’S HEALTHY HOUSING MARKET
Home prices have steadily increased as days on the market have decreased; the number of units sold has increased and multi-family building permits have increased.
| Georgia Homes | 2005 | 2006 | Total Increase |
Percent Change |
| Avg. Market Price (Total units sold) | $154,300 | $157,400 | +$3,100 | +1.96% |
| Avg. Market Price (4 bedroom home) | $266,400 | $288,300 | +$21,900 | +7.60% |
| Median Home Price (3 bedroom home) | $139,900 | $142,500 | +$2,600 | +1.82% |
| Median Home Price (4 bedroom home) | $220,000 | $230,600 | +$10,600 | +4.60% |
| Total Units Sold (all types) | 86,321 | 87,951 | +1,630 | +1.85% |
| Avg. Days on Market | 94.49 | 90.26 | -4.23 | -4.48% |
| Atlanta Single-Family Building Permits (Jan.-Oct.) | 51,125 | 48,164 | -2,961 | -5.79% |
| Atlanta Multi-Family Building Permits (Jan.-Oct.) | 9,699 | 12,846 | +3,147 | +24.50% |
In summary, new home sales and starts are down in Georgia, but average sales price is up and days on market is down. Commercial real estate continues to be steady also and Atlanta continues to rank among the best markets in the country. Stop believing the fear tactics and start making decisions based on facts. Now is a great time to buy real estate, especially in Georgia.
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