NWA home sales flat in 2024 1Q

Year-to-date home sales in Northwest Arkansas’ two largest counties through the first three months of 2024 are flat compared with the same period last year.

There were 2,040 homes sold through March this year in Benton and Washington counties, up less than 1% from 2,027 homes sold during the same period last year. That’s according to data from the Matrix software platform used by the Northwest Arkansas Board of Realtors (NABOR) and provided to the Northwest Arkansas Business Journal by Marcus Necessary, executive vice president with Coldwell Banker Harris McHaney Faucette in Rogers.

The combined sales volume this year through March is up 3.65% — $826.6 million in the first three months this year, compared with $797.4 million in the first three months of 2023.

The NABOR data showed 1,291 home sales worth a combined $553 million in the first quarter in Benton County. That compares with 1,297 and $518.5 million in the same quarter a year ago.

In Washington County, agents sold 749 homes in the first three months of 2024, up from 730 in the first quarter of 2023. The combined value of these homes was $283.5 million, up from $278.9 million.

In Benton County, the average home sale was $420,636, up 5.2% from $399,777 in the same period last year. In Washington County, the average home sale price through March was $378,607, down nearly 1% from $382,103.

REACTION
Necessary said home sales being flat year-over-year is a “great sign” for the local market.

“After seeing a 23% drop in units in Q1 2023 over Q1 2022, the market has stabilized,” he explained. The market has absorbed the rise in interest rates and available inventory to a more reasonable supply and demand, where unit sales have stayed consistent, and prices are still moving up at a sustainable pace.”

Necessary noted that election years are typically a “wild card” concerning economic indicators like home sales, but he expects Northwest Arkansas’ stabilization trend to continue in 2024.

“Even though inventories have increased, the demand for homes in Northwest Arkansas remains robust, albeit not at the levels we saw a few years ago,” he said. “I continue to have conversations with new residents on a weekly basis, a testament to the appeal of our area and the sustained strong demand in our market.”

Necessary also addressed the perception from homebuyers that high interest rates have softened the market.

“While we’ve certainly seen a normalization of the market, I wouldn’t call it soft,” he said. “We’re still seeing some multiple-offer scenarios, and homebuilders who once offered buyer concessions are beginning to offer less and less.”