Home Prices, Inventory and New Construction

The Standard & Poors Case-Schiller Atlanta Home Price Index also shows a slight slump in the fall, from 119.06 to 118.8, its lowest since July. Overall, the Case-Schiller Index showed gradual improvement through much of the year, from 113.23 in January to a peak of 119.4 in August.

Inventory also fell, with listings dropping about 1.4 percent to 54,689 from October’s numbers, according to realtor.com. The slowdown followed a general national trend in which median home prices declined by an average of about 1.2 percent for the month and total listings dropped by an average of 4.8 percent per metropolitan area.

Although inventory declined, in terms of housing starts, they seemed to continue their uneven recovery in the fourth quarter. The Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis reported that housing starts in the Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Marietta area fell to 1,204 in November, dropping from 1,470 in October. They reached 1,620 in August, their highest level since April 2008, when they stood at 1,703.

Permits were issued for 1,204 single-unit homes in November, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. Two two-unit, eight three- or four-unit and 395 five unit or more buildings also were approved.