It has been a couple months since I shared the market numbers with you, and after
experiencing a few contracts with multiple offers this week, I thought now would be a great time
to see how we are faring. Are our sales prices seeing any effects from over 7% interest rates?
Just as a reminder, I have used the following counties to provide the content of this update;
Columbia, Richmond, Aiken, Burke, McCormick, Edgefield, Lincoln and McDuffie. This is based
on residential sales only recorded in the Realtors of Augusta multiple listing service, land is not
being included.
As you may know, most of our buyers and sellers who do not have to move are waiting on the
fence. According to the news, values have been severely impacted by the interest rates and the
underlying hope for most is that the interest rates and property values will soon come down to
something more affordable.
Here are some overall stats for JAN- SEP 2022 VS JAN- SEP 2023:
2022 TOTAL REPORTED SALES: 7,368
2022 AVG SALES PRICE: $295,912
2022 AVG DAYS ON MARKET: 80
2022 AVG PRICE PER SQUARE FOOT: $154
2022 AVG SOLD/LIST RATIO: 100.35%
2023 TOTAL REPORTED SALES: 5,875
2023 AVG SALES PRICE: $303,820
2023 AVG DAYS ON MARKET: 95
2023 AVG PRICE PER SQUARE FOOT: $320
2022 AVG SOLD/LIST RATIO: 98.81%
The most noticeable change is in the price per square foot! I just wasn't expecting to see that. So I
checked my numbers again to find out why, fully expecting that the volume of higher end homes
would be the reason, nope.
When I search homes sold for 700K or less in 2023, which accounts for 98% of the sold homes, the
average square footage comes in at $322 per square foot. If you look at the homes that sold for over
700K, the average drops down to $243 per square foot. In 2022, the opposite was the case. Under
700K came in at $155 per square foot and over 700K average per square foot was $231, the higher
ratio.
Great right!? What can we expect moving forward?
Let’s remember back to August 2022, the average interest rate on a mortgage was 5.5%, while
August 2023 ticked in at 7.6%.
It is clear that while the overall volume is down, thanks to all our fence riders and the overall cost to
borrow money, sales prices are still increasing over all. Homes sitting longer on the market and not
selling for over asking price, has become the norm. But there is a caveat: if you are buying a home
priced at or below the average of $303,820, you can expect to see some situations where there are
multiple offers and paying over the asking price will be required to get the home.
This trend of competitive buying in the average price point has just started creeping back in here for
the month of September. I can’t help but believe, based on these statistics, that even with all the
interest rate increases, our area will continue to appreciate.
Here’s to the inevitable future. If you need or want to buy a home, it is time to settle into the idea that
this is the new market and it is safe to go ahead and jump back in. By the way, there is still time for
you to move before the holidays hit and I can help you get into one!
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