Metro Atlanta real estate · Home loans in Georgia & California
Market updates · Atlanta

Atlanta's market, explained with data

Rates, sales, inventory and news, plus my own closings and stories from home tours, in English and Chinese.

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7.40%30-year fixed rate, Oct 8
$423,000metro Atlanta median price, August
4.7 moof housing supply, August
27 daysaverage days on market, August
Sources: Freddie Mac Primary Mortgage Market Survey, Oct 8, 2026. Atlanta REALTORS® Association market brief for August 2026, published Oct 5, 2026.
Market data by city →Check a home’s value →
Brick front of the renovated home in Windgate, Johns Creek

Under contract after one weekend: why this renovated Johns Creek home went so fast

A 3,463 sq ft renovated home in Windgate, Johns Creek, listed at $685,000 on October 9 and was under contract after one weekend. Per square foot it was priced below every Windgate sale this year, while homes in 30005 took 33 days on average in September. The photos, the numbers, and what buyers should have ready.

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+0.28%Atlanta home prices, year over year (Case-Shiller, July)

Atlanta home prices in 2026: up, down or flat? The numbers month by month

From February to August 2026 the metro Atlanta median sale price stayed within −1.6% to +2.1% of a year earlier, and Case-Shiller put Atlanta at +0.28% in July. Listings are up about 23% since February and the 30-year rate reached 7.40%. The month-by-month data and what it means for buyers and sellers.

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6.67% → 7.40%30-year fixed, August average to Oct 8

Rates jumped since August. Is your pre-approval letter still good?

The 30-year fixed went from a 6.67% average in August to 7.40% on October 8. On the same loan that is roughly 7.5% more each month, so a letter written in August may promise more than you can borrow today.

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A finished home at Pepperpike Court, Loganville

Featured new construction: Pepperpike Court in Loganville, with a 3-year builder leaseback

I have sold two new homes from this builder at Hollywood & Main II. Their 19-home community in Loganville starts at $453,832, and the builder is offering a 3-year leaseback at 5% net a year.

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Kitchen and living room of a new townhome in Hollywood & Main II, Atlanta

Featured new construction: Hollywood & Main II townhomes, with a 3+2-year builder leaseback

I have sold two townhomes in this Upper Westside community, and the last one was rented in three days. Lots 19 to 22 are $495,000, with a builder leaseback at 5% net a year for three years, renewable for two more.

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$901,420California median price · August

California in August: a $901,420 median price, and rates back above 7%

C.A.R. reports California home sales up 1.4% from a year ago and a statewide median of $901,420. Rates have climbed since, so buyers should check whether their loan is conforming or jumbo and refresh their pre-approval.

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$1,249,125Top conforming limit in California · 2026

California loan limits for 2026, and why jumbo rates are running below conforming

In 10 California counties, including Los Angeles, Orange and most of the Bay Area, a loan up to $1,249,125 is conforming this year. Above that you need a jumbo loan, and right now jumbo rates are slightly below conforming.

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≈11%Berkshire Hathaway's stake in Lennar

Why Berkshire Hathaway keeps buying Lennar, and what it means for home buyers

Berkshire now owns about 11% of Lennar, worth roughly $2.2 billion, while Lennar's orders and margins are falling and its incentives run about 12%. A long-term bet on housing, and a sign that buyers have leverage with builders right now.

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7.40%30-year fixed · Oct 8

30-year rates hit 7.40%. What buyers can do now

Freddie Mac's Oct 8 survey puts the 30-year fixed at 7.40%, up 0.12 points in a week, and the 15-year at 6.73%. Rerun your budget at today's rate, then ask about rate locks and buydowns before you write an offer.

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$423KMetro Atlanta median · August

Metro Atlanta in August: $423,000 median, 4.7 months of supply

Atlanta REALTORS® counted 4,157 closed sales in August, 20,720 active listings and 27 average days on market. At 4.7 months, supply is moving toward balance (six months is the usual benchmark).

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16purchases closed · $12.5M

16 closings and $12.5M in two years

From May 2024 to July 2026 I closed 16 purchases as the buyer's agent, across 10 Georgia cities, at a median price of $667,500.

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1 weekHow long she has been thinking it over

Prices are softening. Should you wait?

A friend found a house she loved and still could not decide. Here is how I think about timing when a buyer is on the fence.

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Aerial view of the Hollywood & Main II townhome community in Atlanta

A second Hollywood & Main II townhome, closed and leased in July

Another new-construction townhome in Hollywood & Main II, Atlanta, for an investor client: $495,000, with a tenant in place the same month.

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Brick colonial home in Riverglen, Suwanee

Buying your first home in North Atlanta, from pre-approval to closing day

Pre-approval, Georgia's due diligence period, property taxes and the homestead exemption, and how to pick a city by schools and commute.

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SF → ATLWhy tech families are moving to North Atlanta

I used to think American suburbs were boring. Then I moved to North Atlanta

More and more people in AI and tech are moving from the Bay Area and Seattle to Atlanta's northern suburbs. What they say on home tours explains why.

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~1 yearFrom first call to closing · Calhoun, GA

One commercial deal, almost a year from first call to closing

The 4.78-acre, ±21,000 SF industrial property in Calhoun has closed. Commercial real estate is a different world from residential. Here is what it took.

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$10,340Average New Jersey property tax bill, 2025

After 30 years in New Jersey, they retired to Atlanta

Milder winters, much lower property taxes for seniors, and 55+ communities built for an easier life. Here is what one couple weighed.

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6.48MMetro Atlanta population · No. 6 in the US

Metro Atlanta is the sixth-largest metro in the US again

Census Bureau estimates released in March put metro Atlanta at about 6.48 million people, ahead of Washington and Miami. It added about 62,000 residents in a year, the third-largest gain in the country.

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Row of dock doors at the Calhoun truck terminal

A $1.9M truck terminal in Calhoun: closed, and now for lease

I represented the buyer of a 4.78-acre terminal off I-75, with a 21,000 SF building and 45 dock positions. It is now available for trucking, logistics or yard use.

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104°F+The Arizona summers she left behind

Why she left Arizona for Johns Creek: "It's too hot"

Tired of 104°F summers in Arizona, she found shade, green lawns and a reason to be outside every day in the Seven Oaks community in Johns Creek.

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½ acreEast Cobb · three-car garage · no HOA

After 40, she chose a different life in Atlanta

After years running a company in Beijing and touring San Jose and Palo Alto, she was won over by Atlanta's pace of life and found a home in East Cobb.

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ShanghaiTo a warehouse in Calhoun and a home in Milton

From Shanghai to Atlanta: first a warehouse, then a home for the family

A Shanghai entrepreneur in the carpet supply business bought a warehouse in Calhoun for his logistics hub. Then came the next question: where should the family live?

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#1World's busiest airport by passengers

Eight things Atlanta is known for

The world's busiest airport, the largest aquarium in the US, a city in a forest. Why Atlanta keeps showing up at the top of the list.

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