Nashville's homebuyers and sellers need to adjust
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Illustration: Maura Losch/Axios
Nashville real estate agent Denise Moore tells Axios she often feels like she doubles as a counselor for her clients.
Why it matters: Today's Nashville market is frustrating for both buyers and sellers. Both groups are longing for a time machine.
State of play: "Sellers want it to be three years ago," Moore says. Back then, the market was red-hot and bidding wars quickly drove costs up. "You could just put a sign in the yard, and the house would sell."
- Now rising inventory and interest rates have given buyers more leverage.
- "Buyers want it to be 10 years ago," before prices started to skyrocket, she says.
Reality check: Like it or not, times have changed.
- Sellers have to do more to accommodate buyers who have more options, Moore says. That might mean taking care of some repairs or refreshing the landscaping.
- Buyers who are holding out for prices or interest rates to fall shouldn't hold their breath: "The prices are not going to go down. Not where we live."
The big picture: Although Nashville-area home values recently hit a new high, with median home values topping $500,000 last month, Moore says there are still areas that skew more affordable.
- It all depends on the neighborhood.
Zoom in: If you're looking for a mix of music, food and community akin to East Nashville, Moore suggests looking northward to Madison.
- The median listing price there is about $375,000.
- The neighborhood has become increasingly popular over the last several years, thanks to massive new developments, trendy new restaurants like Pinky Ring Pizza and classic haunts like Dee's Country Cocktail Lounge.
Davidson's hottest neighborhoods
Forest Hills, 12 South and East Nashville are among the Davidson County neighborhoods seeing their home values jump the fastest, according to a recent analysis by Zillow.
Context: Buyers have flocked to those neighborhoods for years, driving home values up. But prices are also spiking in the farther reaches of the county.
- Zillow's list of the Davidson County ZIP codes with the fastest-growing home prices includes the Joelton area.
Between the lines: Joelton's jump could reflect that buyers are more willing to look farther away from the urban core as housing costs continue to rise.
Catch up quick: Prices are surging at even higher rates in suburban and rural parts of the region.
- A while back, we took a look at the Middle Tennessee ZIP codes seeing the biggest jumps in home values based on March data.
- None of them were in Davidson County.
The bottom line: Demand across the region remains high as Middle Tennessee's population keeps climbing.