The Charlotte, N.C., housing market is slowly beginning to recover from the economic downturn of the COVID-19 pandemic, new data from the local real estate association show.
June home sales in the region were down 1.8% compared to June of last year, with 4,938 properties sold, according to data from the Canopy Realtor Association. By comparison, Charlotte home sales in May fell 30% from the previous year, the Observer previously reported.
The analysis applies to 16 counties across the Charlotte area. Closed sales in June increased 37.2% from May with 340 more transactions completed, according to the data.
A typical home sale takes at least 30 days before the transaction closes, which means data on the number of closed sales is more outdated.
"That is a reflection of what happened in end of March and April, and that's catching up now. But it's way better than we thought it would be," said John Kindbom, president of the Canopy Realtor Association/Canopy MLS.
Kindbom said pending sales for the region, which are up 26.8% in June from the same time last year, are a measure of what's happening today.
Due to government restrictions during the pandemic, he said, there's a pent-up demand from buyers, which is leading to an overall increase in sales prices.
The median sales price for June was $284,900, a 7.5% increase from last year, according to the data.
Kindbom also said showings are up from March and April, when they were limited due to government restrictions and safety concerns.
"People have adjusted to the fact that they have to wear masks, and they have to do things right," he said.
But inventory is still low, Kindbom said. There were 5,701 active listings in June compared to 10,698 in June 2019, a decrease of 46.7% according to the data.
Charlotte homebuyers in recent years have faced increasing competition as the demand far outpaces the number of homes for sale.
Kindbom said the large demand and lower supply has led to sellers getting higher asking prices than they would under a more balanced market.
"There's still some residual concerns about the pandemic," he said. "Are there houses out there for the people to buy, that's a concern. But that'll fix itself as we're going forward."
