Comparison of prices shows effect of recession

Brentwood, Franklin and Spring Hill comparables all show declines
By Nancy Mueller • FOR WILLIAMSON A.M. • November 27, 2009

The average price of a home sold in Williamson County last month was $385,665. That's $65,807 less than the average sales price two years ago, according to the Williamson County Association of Realtors.

Sellers do not see such a statistic as good news, but they can take comfort in the fact that the average price is still higher than the $363,267 average of 2005.
At the same time, there's no doubt that buyers these days are getting more for their money than they have in years.

Some cases can be found by looking back at a story that was published in Williamson A.M. in July 2007 (before the recession really hit here), which compared home prices in Brentwood, Franklin and Spring Hill. The point of that story was to see how much more home you could buy for the same money in Spring Hill and Franklin compared with Brentwood by looking at the prices of comparable homes in each community.

Today, those price points are an interesting place to begin comparing what you can get for the money in today's market; in many instances buyers can find asking prices steeply reduced from prices two years ago.

Differences are noticeable

That story from July 2007 began by describing a house for sale in the Brentwood subdivision of Fountainbrooke. It was 4,127 square feet, with five bedrooms, 4½ bathrooms and a three-car garage. The price was $684,900. Someone who is shopping for a similar type home in Fountainbrooke today will really see a difference in prices. There are two homes for sale there now that are very close to that one in size and amenities, but they cost thousands less:

• There's 403 Hollow Springs Court, a 3,944-square-foot home built in 2002 and priced at $619,900. It is a 1½-story home with four bedrooms, 3½ bathrooms and a three-car garage.
• There's also 2204 Saint Josephs Court, a house with 4,876 square feet, built in 2005 and priced at $625,000. This home is a two-story traditional, with four bedrooms, 3½ baths and a three-car garage.

Similar homes to these can be found in the Franklin subdivision of Carlisle. In the July 2007 story, we mentioned one that was for sale in this neighborhood for $594,990. It had 4,022 square feet, four bedrooms, 3½ bathrooms and a three-car garage. Go to Carlisle today and you can find eight homes for sale, including two comparables to the one in that story. They are both almost $100,000 less in price:

• There's 1108 Stone Mill Lane, listed for $499,000. It has 3,950 square feet plus an additional 750 square feet that is unfinished over the three-car garage. That unfinished space is plumbed for a half-bath, too. The house, built in 2004, has four bedrooms, 4½ bathrooms.
• Also available in Carlisle today is 1204 Vintage Grove Lane, priced at $499,900. This 2002 home has 5,479 square feet, five bedrooms, 4½ baths and the three-car garage.

Spring Hill sees a dip

Home prices get more affordable as you travel farther away from Nashville, so some of the best home prices in Williamson County are found in Spring Hill.

The Wades Grove subdivision is a good neighborhood to shop for homes in the 4,000-square-foot price range in Spring Hill. In 2007, there was a 4,128-square-foot house with five bedrooms, 4½ baths and a two-car garage listed for $459,900.

A homebuyer looking at that neighborhood today would find 13 homes for sale, including two comparables with substantially lower list prices than two years ago:

• 2021 Keene Circle, 4,200 square feet, built in 2006, is listed at $295,000. It has five bedrooms, 3½ baths and a two-car garage.
• 2044 Keene Circle, 3,490 square feet, also built in 2006, is listed at $324,900. It has five bedrooms, three baths and a two-car garage. Both of these homes are the highest-priced homes for sale in Wade's Grove (as of Nov. 12).