- Home prices are increasing in Eaton County despite home supplies being low
- A family in Charlotte is preparing to move south in a few months
- Video shows a real estate broker explaining why prices are rising while a family prepares for a showing
CHARLOTTE, Mich. — For more than seven years a house on High Street in Charlotte is where the Kenyons called home.
Inside the house is a beam with a growth chart written in pencil that tracked the height of their three kids in that time.
This will be the last spring the family spends in their home as they prepare to move to Texas this summer, according to Amanda Kenyon.
"I've had to say some goodbyes already to some of my good friends," Kenyon said.
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Kenyon and her family are moving to the Dallas-Fort Worth area because her husband got a new job and to be closer to her sister, who just gave birth.
"We are not going to be [Dallas] Cowboys fans, that's for sure," Kenyon joked.
Before closing their chapter in Charlotte, the Kenyons hope to close on their home. The home is listed on Zillow for $279,900.
"We haven't got any offers yet, but we've had a few showings," Kenyon said. The home had another showing Wednesday night.
WATCH: HOUSING SERVICE MID-MICHIGAN PROVIDES YEAR-ROUND ASSISTANCE FOR EATON AND CLINTON COUNTIES
Home prices are up 5% in Eaton County since last year, according to Brock Fletcher, a real estate broker for Keller Williams Realty in Lansing.
Fletcher says a low supply of homes 'that's remained unchanged for quite a few years' combined with rising interest rates have resulted in fewer home transactions.
A recently volatile stock market, Fletcher says, is also making buyers and sellers think twice before going on the housing market.
"The low inventory insulates real estate values, and it causes them to go up," Fletcher said.
WATCH: IMPACT ON LOW HOME INTEREST RATES ON TRUMP & HARRIS HOUSING PLANS
Fletcher says a possible solution is to build more homes that are smaller and less expensive, which would make it easier for potential buyers to afford.
Fletcher says a 'neutral market' would consist of having about four to six months of homes to sell.
That's a fraction of the market Eaton County has, according to Fletcher.
"We have less than a month of supply and so by definition that would be a fairly extreme seller's market," Fletcher said. "That's why we continue to see real estate values go up."
Still, Kenyon is confident that she'll be able to sell her home in less than a month.
The family considered renting out the property so they could keep it and have the option of returning if they chose.
It'll be hard for the Kenyons to leave a place they've called home for years.
"I love this neighborhood," Kenyon said.
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