How did the market improve in 2016? The Columbia area has been on an upswing for the last four years, but 2016 was an exceptional year for real estate. Here's what that means for you.
Today I wanted to give you a quick comparison of the 2015 and 2016 markets here in Columbia. How did the market change?
This great news is that as we suspected, the market is on a rebound. We've seen increases in the market for about four years in a row now. Without getting too complicated, let's take a look at how the market improved last year.
In 2015, we had 16,424 properties active on the market for sale, and 10,290 sold. In 2016, there were 16,508 properties on the market for sale, and 11,483 of them sold and closed. That's good for a 9% increase in volume off of almost the exact same amount of listings, and that's great.
The big question everyone wants to know about is price. Are homes growing in value again?
Yes!
In 2015, the average home in the Midlands sold for $180,568, and in 2016, the average home sold for $189,641. That's a 9.5% increase in price, which is fantastic for the Midlands. In this area when we're doing well, we usually expect a 3% or 4% appreciation rate, and to have an appreciation rate pushing 10% is incredible!
To see appreciation pushing 10% in 2016 is simply incredible in our market.
Going forward in 2017, we're looking for a lot of good things. The year started with a bang thanks to a lot of properties going under contract and a lot of homes coming on the market. As always, the properties that follow a good sales regimen will sell faster and for more money.
I hope this news makes you as happy as it makes me! If you're interested in learning more about your home's value in our market, give me a call or send me an email. I look forward to hearing from you soon.
