Home prices continue to escalate, charging upward 6.9 percent in the first quarter of 2017, according to the latest quarterly report by the National Association of REALTORS® (NAR). The increase, stoked by the strongest quarterly sales pace in a decade, marks three straight quarters of growth.
“Prospective buyers poured into the market to start the year, and while their increased presence led to a boost in sales, new listings failed to keep up and hovered around record lows all quarter,” says Lawrence Yun, chief economist at NAR. “Those able to successfully buy most likely had to outbid others—especially for those in the starter home market—which, in turn, quickened price growth to the fastest quarterly pace in almost two years.”
Single-family home prices went up in 85 percent of the markets assessed in the report, or 152 of 178 metropolitan statistical areas (MSAs). Seventeen percent of, or 30, metro areas saw prices up by double digits. At the national level, the median existing single-family home price was $232,100, and the median existing condominium price was $218,600.
Contact the Jason White Team to see what this means for buyers and sellers in the Smokies.
Featured Property:
1235 Ski Mountain Road, Unit 630 Gatlinburg
$149,000, ID# 209748 Short Sale
Well-built & maintained, 3 BD/2 BA, 1,600+ sq ft condo unit, complete with a 1-car attached garage, located immediately adjacent and within short walking distance to Owner’s Club in Chalet Village (with pools & tennis courts), and also within easy walking distance to the main entrance of Ober Gatlinburg Ski Resort. Ideal as either a permanent or 2nd home, or as an overnight rental. Part of a very well established condo complex, which also includes a gently flowing, small mountain creek that flows through the property itself, creating a real sense of mountain living at its finest.