Will home prices in Huntsville follow a new softening trend?

The cost of buying a home has steadily increased over the last few years and that rise has been seen here in the Huntsville market in a big way. Price increases coupled with rising interest rates have made home ownership out of reach for much of our community.

But, some experts say relief could be on the way as national trends indicate a softening of price increases in the real estate market. Although home prices are up 2% in Huntsville from last year, Madison prices have dropped 7.2%.

Below, see the data we’ve found locally and how it compares to national trends.

Tracking home prices in the Huntsville area

The median sale price for a home in Huntsville in April 2024 stood at $340,000, up 2.4 percent from April 2023, as opposed to the 6.1 percent growth seen nationwide.

Median home prices for Huntsville hit their peak in May of 2023 when they topped $350,000.

Here is a look at the median home sale price in Huntsville over the last three years:

In Madison, the median home price in April was $408,000, which is a drop of 7.8 percent from April 2023. Madison’s median home prices hit their peak in May of 2022 at nearly $475,000.

Compared to the median home prices nationwide, the trend in Huntsville and Madison seems to be softening.

Home prices expected to soften

A report from Charles Schwab last week says that the consistent rise in home prices looks to be slowing, and that prices are “easing from extremes.”

“As housing was the first sector to kick off the rolling recessions we’ve pointed out for more than two years, it now looks like it’s participating in the start of rolling recoveries.”

Charles Schwab report, May 28, 2024

A recent report from Redfin says that sale-price growth could slow down in the near future.

“Nationwide, 6.4% of home sellers cut their asking price during the four weeks ending May 26, on average, the highest share since November 2022. The median asking price dropped roughly $3,000 to $416,623 in the last week, the first decline in six months.”

Dana Anderson, Redfin

Home ownership on the rise

According to the Alabama Center for Real Estate, the rate of home ownership in Madison County fell dramatically from 2009 — when the country was in a recession — to 2015. A rebound in 2019 has actually continued into 2024.

Home ownership rates in Madison County

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