The sales pace of existing homes surged 6.7% in January after falling in December, as buyers got off the fence and went shopping ahead of rising interest rates, the National Association of Realtors reported.

Single-family housing starts fell 5.6% from December’s revised estimate to 1,116,000, while multifamily starts slid 2.1% to 510,000, the U.S. Census Bureau and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development said.

The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages backed by the Federal Housing Administration increased to 3.93% from 3.86%, the Mortgage Bankers Association said. 

Across the country, 10% of ZIP codes with the largest share of children had an average home value growth of 21.3% from October 2020 to October 2021.

Atlanta’s Midtown Alliance said there were 5,172 residential units concurrently delivered or under construction in 2021, a new record. 

Home-price growth could slow by the end of 2022, despite the housing market breaking records in January.

Days on market for homes sold in Atlanta fell to 52 from 64 a year earlier.

Home-price growth is expected to average about 5% this year, far below the record-breaking pace set in 2021, RCLCO reported. 

Sales volume by dollar amount fell precipitously, declining 37.4% from $2.59 billion worth of transactions in December to $1.62 billion in January, Georgia MLS reported, citing its monthly Housing Market Snapshot.

Builders started to make headway against supply-chain issues that have hampered construction of homes in the face of high demand. 

Atlanta’s housing inventory fell 22.3% year over year in December to a record low of a one-month supply, Atlanta REALTORS® Association reported.

New homes and existing homes are appreciating at similar rates, according to a new report from CoreLogic.

“December saw sales retreat, but the pull back was more a sign of supply constraints than an indication of a weakened demand for housing.” — NAR chief economist Lawrence Yun

While multifamily starts surged 13.7% compared to November, the pace of new single-family housing construction slid 2.3%, according to the U.S. Census Bureau and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.

“While lean existing home inventory and solid buyer demand are supporting the need for new construction, the combination of ongoing increases for building materials, worsening skilled labor shortages and higher mortgage rates point to declines for housing affordability in 2022.” — NAHB Chairman Chuck Fowke

Decatur and the city of Atlanta saw the greatest monthly declines in the median rent for a one-bedroom apartment in December, while Smyrna and Alpharetta had the greatest increases, online listing agent Zumper reported.