By james art The median sales price of an existing home in the Winston-Salem metro area remained near a quarterly record in the third quarter at $253,000, according to a report by national research group Attom Data Solutions.
The current quarterly record for the five-county area of Davidson, Davie, Forsyth, Stokes and Yadkin was $253,250 in the second quarter.
The price has remained above $200,000 every quarter since the third quarter of 2021.
The median sales price jumped 45.5% from $175,000 when the COVID-19 pandemic hit in mid-March 2020.
However, the 2% year-on-year increase reflects a slowdown in prices.
Since Attom Data began disclosing median home sales prices in 2005, the lowest local annual median home price was $115,000 in 2012, and the lowest quarter was $103,000 in the first quarter of 2012.
By comparison, the Greensboro-High Point metro had an average sales price of a record $243,750 in the third quarter. The previous record was $242,500 in the second quarter.
The lowest annual median home price in Greensboro-High Point was $110,000 in 2011, and $100,000 in the first quarter of 2012.
When comparing North Carolina’s other three major metro areas, the Charlotte-Gastonia-Concord area had a median sales price of $385,000. The Durham-Chapel Hill area had a median sales price of $415,000, while the Raleigh-Cary area had a median sales price of $436,000.
“The latest price and earnings data provided another round of generally good news for homeowners, tempered by a few downsides,” said Rob Barber, CEO of Attom.
“Home values remained at or near record levels in large parts of the country, keeping seller profits well above historic levels. At the same time, however, the housing market calmed down after a strong second quarter that continued the slow decline in profit margins that began last year.
“If history is a good guide, the fourth quarter is likely to bring more of the same as the peak buying season is over,” Barber said. “Affordability remains a challenge for so many potential buyers.”
Attom reported that cash home buyers accounted for 42.3 percent in the Winston-Salem area, up from 41.8 percent in the second quarter and from 42 percent a year ago.
Cash buyers include institutional investors acquiring properties for initial rental before selling them during a future spike in house prices.
Institutional investors were 7.8%, up from 7.3% in the second quarter, but down from 9.1% a year ago.
Federal Housing Administration home sales were up 7.9 percent in the area, up from 7.2 percent in the second quarter and up from 6.9 percent a year ago.
For the Greensboro-High Point metro area, cash homebuyers accounted for 45.1%, up from 43.5% a year ago. Institutional investors were 7.3%, up from 6.9% a year ago. FHA home sales were up 9.1% from 8.9% a year ago.