March 4, 2022

Contact: Kim Walker, 704-940-3149

CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Home sales in the Catawba Valley region at the start of the new year showed no signs of slowdown, as 328 homes sold during the month, representing an increase of 27.6 percent year-over-year.  Month-over-month sales decreased by 13 percent, compared to December’s frenzy of buyers rushing to close at yearend, in the midst of inflationary concerns and rising rates. The transactions included in this report are according to data from Canopy MLS and include single-family and condo/townhome data only.

Pending sales activity, generally a forward-looking indicator, signaled steady sales ahead as 349 homes went under contract during the month, which is 25 more contracts recorded than in January 2021 and an increase of 7.7 percent over last year.  Contract activity increased by the same percentage (7.7 percent) when compared to December and shows how strong demand is for homes within the region, as buyers likely attracted by affordability, continued to chip away at the region’s supply. 

New listing activity declined 2.9 percent year-over-year, which is typical during winter months, as prior to the pandemic, the region’s sales activity was sensitive to seasonality. Sellers listed 303 homes for sale in January compared to 312 listed during the same period last year.  Month-over-month new listings are up nearly 5 percent, which means that seller activity may be ramping up ahead of the spring selling season.  

Donna Austin, president of Catawba Valley Association of Realtors® and a Realtor®/broker with Coldwell Banker Boyd & Hassell, Inc. said, “Because of our proximity to both the Asheville region and Charlotte, buyers continue to see our area as highly desirable, as well as affordable. Unfortunately, the four counties are starting to see supply challenges, which means buyers, particularly first time and workforce buyers could be impacted by rising prices.”

Properties continue to sell quickly as indicated by homes averaging 26 days on market until sold in January compared to 30 days this time last year. With only 274 homes for sale and less approximately 0.7 months of supply (21 days), the dynamic of low supply amidst steady demand will pressure prices. Both the median sales price ($230,000) and the average sales price ($269,249) rose 14.5 percent and 5.5 percent year-over-year respectively, while the average list price rose 15.8 percent year-over-year to $320,292.  This brought the original list price to sales price measure to 97.8 percent during the month, another sign of how the market highly favors sellers.

Austin added, “Over the last couple of months, buyers have had to deal with rising rates, along with rising prices, but the past couple of weeks we’ve seen rates fall again, which helps to offset prices.  So, we expect to see more buyers locking-in, ahead of a potentially busy spring selling season.” 

A closer look at sales across the four counties

Alexander County home sales in January 2022 rose 80 percent year-over-year as 27 homes sold versus 15 this time last year. Pending contract activity showed buyers retreated a bit, falling 3.6 percent year-over-year with 27 homes under contract versus 28 in the sales pipeline during the same period. New listing activity was unchanged, as sellers listed just 25 homes for sale. Prices are rising in relation to low inventory.  Inventory was down 36.5 percent year-over-year leaving 25 homes for sale versus 41 at report time in January 2021.  This is approximately 0.8 months of supply or 24 days of supply at the current pace. Prices remain affordable. Both the median sales price ($232,490) and the average sales price ($264,547) rose 10.2 percent and 23.1 percent year-over-year respectively, while the average list price declined by 36.5 percent year-over-year to $296,760. This brought the original list price to sale price ratio to 99 percent at the start of January, as sellers receive nearly all of asking price. Homes sold quickly and averaged 21 days on market until sale versus 38 days on market this time last year.

Burke County sales in January 2022 rose 31 percent year-over-year as 76 homes sold versus 58 that sold last January, while pending contracts showed buyer demand has risen 15.5 percent year-over-year with 82 homes under contract last month. New listings however, declined 9.9 percent year-over-year as 64 homes were listed for sale. Inventory, like other areas in the region is tight and fell 41.3 percent year-over-year leaving 71 homes for sale or 0.8 months of supply (approximately 24 days of supply). Shrinking inventory continues to pressure prices which are moved higher.  Both the median sales price ($271,990) and the average sales price ($240,525) rose 21.1 percent and 17.6 percent year-over-year respectively, while the average list price rose 30.8 percent year-over-year to $313,548.  This brought the original list price to sale price measure to 95.4 percent in January, which is down slightly compared to the January 2021 original list price to sales price ratio of 97.8 percent. Though time on market has risen a bit, homes continue to sell quickly, as days on market until sale averaged 37 days in January 2022 compared to 30 days in January 2021.

Caldwell County home sales in January 2022 increased 20 percent year-over-year as 60 homes sold versus 50 at the start of 2021, while pending contract activity was unchanged compared to last January, with 52 homes under contract.  New listing activity declined 12.7 percent year-over-year as sellers listed only 48 homes for sale versus 55 listed during the same period last year.  Inventory is declining in Caldwell; at report time there was a 43.2 percent year-over-year decline leaving 54 homes for sale or 0.7 months of supply (21 days of supply). Low supply will continue to pressure prices in the short term. Both the median sales price ($221,500) and the average sales price ($248,815) rose 23.4 percent and 11.3 percent year-over-year respectively, while the average list price rose 14.7 percent year-over-year to $271,035. Sellers received nearly all of asking prices last month, as indicated by the original list price to sales price ratio of 99.2 percent, while homes averaged 25 days on market until sale.

Catawba County homes sales rose 23.1 percent year-over-year as 165 homes sold this past month versus 134 that sold in January 2021. Pending contracts rose 8.7 percent as buyers drove 188 homes under contract during the month compared to 173 this time last year.  New listing activity showed sellers getting into the market as they listed 166 homes for sales versus 161 homes listed in January 2021. Prices were mixed, but still affordable.  The median sales price ($245,000) rose 8.9 percent year-over-year while the average sales price ($290,680) declined 1 percent compared to last year. The average list price jumped 22.8 percent year-over-year to $340,680.  This brought the original list price to sales price ratio to 98.1 percent as sellers received close to asking price this past January. Homes sold quickly.  Days on market until sales showed homes on market for 23 days versus 28 days in January 2021.

Canopy MLS, a wholly-owned subsidiary corporation of, announced the consolidation of the MLS of Catawba Valley (MLSCV), which was effective on August 31, 2020. For more residential-housing market statistics, visit www.CarolinaHome.com and click on “Market Data.” For an interview with a Hickory-area Realtor®, contact Kim Walker.

Canopy MLS is a wholly-owned subsidiary corporation of Canopy Realtor® Association and is the private broker cooperative used by Realtors® to bring buyers and sellers together with access to thousands of residential listings in a multicounty service area, including Charlotte, the mountains area of North Carolina, South Carolina, and beyond. Canopy MLS, which has 21,000 subscribers, provides the most trustworthy, timely, accurate and complete property data along with proprietary tools for showings, market stats, predictive analytics, and more. Canopy MLS is used by its members to support consumers in their residential real estate transactions, whether selling, buying, investing or renting.

Original Publish Date: 3/4/2022