In the fourth three month period of the year just ended, the Southeast Tennessee and Northwest Georgia area saw the sale of 1,527 residential units, a 19.8% increase over the same quarter’s sales in 2008, but a drop of 6.5% over the July through September sales of 2009.

Median price figures for the period witnessed a decrease to $128,500 – a drop of 4.8% from the 4th Quarter of 2008 and a statistically negligible decline of 1.2% from the previous quarter. While a positive sign, in terms of affordability, the price drop is often interpreted by some authorities as a sign of a continuing sluggish economic outlook. However, the index indicating the number of days on the market has remained remarkably consistent – from 120 a year ago to 120 in the 4th Quarter of 2009 – and only 5 days less than the 3rd Quarter.