Charlotte housing prices have skyrocketed and supply has plummeted after year of COVID

Last March, the local real estate market was largely shut down amid restrictions on businesses to curb the spread of COVID-19. A year later, the impact of the virus on the housing market is coming into clearer view: March data released Monday reveals the housing crunch has tightened severely.

The inventory of homes for sale in Charlotte plummeted 70% from the year before, the report released by the Canopy Realtor Association using MLS data showed. With it, prices have skyrocketed, with the average sales price rising nearly 18% year-over-year to $370,706.

The shortage of housing has locked many buyers out of the market, especially those looking for more affordable homes. Prices for the lowest-cost owner-occupied homes have seen the sharpest increase, said David Kennedy, president of the Canopy Realtor Association/Canopy MLS.

And on top of the lack of supply, Kennedy said the bidding wars that have ensued over the more affordable homes are also driving up the costs.

“We price ourselves out of an affordable housing inventory as a result,” he said.

Competition, shortages

Charlotte has just 18 days worth of supply of homes for sale, the report found. Experts say a balanced market should have about six-months of inventory.

Kennedy said the competition in the single-family market is driving more buyers toward townhomes or multifamily housing, like condos.

Heading into the spring buying season, sales were up 4.5% from last year, the report found. But Kennedy cautioned the data is skewed because last month is being compared with March 2020, when virtually all activity shut down due to COVID-19.

Kennedy said he’s hopeful that new listings will increase during what is traditionally the busiest time of the year for the real estate market. Still, new listing activity fell 8% year-over-year.