Rapid construction keeps supply and demand in check

Atlanta is the U.S.’ seventh easiest metropolitan area to buy in, according to a new index by realtor.com.

The EasyToBuy index compared the 50 largest metropolitan areas in the U.S. on average 30-year fixed-rate mortgages, number of homes for sale per 1,000 owner-occupied homes, percentage of median income it takes to buy a home at the median list price and the percentage of active inventory below the maximum affordable price.

While Atlanta’s average median price of $238,000 was not the lowest in the nation – especially when compared to some of the other listings in the index, such as Indianapolis at $158,000 or Memphis at $168,000 – one of its strongest features was the amount of construction, which helps to keep the supply and demand in balance. While most of the nation suffers from rising home prices due to low inventory, Atlanta currently has nearly 50,000 homes for sale, the second largest in the country after the New York metro area.

However, Atlanta’s strong market hasn’t escaped from the price increases, as they rose 6 percent in June, according to CoreLogic. The index took notice of this and cautioned about the price increase.