Unpacking the Latest Zillow Small-Area Home Sale Price Data

Following up on the 2013-2020 home sale price data release in the late 2020, the Research & Analytics Department at ARC has now obtained, processed, and released the home sale price data for 2021. These data from Zillow provide valuable insight into home sale trends, offering a glimpse into the current landscape of housing price changes. The very latest high-level data may show home prices starting to drop a little (with mortgage rate increases and upticks in inventory stunting demand) but the longer-term trend of “stratospheric soaring” should still be the point of emphasis.

De we see the impact from COVID in the data?

Yes. The COVID-19 pandemic had a significant impact on the housing market. At the very start of the pandemic, the market experienced an initial slowdown as economic uncertainty and health concerns led to a decline in home sales. However, as the pandemic ramped up on and low mortgage rates made housing more affordable, the market rebounded with a surge in demand, leading to (very) low inventory levels, bidding wars, and price growth in many areas. And the influence of large-scale conversion of for-sale inventory to for-rental stock–a story told very well recently by an Atlanta Journal series on investor-owned housing–played a role in the price run-ups.

The resultant increases in median home sale price are easily observed across most of Metro Atlanta in Figure 1 below. It’s key to note that the pandemic accelerated a trend towards remote work and suburban living, driving demand for homes in suburban and rural areas– as you can see in the data in areas like southern Fulton County. The long-term effects of the pandemic on the housing market are still uncertain, but it is clear that the pandemic has had (and will have) a major and lasting impact on the industry.

Currently, this updated information can be found on the Metro Atlanta Housing Strategy (MAHS) at city, county, and submarket level as well as in the MAHS Data Explorer.