01 THE NUMBER
4 in 10
Metro Atlanta listings cut their asking price in August. At the peak of the 2022 frenzy, it was about 2 in 10.
7.03%
30-YR AVERAGE
29,580
HOMES FOR SALE
59 days
MEDIAN ON MARKET
Price cuts, homes for sale, and days on market: Realtor.com via FRED, Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell metro, August 2026 (11,608 of 29,580 active listings had a price reduction; February 2022: 1,678 of 7,799). Rate: Freddie Mac PMMS national 30-year average, week of September 24, 2026. Market context, not a loan offer.
02 THE STORY
Savannah, GA · Photo: Jonah Townsley / Unsplash
Higher rates didn't create Atlanta's housing shortage.
On September 16, the Fed raised rates for the first time since 2023. Within a week, the average 30-year mortgage rate was above 7% for the first time since January 2025. The natural worry: higher rates mean even fewer homes for sale. Ten years of Atlanta data tell a different story.
A family in Marietta bought in 2021 at 2.9%. Twins arrived last spring, and the house is now a bedroom short. They want to move. Their rate is what keeps them there.
Illustrative composite, not a specific client.
Multiply that across thousands of households, and you see one reason supply has been slow to recover. When rates hit record lows in 2020 and 2021, buyers rushed in and homes for sale fell by nearly two-thirds. Many of those buyers now hold 3% loans and have little reason to sell.
The low-rate rush deepened the shortage. Today's rate lock-in is helping it last.
Rates are up 63% since 2019. Homes for sale are back to 95% of 2019.
Both series indexed to their 2019 annual average (2019 = 100). Annual averages; *2026 rate through September 24, listings through August. Sources: Freddie Mac PMMS (rate); Realtor.com via FRED, Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell CBSA (active listings).
This year shows the same pattern. Since February, the average 30-year rate has climbed from 5.98% to 7.03%. Yet from February to August, before the Fed moved, homes for sale in Metro Atlanta rose from about 23,800 to 29,580. That's close to where they stood in August 2019.
So why still call it a shortage? The number of homes listed tells only part of the story. Metro Atlanta has more households than it did in 2019, so a similar number of listings now serves more of them. And more listings don't mean more homes buyers can afford at today's prices and rates, especially in the neighborhoods where they need to live. Ordinary life keeps loosening the lock: new jobs, growing families, downsizing. A full recovery depends more on those life events, and on new construction, than on any one Fed decision.
03 YOUR MOVE
What this means for you
Buying
Rates are higher than in spring, but so is choice: 4 in 10 sellers have already cut their price. Negotiate on price, repairs, and closing costs. Compare the total cost, not just the rate.
Selling
The typical Metro Atlanta home is taking 59 days to sell. Yours will depend on your neighborhood, price, and condition. With so many sellers cutting, pricing it right from the start matters more than it has in years.
Staying
If you already have a fixed-rate mortgage, this rate jump doesn't change it. Thinking about refinancing or moving? The math depends on your rate, your equity, and how long you plan to stay.
Realtors
Clients waiting for lower rates before listing got the opposite this month. Help them plan around their own timeline, not the Fed's calendar. Feel free to forward them this issue.
04 YOUR QUESTION
“The Fed just raised rates.
Should I wait to buy?”
No one can promise where mortgage rates go next, including us. The Fed sets a short-term rate. Mortgage rates follow the bond market, which can move before the Fed does, after it, or the other way entirely.
What you control: your budget, your timeline, and the terms you negotiate. With more listings and price cuts than in years, terms matter.
Have a question about buying, selling, or rates in Georgia?
Hit reply and ask. Each month we answer one reader question here, without names. We read every reply.
05 WATCHING NEXT
September jobs report
A cooling job market tends to pull mortgage rates down. A hot one can push them up.
Oct 2
Inflation report (CPI)
The number the Fed cited when it raised rates in September.
Oct 14
Fed rate decision
The Fed moves short-term rates directly and mortgage rates only indirectly.
Oct 28
The market is broad. Your decision is personal.
Buying, selling, or staying put, we'll walk through your own numbers with you.