Lower numbers for homes sold, rising prices in housing market

Realtors are seeing some interesting trends in the DeSoto County housing market so far in 2023, compared to last year.

For instance, according to Crye-Leike Vice President/Broker Tracy Kirkley, there’s been a decrease of 21.14 percent in the number of homes sold, with 1,740 homes closed. Kirkley said those numbers are similar to 2013-2014, after consistent sales between 2016-2022. 

While the numbers of homes being sold are falling, the prices are rising over the past 10 years, especially in the last 2-3 years. 

The average price per square foot is now $155, which is a 221 percent increase from 2013. Interest rates have jumped from below 3-7 percent or above, impacting both builders and buyers.

The average number of days for homes on the market is at 45 days, up from just 14 days in 2022.  Properties are taking longer to sell and sellers are getting about 97.62 percent of the original list price. That’s compared to 101.4 percent of the list price last year.  

With low inventory comes good demand for home properties, Kirkley pointed out.  

“Available housing inventory remains scarce, as existing homeowners hold on to their homes and their low interest rates, and builders slow down on new starts,” Kirkley said. “Buyer demand is still decent, with multiple offers still common for homes under $300,000.”

Kirkley added the largest buying pool right now comes from baby boomers, who are downsizing and are often paying cash.  

“Institutional investors are more active but more price conscious than in previous years,” Kirkley said.