July monthly report shows prices dip amid inventory boost

The Huntsville Area Association of Realtors (HAAR) has released its monthly report for the month of July 2023. 

The average sale price of a single-family home in Madison County took a slight dip compared to July the year previous; where it had stood at $391K in 2022, in 2023 the average sale price was down to $390K. 

Efforts to control inflation, as well as the addition of more units to the inventory on the market, can explain this slight dip. The number of homes on the market hit 1612 in July of this year, four hundred more than the previous year’s number of only 1273. 

The average amount of days spent on market has more than doubled over that period as well; where homes were only spending a mere 11 days on the market the previous year, homes spent an average of 26 days listed this July.

This slowdown has affected the amount of total sales made per month as well. July the year previous saw a total of 802 homes sold in Madison County, while this year, that number decreased to 606. 

Despite the dip in prices, home affordability remains a national issue. ATTOM’s Q2 Home Affordability Report shows that 98% of single-family homes were less affordable than their historical average for Q2 2023. Housing prices continue to rise nationwide, but equally important is the impact of wage stagnation on the housing market. Nationally, the average homeowner has to spend 33% of their annual income on the expenses of homeownership, the highest level since 2007. 

These issues are somewhat ameliorated in our local real estate market by the prevalence of high-powering jobs supporting the national defense industry, which have continued to attract more and more people to come live and work in the Huntsville and Madison County area. 

Keep reading the Huntsville Business Journal for continued updates on real estate market conditions.