HOUSINGNEWS REPORT
SPOTLIGHT: ATLANTA
BUY OR RENT IN ATLANTA? MORE AFFORDABLE TO BUY OR RENT IN 2017? BUY RENT
CLICK HERE TO VIEW INTERACTIVE VISUAL
Balanced Supply and Demand The combination of slow-and-steady increases in both home sales and home prices is a good indication of a well- balanced housing market, according to Dr. Rajeev Dhawan, director of the Economic Forecasting Center at Georgia State University. “I think the demand and supply are pretty much in balance,” he said. “It’s not like the oversupply we had back in 2004 to 2007 when we were doing 70,000 housing permits with job growth of 50,000.” Dhawan is forecasting an overall drop of 6.1 percent in total housing permits for Atlanta in 2017 due mainly to a large decrease in multi-family permits compared to a much smaller gain in residential permits. Even as the pipeline of new housing supply in Atlanta is contracting, more jobs in 2017 should translate into increased demand for housing.
I think the demand and supply are pretty much in balance. It’s not like the oversupply we had back in 2004 to 2007 when we were doing 70,000 housing permits with job growth of 50,000.”
DR. RAJEEV DHAWAN DIRECTOR OF THE ECONOMIC FORECASTING CENTER AT GEORGIA STATE UNIVERSITY
The metro area’s median home price of $198,000 in Q2 2017 was a new all-time high, according to ATTOM Data Solutions. Median home prices in Atlanta are now 17 percent above the pre-recession peak of $169,900 in Q3 2005. But the pace of annual home price appreciation in Atlanta has slowed dramatically in the last two years. It was at 4.2 percent in Q2 2017, the eighth consecutive quarter of single-digit increases following nine consecutive quarters of double-digit increases — peaking at a whopping 38 percent in
Q3 2013 in the midst of the Atlanta investor gold rush.
And sales activity continues to climb, indicating still-strong demand despite the departure of many investors. The Georgia MLS reported for June that the Atlanta metro area saw a 4.61 percent increase in residential units sold year-over-year. The number of residential listings decreased 2.03 percent and residential inventory declined 8.69 percent to a three- month supply from the level reported in June 2016.
17
JULY 2017 | ATTOM DATA SOLUTIONS
Made with FlippingBook Online newsletter