NORTHWEST ARKANSAS (KFSM) -- More than $2 billion worth of residential real estate has been sold this year in Northwest Arkansas compared to the $1.7 billion from the year before.
First-time home buyer Mike Emery started looking for a home just a few months ago, but said he got lucky with a great realtor who knew exactly what they were looking for.
“What we did find was that it is very competitive," Emery said. "We looked at a few and the first one we put a bid in on there were three other at the same time, but that`s a very common thing from what I hear right now. We didn`t get that one, but we found one we like better.”
Emery said they closed on that house last week.
Over 10,000 homes have been sold in Northwest Arkansas from November 2015 to now, which is 1,000 more homes than the year before.
Realtor Clayton Eason said the number of houses his team sold has more than doubled. They went from selling 30 to 40 homes a year to between 80 and 90 houses this year.
“Obviously it's hard work, but also the market is good and interest rates were really good as well, so a lot of people are out there taking advantage of that while they can,” Eason said.
Eason said homes under $200,000 are in high demand and are typically on the market less than 30 days.
“A three bedroom, two-bathroom new construction house, there are very few of them under $200,000 right now. Even the smaller ones, 1,700, 1,800 square feet, the price has gone over $200k and the average family mortgage is $1,200 dollars a month,” he said.
The average sale price of a home in Northwest Arkansas has also gone up $14,000 and the average amount of days a house is on the market went down 13 days from last year's 126.