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Metro Atlanta housing recovery gains momentum

By Michael E. Kanell,Nisha Giridharan

Despite a sluggish fall, the metro Atlanta housing market seems to have stabilized and made a decisive turn toward recovery – even if the improvement so far is modest, according to a much-watched report issued Tuesday.

Atlanta home values in November were 7.6 percent higher than a year earlier, according to the S&P/Case-Shiller Home Price report. Nationwide the Case-Shiller index rose 5.5 percent – the sharpest year-over-year gain since 2006 – with 19 of 20 cities posting gains.

While the Atlanta data covers the metro area, specific location is everything. Parts of the metro area were spectacularly overbuilt during the boom and are expected to take much longer to recover.

“In our area, you see houses that are good or great selling without 30 days – sometimes above the asking price,” said Zac Pasmanick, associate broker at RE/MAX Metro Atlanta CitySide, which markets properties in Atlanta and Decatur.

Matt Rhodes, a broker at The Forem, a Marietta-based real estate company, said he is skeptical about a quick resurgence – and the farther from the city, the more skeptical.

“There’s more traction inside 285. I think suburbia is in a different light. I think it’s going to bounce along the bottom,” he said.

Real estate around metro Atlanta led the boom following the 2001 recession, creating jobs in construction and services. When real estate crashed in 2007, it dragged the economy into its deepest hole since the Great Depression.

Metro Atlanta home prices bottomed last March, when they had dropped 39.5 percent from the peak, according to Case-Shiller.

Since then, Atlanta prices have gained 15.9 percent, with most of that increase coming earlier in 2012.

Even so, Atlanta prices are still roughly at the same level as they were in the spring of 1999. Only one other city in the Case-Shiller index, Detroit, remains below 2000 price levels.

That means that many homeowners who purchased homes since then are “underwater” – owing more on their homes than they could recoup in a sale.

CoreLogic estimates that roughly one-third of mortgage holders – tens of thousands of people in metro Atlanta – are underwater.

Most just keep making their monthly mortgage payments.

Stephanie Drake, 41, of Stone Mountain, has owned her house for 15 years and isn’t walking away. But she isn’t selling either.

“I’m underwater,” Drake said Tuesday. “A house foreclosed nearby (my home) and it’s dirt cheap. I figure my house is not worth more.”

The number of people who cannot keep paying the mortgage – because of layoffs or medical expenses or a decision to abandon the mortgage – is high, but it’s been shrinking, according to CoreLogic.

The flood of foreclosures made for an overflow of inventory – homes for sale – that kept prices depressed. Now, the inventory has shrunk dramatically, pushing up prices.

“There are just fewer homes on the market. It is good old-fashioned supply and demand,” said Jeanette Schneider, regional vice president of RE/MAX Regional Services.

As the economy improves, consumers who had put off home purchases are moving back into the market.

“We have a lot of pent-up demand,” Marc Takacs, broker at Keller Williams Realty, Atlanta Midtown.

Low mortgage rates help, though getting them can be tough, Takacs said.

“Maybe 10 percent don’t go through and another 10 or 15 percent take a lot of effort to get through,” he said.

Yet the trajectory is up.

“I think it’s a buyer’s market,” said Matt Anderson, 27, from Smyrna. “Interest rates are low – it is a great time to buy. If I could, I would buy now.”

Jason Roe, 21, of Norcross, said he won’t start looking until he has a family, but he smells opportunity. “I hope to buy a house while the market is the way it is now. There are a lot of cheaper houses and it is a good time to buy.”

Will Atlanta’s Housing Market be “Peachy” In 2013??

Real estate has long been a hot commodity in “Hotlanta”, but similar to most other major metropolitan areas, Atlanta’s housing market has fallen off in recent years. Although the real estate industry hasn’t fully recovered in Atlanta yet, it’s well on its way, which could spur a much-needed economic recovery in the Peach State’s biggest city. Home sales are on the rise in both metropolitan Atlanta and in the surrounding suburbs. While the average listing price has dropped in recent months, the median sales price is on the rise. From August to October, the three-month median sales price in Atlanta was $175,000. That’s a 4.5% increase (a difference of $7,500, to be exact) from the same time period last year. Those figures are based on the 2,115 sales that took place during that timeframe, which is a 0.6% increase in number of home sales.

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The number of new foreclosures in the market is down (meaning local banks are having to seize fewer homes), while the number of existing foreclosure sales continues to increase. That’s because several private equity firms have reportedly swooped in to purchase many foreclosed properties before the market makes a full recovery. Midtown and North Buckhead remain among the neighborhoods that are most popular among sellers and buyers, with average listing prices of $319,640 and $851,127, respectively. Virginia-Highland and Druid Hills neighborhoods are also experiencing increased home sales, but if properties in those communities are out of your price range, there are plenty of affordable options also currently listed in DeKalb County, especially in the Tucker area.

According to local sources, the Fulton County Board of Commissioners is planning to sell six properties for possible residential development in southwest Atlanta. While that’s good news for that side of town, residents in other communities are opposed to growth in their area. On the east side, homeowners in Grant Park, Ormewood Park, and Glenwood Park have been very verbal about their concerns that additional residential development in the area would increase traffic through their neighborhoods. Despite those residents’ concerns, developers are still targeting that region of the Atlanta for new construction. In Stone Mountain, it’s not about new development, but refurbishing an old eye sore. The Colony is a closed-down apartment complex where recent fires and crime have made it concern for nearby residents, but a new owner from Florida is promising a makeover, saying they will turn the property into an upscale senior housing, complete with a golf course.

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While not as drastic as that, minor aesthetic improvements ($82 million worth) are currently underway in Midtown. The Midtown Alliance’s Cityscapes project is all about improving sidewalks, adding more street lights and trees, and other public improvements along ten major corridors. So what does all of this mean? All in all, the housing market is improving in Atlanta. Increased number of sales and a rise in the median sales price mean more homes are selling, and at higher prices than they were last year. More homes being listed on the market also means there are more options for buyers to choose from, which should also boost sales figures in the months to come. Atlanta’s communities and homes are as diverse as its population, so there’s something available in everyone’s price range. New developments, like the ones the county commissioners are hoping for, means there will be more new construction homes available in the near future. Improvements to cityscapes, like those taking place in Midtown, and to dilapidated properties, like The Colony Apartments, will make the city and its surrounding communities safer and more welcoming to potential new residents. In other words, if you’re looking to relocate from out of town, or move within town, Atlanta is definitely a “peachy” city that you might want to consider.

 

January 2013 U.S. Economic and Housing Market Outlook

January 2013 U.S. Economic and Housing Market Outlook

By Market Wire, January 15, 2013, 01:00:00 PM EDT

Fiscal Uncertainty

MCLEAN, VA — (Marketwire) — 01/15/13 — Freddie Mac (OTCBB:FMCC) released today its U.S. Economic and Housing Market Outlook for January showing that despite the fiscal uncertainties facing the country, consumer confidence has remained fairly resilient in recovering from its Great Recession lows, buoyed by improving labor and housing market news. Unfortunately, business owners and managers are more sanguine about the nation’s business outlook than consumers seem to be.

Outlook Highlights

• December registered 155,000 job gains and November’s payrolls were revised up 24,000, bringing the employment increase for 2012 to 1.86 million, the best since 2006.
• Assuming the uncertainty of the fiscal policy debates during the first quarter fails to derail the economic expansion, the U.S. will likely see about two million new jobs created in 2013, gradually nudging the unemployment rate lower.
• Over the first 11 months of 2012, home sales were up 9 percent from the same period of the prior year; similar gains are projected for 2013.
• With the unemployment rate in December holding at an elevated 7.8 percent, it’s likely to ensure a continuation of an accommodative policy stance by the Federal Reserve through the coming year. Therefore, relatively low interest rates will continue to be a feature of mortgage lending and the broader capital markets in 2013.

A short preview video and the complete January 2013 U.S. Economic and Housing Market Outlook are available here. Freddie Mac compiles data on major economic and housing and mortgage market indicators and offers forecasts based on those indicators.

Quotes

Attributed to Frank Nothaft, Freddie Mac vice president and chief economist.

“As we begin 2013, the economy is undoubtedly at a better place now than at this time in 2012. And despite the clouds of fiscal uncertainty facing the country, positive jobs reports and the strengthening housing market continue to be the bright spot as we begin the New Year.”

Get the latest information from Freddie Mac’s Office of the Chief Economist on Twitter: @FreddieMac

Freddie Mac was established by Congress in 1970 to provide liquidity, stability and affordability to the nation’s residential mortgage markets. Freddie Mac supports communities across the nation by providing mortgage capital to lenders. Today Freddie Mac is making home possible for one in four homebuyers and is one of the largest sources of financing for multifamily housing. www.FreddieMac.com.

 

for those who will be in town…here are some things going on

Best bets: Nov. 20-26

5:04 pm November 19, 2012, by Shane Harrison

The Lighting of the Great Tree at Macy’s at Lenox Square takes place Thanksgiving night. This marks the event’s 65th year.

TUESDAY
Holiday, festival: The holidays start early at Stone Mountain Park, as it gets dressed in festive garb for Stone Mountain Christmas, which continues through Dec. 31.

Visual art, holiday: The Atlanta Fine Arts League’s annual Small Works Sale & Exhibit at Binders Art Supplies and Frames on Piedmont Road continues through Nov. 30.

Holiday: Lake Lanier Islands Resort’s Magical Nights of Lights continues 5 to 10 p.m. nightly through Dec. 31 in Buford.

Stage: “The Mountaintop,” the play about Martin Luther King Jr.’s last days, makes its Atlanta debut, with True Colors Theatre Company’s Kenny Leon directing. It continues through Dec. 16.

Holiday: The Pink Pig, one of Atlanta’s most beloved holiday traditions, is back. Ride Priscilla the Pink Pig on train tracks through a life-sized storybook featuring Priscilla and her friends. Daily through Jan. 1 (closed Thanksgiving and Christmas) at Macy’s Lenox Square.

Stage: The beloved Rankin-Bass cartoon “Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer” comes to life in a puppet-tastic version from Jon Ludwig. The show continues through Jan. 6 at the Center for Puppetry Arts.

Stage: “The Summer of Daisy Fay,” Marietta Theatre’s first production, is based on Fannie Flagg’s semi-autobiographical first novel, “Daisy Fay and the Miracle Man.” The show continues through Nov. 25 at the company’s home at 11 Whitlock Ave., the former home of Theatre in the Square.

Holiday: Enjoy a Presidential look at the holiday season at A White House Christmas at Bulloch Hall. It opens Nov. 17 and runs through Dec. 30.

Holiday: More than 1 million lights fill Hampton’s Atlanta Motor Speedway in Gift of Lights, a 1.5-mile drive-through experience. The display continues through Jan. 6

WEDNESDAY
Music: “American Idol” winner Phillip Phillips will give a free performance and sign copies of his debut CD at Mall of Georgia on Nov. 21. He’ll perform at 6:30 p.m. Nov. 21 and the signings happen 7-9 p.m. at the mall’s Village Amphitheatre in Buford.

Music: Manchester Orchestra Presents…The Stuffing is an annual pre-Thanksgiving evening of music that will also offer performances by Cage The Elephant, O’Brother, Kevin Devine, Royal Thunder, Hardy Morris and the Outfit, Gobotron, All Get Out, Death on Two Wheels, Harrison Hudson and Ponderosa. It all starts at 5 p.m. Nov. 21 and takes place in Center Stage, The Loft and Vinyl.

Stage: Cirque du Soleil’s Totem sets up the big tent in Atlanta, with shows continuing through Dec. 30 near Atlantic Station at 20th and Market streets. Read our review of the show.

Stage: In “Wolves,” Ben is a timid young city-dweller who freaks out when his roommate Jack brings home a big bad wolf for a one-night stand. The premiere continues through Dec. 2 at Actor’s Express.

THURSDAY
Holiday: The Great Tree Lighting at Macy’s in Lenox Square is back for it’s 65th year. This year’s event includes music from country star Trace Adkins. Pre-show festivities and music being at 6:15 p.m. Nov. 22 and the ceremony will begin at 7 p.m.

Recreation: Hit the slopes at Snow Mountain, where it’s always a winter wonderland. The annual attraction at Stone Mountain Park opens Thanksgiving Day and continues through Feb. 18.

FRIDAY
Stage: The Atlanta Shakespeare Company presents “Titus Andronicus,” the bard’s bloodiest tragedy. It runs through Nov. 25 at the New American Shakespeare Tavern.

Music: Martina McBride brings her soaring voice and “The Joy Of Christmas” to the Fox Theatre at 7:30 p.m. Nov. 23.

Music: Eddie Owen Presents kicks off a new series with the venue’s Songwriter’s Open Mic Shootout #1. It begins at 7:30 p.m. Nov. 23 at the Red Clay Theatre in Duluth.

Music, movie: The Atlanta Symphony Orchestra performs the score of “Pirates of the Caribbean” as the film screens beginning at 8 p.m. Nov. 23-24 at Atlanta Symphony Hall.

Stage: Act1 Theater brings beloved classic Charles Dickens’ “A Christmas Carol” to the stage at Alpharetta Presbyterian Church. It continues through Dec. 16.

Dance: It’s time for sugar-plum fairies and toy soldiers at the Roswell Cultural Arts Center as the Roswell Dance Theatre presents “The Nutcracker,” which opens Nov. 23 and continues through Dec. 2.

Stage: Horizon Theatre Company’s production of “The Santaland Diaries,” based on the work of David Sedaris, has become an Atlanta holiday tradition. It opens Nov. 23 and runs through Dec. 30.

Stage: The Little Sisters of Hoboken are back in “Nuncrackers: The Nunsense Christmas Musical.” The OnStage Atlanta production opens Nov. 23 and runs through Dec. 22 at the company’s Decatur home.

Stage: Aurora Theatre’s musical revue “Christmas Canteen” mixes World War II favorites with new Christmas standards. It opens Nov. 23 and continues through Dec. 23.

Stage: The Alliance Theatre presents its beloved annual production of “A Christmas Carol.” It opens Nov. 23 and continues through Dec. 23.

SATURDAY
Music: The season kicks into high gear as Mannheim Steamroller’s Christmas Show comes to the Fox Theatre at 8 p.m. Nov. 24.

SUNDAY
Music: Sugarland’s Kristian Bush and some of his friends will play three shows at Eddie’s Attic in Decatur at 6:30 and 9:30 p.m. Nov. 25 and 8 p.m. Nov. 26.

Music: Young soprano Jackie Evancho will sing “Songs from the Silver Screen” beginning at 7:30 p.m. Nov. 25 at Atlanta Symphony Hall.

Music: “The Story Tour” celebrates Christmas with Casting Crowns’ Mark Hall, Jeremy Camp, Natalie Grant and more. 6 p.m. Nov. 25 at Gwinnett Arena in Duluth.

This is just a selective list of events happening around town, so if there’s something going on this weekend that you’re excited about and you don’t see it here, please feel free to share the info in the comments. Follow me on Twitter at@ajchottix and @ajcatlevents for info on tickets going on sale and more upcoming events.