Asheville-area home sales up substantially in May

Written by

Mark Barrett

ASHEVILLE — Existing home sales in Buncombe and nearby counties jumped in May compared with the same month a year ago.

There were 245 sales in Buncombe County in May, up 31.7 percent from the 186 total for May 2011. There were 204 sales in April 2012, according to N.C. Mountains Multiple Listing Service.




Home sales have generally been strong in the area so far this year, although April figures showed a relatively small increase in Buncombe County.




May sales were up 29.5 percent in Haywood County, 42.7 percent in Henderson County and 41.7 percent in Transylvania County over May 2011.

The median sale price of an existing home — the point at which half were higher, half lower — fell in Buncombe County but rose in three other area counties.

The median sale price was $190,500 in Buncombe in May 2011 and $185,000 last month.
Sales are still considerably below levels seen during the middle of the last decade when the local real estate market was at its peak.