8 minute read
Townhomes
There were 9,689 townhomes sold in Metro Atlanta in 2022, lower than the record sales of the pandemic era due to a slower second half of the year, but still 1% higher than in 2019.
Townhomes have become an increasingly popular choice for Metro Atlanta homebuilders and buyers over the past decade, offering many of the perks of a single-family home with a lower price tag and less exterior maintenance. In late 2012, 10.5% of all homes purchased in the metro were townhomes. In the second half of 2022, about 15% of Metro Atlanta homebuyers opted for townhomes, with 4,500 total sales in Q3 and Q4.
Although the total number of townhomes sold was down in the second half of 2022 (-26% compared to the same period in 2021) sale prices continued to rise. The average price for a townhome in Metro Atlanta was $395,933 in Q3 and Q4, 10% higher than the same period in 2021, in part because of limited inventory. 78% of townhomes sold for less than $500,000. Even with growing prices, townhomes remain a more affordable option than detached single-family homes, which sold on average for $113,149 more than the average townhome.
This relative cost savings is a key factor in the growing popularity of townhomes. There were just 1.9 months of townhome inventory in late 2022, a slightly tighter supply than the market overall. They went under contract in 22 days on average, faster than single-family homes or condominiums.
Most townhome sales were in suburban areas outside the perimeter, with about a quarter of townhome sales ITP. Threebedroom townhomes were the
Key Stats
Metro Atlanta
Townhomes
(Q3 & Q4 2022)
• $395,933 average sale price (+10.1% YOY)
• 15% of all homes sold were townhomes
• Townhomes sold 3 days faster than average (22 days on market)
• Townhomes sold for 98.7% of the original list price on average, the highest of any home type most purchased category, making up 62% of all townhome sales and averaging $403,020. Although they made up a smaller share of the market, 2-bedroom townhomes have the highest relative demand, with just 1.5 months of supply in Metro Atlanta.
While luxury townhomes continue to be a small portion of the overall townhome market (less than 2% of sales), there were 14% more townhomes sold for $1 million or more in the second half of 2022 compared to 2021. This shows a growing number of luxury buyers interested in a low-maintenance townhome lifestyle and an expanding portfolio of new luxury townhomes to choose from. With a smaller pool of luxury buyers, these townhomes tended to stay on the market about twice as long as more affordable townhomes, averaging 44 days on the market.
Metro Atlanta Townhome Summary (Q3 & Q4 2022)
Source: FMLS InfoSparks, Greater Atlanta Area, Townhomes, Rolling 6-months as of December 2022 (year-over-year change compared to rolling 6-months as of December 2021)
Q4 2022)
Source: FMLS InfoSparks, Greater Atlanta Area, Townhomes, Rolling 6-months as of December 2022 (year-over-year change compared to rolling 6-months as of December 2021)
Source: FMLS InfoSparks, Greater Atlanta Area, Townhomes, Rolling 6-months as of December 2022 (year-over-year change compared to rolling 6-months as of December 2021) q
Townhomes - Inside the Perimeter
The growing trend toward townhomes has been even stronger ITP than in the metro overall. In the late 2012, 13% of all homes sold ITP were townhomes. By the second half of 2022, 18% were townhomes (1,023 sales). The cost savings compared to a detached single-family home was greater too. In Q3 and Q4 2022, the average ITP townhome cost $517,902, about $164,355 (24%) cheaper than the average detached single-family home. About 55% of ITP townhomes sold for less than $500,000, a higher share than the 47% of ITP single-family homes in the same price range.
Like the market overall, the total number of townhomes sold ITP was down in the second half of 2022 compared to the same period in 2021 (-34%). As with single-family homes, intown sales for townhomes under $500,000 were down more than those at higher price points (-43.3%), reflecting greater buyer sensitivity to rising interest rates in the entry level price range.
The ITP luxury townhome market is small but growing. Townhomes priced over $1 million were the only price range with more ITP sales in late 2022 compared to 2021 (+2.7%) but remained a fraction of the market with just 38 sales. Though small, that is 475% more luxury townhomes sold than a decade ago. The number of new listings for townhomes over $1 million ITP is up significantly (+41.2% compared to late 2021) while new listings at lower price points is down (-22.6%), reflecting fewer of the less expensive resale townhomes being listed and higher price tags for new construction townhomes being delivered in a period with high construction costs.
Key Stats ITP Townhomes
(Q3 & Q4 2022)
• $517,902 average sale price (+11.1% YOY)
• 18% of all ITP homes sold were townhomes
• 23% of all townhome sales were ITP
• 26% of all townhome listings were ITP
• 22% ITP townhomes sold were new construction
• ITP homes sold a little slower than the metro average (26 days on market)
• Homes sold for 98.7% of the original list price on average
Q3 + Q4 2022 ITP Townhome Superlatives
Most Expensive Area to Buy a Townhome ITP
Fastest Growing Average Townhome Prices ITP
Highest Price Per Square Foot for Townhomes ITP
Shortest Average Days on Market ITP
Inman Park ($1,215,599 average Q3/Q4 sale price)
Inman Park (+74.3% Q3/Q4 average closed sale price in 2022 vs. 2021)
Inman Park (Average $428/SF)
Tied between Avondale Estates and East Atlanta (Average 4 days on market)
Where Can You Buy the Typical Townhome for...
Less than $300,000
Cascade East College Park
East Point
West End/ Adair Park/ Capitol View/Sylvan Hills
$300,000 to $499,999
Avondale Estates
Collier Hills/ Ardmore Park
Grant Park
Glenwood Park
Peoplestown/ Chosewood Park/
Lakewood Heights
Vinings West
Midtown/ Underwood Hills
$500,000 to $699,999
Brookhaven
Buckhead
Chamblee
Chastain Park
Decatur
Druid Hills/ Emory
East Atlanta
Edgewood
Garden Hills
Kirkwood
Oakhurst
Ormewood Park
Reynoldstown
Summerhill
$700,000 to $1 million Over $1 million
East Lake
Lake Claire/ Little Five Points
Midtown
Old Fourth Ward
Peachtree Hills
Ansley Park/ Sherwood Forest
Inman Park
ITP Townhome Summary by Neighborhood - Q3 & Q4 2022
New Construction Townhomes ITP
Nearly half (49%) of all new homes sold ITP in Q3 and Q4 2022 were townhomes (227 homes). This was greater than the number of singlefamily homes sold (195 homes), showing a growing trend toward intown townhome development, with designs that uses land more efficiently and often can be sold at a more attainable price point. Townhomes purchased in late 2022 were also more likely to be new builds compared to other types of homes. Although new construction made up just 8% of all ITP home sales in Q3 and Q4, 22% of all townhomes sold ITP were new construction.
These new townhomes were most often located on the west side from West Midtown to the Chattahoochee River; in east side neighborhoods like Old Fourth Ward, Edgewood, Kirkwood, and Summerhill. Unlike new single-family homes ITP, most new construction townhomes
Townhomes Sold ITP - Q3 & Q4 2022
are part of small townhome developments, by nature of their attached design.
New construction townhomes ranged from $248,500 for a modest 3-bedroom, 1,800-square foot townhome at Browns Mill Village to $1,960,000 for a gut renovation of a historic estate in Druid Hills that was converted to multiple homes, including this 4-bedroom, 4,574-square-foot townhome. Most were priced under $600,000 (56%), with an average sale price of $618,826 ($309 per square foot).43
Townhomes - Outside the Perimeter
Townhomes were a popular choice for buyers in all parts of suburban Atlanta, from Canton in the north to Fayetteville in the south. Most of the townhomes sold in the second half of 2022 were located OTP (77%).
The highest concentrations of townhome sales were in centrally located Fulton, DeKalb, and Cobb Counties, followed by the northern suburban counties. Fewer townhomes were sold in suburban counties south of Atlanta, where the housing stock leans more heavily toward single-family homes.
Fayette County had the fewest townhome sales in late 2022, with just 12 sales, but the highest average sale price of all Metro Atlanta counties. The average price for a townhome in Fayette County was driven by the fact that most sales were custom built townhomes in the new Trilith development, a master planned community next to Trilith Studios and designed to attracted film industry employees with convenient, high-end homes.
Key Stats
OTP Townhomes
(Q3 & Q4 2022)
• 77% of all townhome sales were OTP
• 74% of all townhome listings were OTP
Q3 + Q4 2022 OTP Townhome Superlatives
Most Expensive Area to Buy a Townhome OTP
Chattahoochee Hills ($838,908 average Q3/Q4 sale price)
Fastest Growing Average Townhome Prices OTP Fayetteville (+161.9% Q3/Q4 average closed sale price in 2022 vs. 2021)
Highest Price Per Square Foot for Townhomes OTP Chattahoochee Hills (Average $431/SF)
Shortest Average Days on Market OTP Fairburn (Average 3 days on market)
Where Can You Buy the Typical Townhome for...
Clarkston
Douglasville
Fairburn
McDonough
Norcross
South Fulton
Tucker
Union City
Acworth
Canton
Duluth
East Cobb
Johns Creek
Kennesaw
Lawrenceville
Mableton
Marietta
Peachtree City
Peachtree
Corners
Sandy Springs
Smyrna
Snellville
Sugar Hill
Suwanee
Woodstock
Fayetteville
OTP Townhome Summary by Area - Q3 & Q4 2022
Source: FMLS InfoSparks, Townhomes, Rolling 6-months as of December 2022 (year-over-year change compared to rolling 6-months as of December 2021) q Down YOY p Up YOY s Below TH Market Average r Above TH Market Average w Equal to TH Market Average
OTP Townhome Summary by Area - Q3 & Q4 2022
q Down YOY p Up YOY s Below TH Market Average r Above TH Market Average w Equal to TH Market Average
New Construction Townhomes OTP
There were 1,037 new construction townhomes sold in Metro Atlanta in Q3 and Q4 2022.44 They sold for an average of $471,488— about $167,000 less than the cost of the average new single-family home, making townhomes a more affordable option for buyers looking for new construction. Most new townhomes were constructed outside of the perimeter, often around the historic and emerging town centers of suburban cities.
Fulton County had the most new construction townhomes sold in late 2022 (401 homes), followed by Gwinnett (199 homes), DeKalb (183 homes), Cobb (112 homes), and Cherokee (109 homes) Counties. In Fulton County, there were more new construction sales for townhomes than for single-family homes (327 homes) in Q3 and Q4 2022. Few new construction townhomes were sold on counties in the south Metro area, with just 21 new townhomes sold between Clayton, Henry, Fayette, Rockdale, and Douglas Counties.
The top cities for new construction townhome sales OTP were spread across the north and south sides of the metro, typically in cities that have been working on establishing more defined town centers: Fairburn, Woodstock, Suwanee, Stonecrest, Lithonia, and Peachtree Corners.
Luxury townhomes—priced at $1 million or higher—are an emerging part of the townhome market, offering a low-maintenance option for high-end buyers. About 2% of new construction townhomes sold in late 2022 were more than $1 million, all located in Fulton or DeKalb Counties, and mostly within the City of Atlanta. The only OTP cities with new construction townhome sales over $1 million were Alpharetta and Milton.
As with new single-family homes, the most affordable cities for new construction homes were all located south of Atlanta: Morrow ($231,475 average sale price), South Fulton ($261,049), Stockbridge ($284,123), Lithonia ($294,817), and Fairburn ($296,179).
