Fort Smith metro home sales down 4.4% through June, sales value up 9.7%

Rising interest rates, inflation and concerns about future economic conditions continue to weigh on home sales nationwide and in the Fort Smith metro. Home sales in the region are down 4.4% through June, an increase from the 3.3% decline through April.

The metro area had 1,949 homes sales in the January-June period, down 4.4% from 2,038 during the same period in 2021, according to data provided by Ashlee Milton, an executive broker with Chuck Fawcett Realty in Fort Smith.

The value of the sales totaled $423.909 million, up 9.7% compared with the same period in 2021. The average home price for sales in the first six months was $217,501, up 14.75% compared with the $189,546 in the same period of 2021. Average days on market in the first six months was 66, well below the 78 days in the same period of 2021.

Existing U.S. home sales fell 14.2% in June compared with June 2021, according to the National Association of Realtors. Freddie Mac reported that the average interest on 30-year fixed rate mortgages was 5.52% in June, up from 2.9% in June 2021. The last time the interest rate was above 5% was June 2009 (5.42%), according to Freddie Mac.

Metro area data comes from Crawford, Franklin, Logan, Scott and Sebastian counties in Arkansas, and parts of eastern Oklahoma. About two-thirds of the home sales are from Crawford and Sebastian counties.

SEBASTIAN, CRAWFORD COUNTY SALES
Home sales in Sebastian County in the first six months was 891, down from 994 in the first six months of 2021. Home sales in the county represent 45.7% of homes sold in the metro. The value of homes sold was $190.803 million, 3.1% below the $196.975 million in the same period of 2021. The average home sales price was $214,146, up 8.1% compared with the $198,164 in the first six months of 2021.

Home sales in Crawford County in the first six months was 380, just ahead of the 376 in the first six months of 2021. Home sales in the county represent 19.5% of homes sold in the metro. The value of homes sold was $81.986 million, up 8% from the $75.891 million in the same period of 2021. The average home sales price was $215,755, up from the $201,840 in the first six months of 2021.

Fort Smith metro home sales were up almost 11% in 2021 compared with what was a record 2020, and the 2021 average home price in Sebastian and Crawford counties topped $200,000 for the first time. There were 4,400 homes sold in the metro in 2021, up 10.6% compared with 3,978 in 2020. The value of those homes sold was $853.409 million, up 31% from $651.925 million in 2020.

MULTI-FAMILY, COMMERCIAL ACTIVITY
The metro area had 95 multi-family (apartment) sales in the first six months of 2022, above the 69 in the same period of 2021. The value of the sales was $40.156 million, more than double the $18.02 million in the same period of last year. The average price of each deal was $422,000, well above the $261,169 in the same period of 2021.

The largest multi-family deal in the first half of 2022 was $4.794 million, well above the $1.98 million in the same period of 2021.

Fort Smith metro commercial property deals totaled 72 in the first half of 2022, unchanged from the same period in 2021. The value of the deals was $22.1 million, just below the $23.651 million in the same period of 2021. The largest commercial deal in the metro was $1.85 million in the first half of 2022, well below the $4.5 million in the 2021 period.

METRO HOME SALES NUMBERS
• Fort Smith Region (Crawford, Franklin, Logan, Scott and Sebastian counties, and areas of eastern Oklahoma)
January-June 2022
Homes sold: 1,245
Value of home sales: $267.876 million
Average price: $215,162

January-June 2021
Homes sold: 1,288
Value of home sales: $238.435 million
Average price: $185,121

• Sebastian County
January-June 2022
Homes sold: 551
Value of home sales: $116.2 million
Average price: $210,890

January-June 2021
Homes sold: 641
Value of home sales: $124.305 million
Average price: $193,924

• Crawford County
January-June 2022
Homes sold: 250
Value of home sales: $52.097 million
Average price: $208,389

January-June 2021
Homes sold: 231
Value of home sales: $43.846 million
Average price: $189,812