MURFREESBORO, Tenn. — Tennessee’s housing report data for the first quarter of 2021 show that “despite the slow economic recovery, the housing numbers … remain positive” and “that the U.S. and Tennessee economies continue to recover from the height of the COVID-19 virus.”

The MTSU Business and Economic Research Center’s statewide report for the first quarter showed positive year-over-year trends in Tennessee for permits, mortgage tax collections, home prices, homeowner vacancy rates, rental vacancy rates, real estate transfer tax collections and foreclosure rates, noted report author Murat Arik, director of the BERC at Middle Tennessee State University.

The one exception among indicators was a slight year-over-year increase in past due mortgages (+1.2% in Tennessee, +2% in the U.S.), which “could indicate future problems as past due mortgages could become foreclosures,” Arik noted.

Home prices across the state saw increases from the previous year. The Morristown MSA saw the highest growth at 10%. Almost all MSAs saw an increase in home prices from the previous quarter except the Jackson and Clarksville MSAs. Clarksville stayed at an 8.4% yearly growth, but the Jackson MSA decreased by .5 percentage points.

Other report highlights:

- Housing construction:For both the South and Tennessee, single-family permits fell slightly from the previous quarter (-1.5% and -.4% respectively), while up 3.5% for the U.S. But all regions saw a year-over-year rise, with the U.S., South and Tennessee up 24%, 22.6%, and 21%, respectively.

- Home sales:Closings for all regions increased on an annual level, but only Knoxville saw an increase in quarterly closings (15%). In comparison, Memphis and Nashville saw a decline in quarterly closings by 3.25% and 3.7%, respectively. The largest annual increase went to Knoxville (36%), while Nashville and Memphis lagged (7.6% & 6%, respectively).

View the full report, including charts, at https://www.mtsu.edu/berc/housing/.