Mecklenburg home sales fell 20% in 2023
Mecklenburg home sales fell 20% in 2023
Second straight year of double-digit decreases, close to national averages, as mortgage rates remain high
The following article appeared in the Jan. 22, 2024, edition of The Charlotte Ledger, an e-newsletter with smart and original local news for Charlotte. We offer free and paid subscription plans. More info here.
Mortgage rates cool a little off of peaks, providing optimism for 2024
The number of homes sold in Mecklenburg County in 2023 fell by 20% last year, the second straight year of double-digit declines, according to new data.
Higher-than-usual mortgage rates have kept many prospective sellers staying in their homes, which has led to fewer homes available for purchase, real estate agents have said. The plunge in home sales, to 15,326 in Mecklenburg in 2023, follows an 18.2% drop in 2022, according to numbers from the Canopy Realtor Association.
Price growth slows: It’s unusual for growing Charlotte to have back-to-back years of double-digit declines in the sale of houses. The lack of available inventory is contributing to higher home prices, which rose 2.4% in 2023 in Mecklenburg, to a median value of $425,000, according to Canopy data. But that’s a far slower rate of price growth than in previous years: Prices rose 17% in 2022.
The slide in home sales in Mecklenburg is roughly in line with national trends. The National Association of Realtors said last week that home sales fell 18.7% and that 2023 was the weakest year for home sales since 1995.
Local real estate agents have said they are optimistic that lower mortgage rates will lead to a reversal of the trend in 2024. Rates last year hit a high of more than 7%, or about double the figure from two years ago. The average national rate on a 30-year fixed mortgage was 6.88% last week, according to Bankrate.com.
Hot or not? Despite the big drops in home sales to the lowest level in years, Charlotte media tend to describe the local housing market as “hot.” WCNC declared last week, for instance, that “Charlotte’s real estate market remains hot.” Many continue to cite predictions from Zillow, which hilariously forecast a year ago that Charlotte would be “2023’s hottest market” in the country. This year, Zillow put Charlotte No. 7 on its “hottest housing market” list, according to the Charlotte Business Journal. —Tony Mecia
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Executive editor: Tony Mecia; Managing editor: Cristina Bolling; Staff writer: Lindsey Banks; Business manager: Brie Chrisman