Three Shocking Stats from July Real Estate Sales in NoMi

Just when we thought things were beginning to cool off in the Northern Michigan real estate market, July sales numbers came out turned up the heat, pleasantly surprising our resident data geek at Winslow Group.  

Well, the data is pleasant if you are a seller or someone who lives entirely on real estate commission praying against naysayers who predict some sort of market crash (like our data Geek). Maybe a little less pleasant if you are one of 1.8 billion millennials worldwide who hope to someday buy a home.

To say our jaws dropped when we reviewed last month’s data would be an understatement. We know it takes a little time for market shifts to really move the numbers, however we started feeling the winds of change back in May and expected July would be the first month we saw the slowing down of the market to be supported by hard data.

Not so. At least not really. Here are the key indicators and what we think about what’s driving continued home appreciation here in our backyard despite increased interest rates and now a mild recession.

1)    Prices are still way, Way, WAY up over same period last year. Emmet County sold home prices were up 35% from July of 2021 to July of 2022. This is a BIG number given we had already realized a fair amount of price appreciation last July. Charlevoix County was even more pronounced at an increase of 47%. That’s nearly 50% in one year. Whoa nelly!

2)    Days on the market are still down year over year. This one almost made us fall out of our chairs. Why? because in the last few weeks we have been having conversations with our clients we haven’t had in years about dropping price. And it’s not just us. Our competitors are telling us they are experiencing the same thing. Still, July days on the market were down 2% in Emmet County and 20% in Charlevoix to startling low 43 days and 40 days respectively.

3)    Sales are down less than we would have expected. Almost every economist predicted unit sales to be down markedly this year but offset by continued price appreciation. While Charlevoix did see a moderate decrease in units in July (down 18%), Emmet County was actually up 1% from July of last year. Not too shabby considering we are still experiencing inventory pressure.

Speaking of inventory pressure, one statistic did not surprise us in the slightest. New listing units in July were down 18% in Emmet County and 47% in Charlevoix County. And this one fact accounts for the continued appreciation and days on market we saw despite climbing interest rates, inflation and recession.

The market is doing what the market does and matching supply to demand. The fact homes are still appreciating at break-beck rates pure and simply goes back to the fact we have more buyers for a little slice of Nomi life than we have sellers willing to give their piece of heaven up.

And you know what? After 21 years of living the sweet life and selling the experience to others, we totally get that. All that said, everyone goes through seasons of life and if you are thinking now is the time to take advantage of unprecedented appreciation we would be honored to help. Or if you are a buyer trying to get a leg up in a competitive market, we have the experience and proven tactics to help you navigate a still challenging market.

Either way give us a call or message today to talk about how we can put our market knowledge and experience to work for you.