Some good news about housing in the North Metro area…

Prices are on the rise and foreclosures are in decline. According to Zillow, in the past 12 months the average home price in Marietta rose from $189k to $207k: nearly a 10% increase in 12 months. Mortgage rates are still very low at about 4.25% and foreclosures in GA are the lowest in nearly 10 years. The inventory of homes has decreased resulting in higher prices (supply and demand). Read on…

From the Atlanta Journal Constitution, January 13, 2014

"Metro Atlanta foreclosure notices, down 56 percent in January from the same month a year ago, are at their lowest level in a decade. Not so long ago, at the peak of the housing crisis, foreclosed-on homes made up the bulk of those on the market. But the number of foreclosures has been trending downward since 2011. In the past year, housing prices have risen and the inventory of for-sale homes has fallen — in large part because there are fewer foreclosures on the market.

This year, Atlanta Board of Realtors president Todd Emerson said, property values will continue to rise and sales will be up, as well. “Don’t wait for the flowers to start to bloom. Go ahead and put your home on the market now,” he said. “I think we are going to see good activity.”

Read the complete story here: Foreclosure notices at lowest level in a decade.

From the Marietta Daily Journal, January 12, 2014

"The steady decline in the amount of Cobb homes to be auctioned on the courthouse steps continued with another steep drop in the number of foreclosures for February.

According to legal notices published in Friday’s MDJ, 290 properties are scheduled to be up for auction in February, a decrease of more than 26 percent from the 393 properties that were listed for January.

The amount of foreclosed properties scheduled for February is a 62 percent drop from the 760 homes that were on the auction block a year ago in February 2013."
Read more: The Marietta Daily Journal - Foreclosure rates drop by 26 for Feb 2014

With the prediction of higher prices and lower inventory, competition for home sales will increase and home buyers will expect more from real estate marketing efforts.

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