Home sale prices and the inventory of homes increased while pending home sales continued to decline in December in Jackson County, according F.C. Tucker’s monthly report regarding the county’s real estate market.

The data show the continuation of the market’s return to pre-pandemic levels.

Pending single-family home sales, which is the process of a seller accepting a buyer’s offer through a sales contract, in Jackson County in December 2022 decreased 31% compared to the same month in 2021.

According to Forbes’ business magazine website, there are many factors that contribute to the overall decline across the country, including high interest rates and unprecedented home sales. With high interest rates, the demand for housing is reduced.

Roger Wessel, associate broker for Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Indiana Realty in Seymour, said the housing market flows with the economy and the relationship of supply and demand.

“Because of inflation, we are seeing a rise in interest rates, and this can likely contribute to the reduced housing demand,” he said.

As interest rates increased, however, there was an increase in inventory and prices of homes.

In Jackson County, the housing inventory in December 2022 increased 33.3%. In other surrounding areas, there has been fluctuation in inventory with Bartholomew County increasing and Jennings County decreasing.

In December, Bartholomew County saw an increase in housing inventory by 50.7%. Jennings County saw a decrease in inventory, down by 27.6% from December 2021.

The pandemic showed low rates of housing inventory as people stopped selling their houses, leading to existing homes not being sold and new homes not being built.

“During the pandemic, we saw prices of building materials spike and still somewhat see it post-pandemic,” Wessel said.

As the country heals from the pandemic, inventory is starting to increase as the supply for houses begins to slowly meet demand.

F.C. Tucker also reports the average home sale price in Jackson County has increased 13.7% from $184,371 in December 2021 to $209,569 the same month this past year.

The continued growth of the economy is a likely factor to the increase in home sale prices.

Millman Realty Partners in Seymour also released data, provided by the Metropolitan Indianapolis Board of Realtors Association, on end-of-the-year sales results and average price ranges for homes in Bartholomew County and Jackson County.

According to the data provided by Millman Realty Partners, the average home price in Jackson County in 2021 was $184,371 and increased in 2022 to $209,196, which is a 13.5% increase.

In Bartholomew County, the average home price in 2021 was $261,636, compared to $280,739 in 2022, which is a 7.3% increase.

The data also were able to show the total number of homes sold in Jackson and Bartholomew counties and for how many days they were on the market.

The total number of homes sold in Jackson County decreased from 521 in 2021 to 497 in 2022. In 2021, the average days homes were on the market was 20 days, which increased by four in 2022.

Bartholomew County also showed a slight decrease in the number of homes sold from 1,353 in 2021 to 1,322 in 2022. There was, however, a slight decrease in the amount of days homes were on the market, going from 20 days in 2021 to 18 days in 2022.

Overall, the data presented show that 2022 showed an increase in home sale prices and an increase in inventory. The Indiana Association of Realtors will publish a report for the final numbers of 2022 on Feb. 1.

While the real estate market is constantly fluctuating, realtors have hope for stability in 2023.

“I am optimistic for the future as we could eventually see a level out in the market,” Wessel said.

“For 2023, I think we will see things stablize as far as inventory and interest rates go,” said Rob Millman, founder and managing broker of Millman Realty Partners.