Atlanta saw home sales slow in January as the supply of available properties remained tight, according to RE/MAX’s National Housing Report.

During the month, 4,442 homes changed hands, up 1.5% year over year and down 35.7% from December’s blistering pace. Inventory plunged 52.0% year over year and 7.7% month over month to 1.2 months, as homes spent an average of 31 days on market, down 45.6% from a year earlier. The median price of an Atlanta home climbed 18.0% to $309,175.

Nationally, January home sales were elevated but down from the frenzied pace of preceding months, rising 13.5% year over year, compared to a 21.9% gain in December.

Other national metrics showed the effects of the record-setting recovery the housing market enjoyed in the second half of 2020:

• January inventory fell 35.7% to 1.7 months, the lowest level ever measured by RE/MAX since launching its report 13 years ago.
• The median sales price for January rose 11.8% year over year to $285,000, a record for the month and just 1.7% below the all-time record of $290,000 set in August 2020.
• Homes spent an average of just 40 days on the market, a record for January and well below the 59-day period of January 2020.