2017 will prove to be another record-setting year for real estate in Dallas-Fort Worth.
Through the end of November, the latest month for which there is data available, 97,584 single family homes had sold in the region. Collectively the home sales had generated nearly $29 billion - $28,968,374,682 – and resulted in the average sale price being $296,856, according to figures provided by North Texas Real Estate Information Systems, Inc (NTREIS.) Those figures are all up over 2016, which had previously shown record highs in all three categories.
A noticeable change this year compared to the previous few years is that listings are up by approximately 7 percent, according to NTREIS, meaning more people are attempting to sell their homes.
Low inventory of available homes for sale has resulted in houses spending less time on the market and fetching ever-higher prices. But the increase in new and active listings in 2017 should help to stabilize the market, according to the President of the MetroTex Association of Realtors.
“[For 2017] it is more the perception of low inventory than the numbers state,” said James Martin, the MetroTex President who is a Realtor with Dave Perry-Miller. “That tells me demand is still very high.”
A house that sold in DFW in 2017 spent an average of 42 on the market, a slight increase when compared to 2016. But a more normal market, where supply and demand were more in line, would result in homes spending an average of 90 to 120 days on the market, according to Martin.
Another trend from 2017 that Martin pointed to was the shifting definition of what an “affordable” home in North Texas means.
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“It's a real struggle to find a home that is under $250,000” Martin said. “[At that price point] you are in multiple offers many times, very few days on the market. And that is one of the struggles for those buyers that are, I would say, [looking to buy in the price range of] $250,000 or even $300,000 and less.”
The numbers from NTREIS bear out what Martin mentioned: Far more homes were sold in the price range between $200,000 to $399,999 through the end of November (47,077 houses) than the number of homes sold for $199,000 and below (33,104). According to Martin, the same could not have been said just a few years ago.
All of this information is further proof, according to Martin, that this is still very much a seller’s market.
“If you are considering selling now is the time to sell,” Martin said. “There is the concern, ‘Where am I going to move?’ But as far as top dollar I would say meet with a realtor because now really is a great time to sell.”
