The housing market in the Cape Fear region continued its robust trend for the most part in July, according to numbers released Wednesday
Sales were up 13.8 percent last month over the same period a year ago in New Hanover, Brunswick, Pender and Onslow counties combined, according to an analysis by Coldwell Banker Sea Coast Advantage, which the agency compiled from N.C. Regional Multiple Listing Service data. More than 1,610 homes were sold in the four counties last month with a median sales price of $219,900, the report stated.
With fewer listings and more units sold in July, Brunswick County by itself is experiencing a competitive residential real estate market, a Brunswick County Association of Realtors (BCAR) news release stated Wednesday.
Brunswick had a slight decrease in the number of new home listings in July as compared to the same month last year. There were 515 new listings, 6.2 percent lower than the 549 listings last year.
However, the numbers of units sold, average sale price and total sales volume went up. There were 464 units sold in July, a 6.7 percent increase from July of last year.
The average sale price for residences was $274,703 in July, up 10 percent from last year.
The higher average sale price and a higher number of units sold also meant there was an increase in total sales volume for July. Sales volume was $127 million compared to $108 million in July 2017, a 17 percent increase.
“July saw a steady demand and an increasingly tight supply of available homes in Brunswick County,” said BCAR CEO Cynthia Walsh in the release.
The number of active listings and the absorption rate, which measures how long it would take to sell all the existing inventory at the current rate, are at their lowest points since 2005, according to the release.
Walsh said the absorption rate is under 5 months and the days on market in Brunswick County is at an all-time low of 87 days.
“There was nothing out of the ordinary [in July’s data]. There is still the upward momentum and a strong healthy market,” Walsh said.
Combined prices in New Hanover, Brunswick, Pender and Onslow Counties rose 7.3 percent in July, the Coldwell Banker report said.
Home sale figures in the Cape Fear region are different than national statistics, where the percent of homes sales dropped slightly by 1.5 percent, according to the agency's release.
“There has been a lot of recent discussions nationally that a decrease in sales is beginning to impact the pace of rising home prices, especially on the West Coast,” president of Coldwell Banker Sea Coast Advantage Tim Milam said in the release. “But we have not really seen that occur here yet, although Leland comes closest in mimicking that national trend. Locally, homes are not selling as quickly here as they are on the national level, but the average days-on-market of 71 is still very positive and that figure continues to decline. As we enter the secondary fall season, most of the region remains in a seller’s market.”
Milam pointed out in the release that Leland saw sales drop by 1.7 percent to 116 in July.
"These homes sold quickly – 55 days on average – as prices rose 7.7 percent year-over-year to $231.637," the release stated.
Wilmington and Jacksonville were the two busiest major markets in the Cape Fear region, according to the Coldwell Banker report. In Wilmington, 455 homes sold in July, a nearly 18 percent increase over a year ago, as median prices rose about 7 percent to $249,500.
The report stated that a slow July in Hampstead, where only 61 homes were sold, caused Pender County to show a nearly 11 percent decline in July sales compared to last year, while prices dropped 1.8 percent to a median price of $249,900.
