Facts and Figures

Real estate market in Northwest Arkansas showed improvement in May.  As many as 585 homes were sold in Benton and Washington counties last month at a value of $97.6 million.  Median price for the homes was $134,950.  This represented a 15% year-over-year increase.  Number of homes sold went up 7.3% while sales volume increased by 23.5%. 

Regional Home Sales in May in Benton and Washington Counties

Source: Mountdata

Average Income For Northwest Arkansans Grew by 3 Percent to $33,309 (April, 2012)

Income grew in Benton and Washington counties as well as the Fayetteville-Springdale-Rogers MSA.  They also grew for the state and the nation.  In Benton County, personal income grew by 3.3% to $35,858 per person between 2009 and 2010.  Income levels grew by 2.8% to $32,309 in Washington County for the same period.  The average income for Northwest Arkansans grew by 3% to $33,309.  For the state, the average income grew by 2.3% to $32,805.    National average income is $39,937. 

Sales Tax Revenue Increases (April, 2012)

Sales tax revenue continues to improve over the same period with last year.  Fayetteville had the highest percentage increase compared with the same period last year.  Rogers, Springdale, and Bentonville posted double-digit increases in April as well.  Sales tax revenue reported in April reflects February tax collected in March.  Comparisons are based from the same month in the previous year.  Except for Bella Vista, each city collects a 2 percent sales tax.  One percent is devoted to repayment of bonds.  The remaining 1% goes into the city's general fund and is available for operations.  The amounts tracked is the 1% going into the general funds.

February 2012 Unemployment Rates

Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics

Home Sales in March (April, 2012)

Warm March weather helped saw an almost 12% year-over-year increase in activities in the local real estate market.  Some 527 homes were sold in March.  Median sales prices increased from $113,000 in March 2011 to $142,000 this March.  

Recorded Home Sales in Benton and Washington Counties the Past Three Marches 

Source: NWA Times

Area Foreclosure Activity Slows (April, 2012)

Benton County leads the state in number of foreclosures but the number is a quarter of what it was a year ago.  It had 73 homes in March 2012 compared to 284 the same month last year.  Washington County had 51 homes in foreclosure.  That is an 85.7% drop from the previous year. 

Number of Foreclosure Filings in the Pipeline in March, 2012 Compared to March, 2011     

Source: RealtyTrac

HMR Tax Receipts Rise in 2011 (March, 2012)

A 1% city Hotel, Motel, and Restaurant (HMR) tax receipts on hotel stays and prepared food sales rose 5.9% in 2011 than a year before.  According to city finance director Paul Becker, the HMR collection rose from about $2.18 million in 2010 to $2.31 million last year.  The city collects 2% HMR tax.  One percent of the tax goes to the city's Parks and Recreation Department to pay for parks maintenance, operations and capital improvement while the other 1% goes to the Fayetteville Advertising & Promotion Commission.  The revenues going to the Commission pay for city promotion, operation of tourism-related facilities, money for the arts and construction, improvement, maintenance or repair of a convention center.  Table below shows a breakdown of 2011 receipts.  The self-reported figures do not include retail or liquor sales.   

Source: Respective Cities

Apartment Rental Spaces Dwindling (February, 2012)

Apartment rental spaces are dwindling, according to the Northwest Arkansas Apartment Market Survey conducted by CB Richard Ellis of Tulsa, OK.  The firm surveyed 9,312 of the area's approximate 28,000 units and the survey included complexes with at least 50 units or more.  Occupancy hit 95% at the end of 2011, an increase from 92% in July 2011.  Because of fewer available units, higher rents could happen. The average rental rate of all apartments in the four largest cities was $607, up from $601 six months ago.  Rogers had the highest overall rent at $725.  

Average Rent for Apartment Complexes with 50 or More Units in Northwest Arkansas 

Source: CB Richard Ellis

Current construction projects for living spaces in the region include a new senior apartment complex in Rogers and The Grove, a 632-unit project in Fayetteville.  Campus Crest, a North Carolina firm, is building this complex on the site of the former Washington County Livestock Auction.  The complex will be a rent-by-the-room with common living spaces.  Ted Rollins is the co-founder and chief executive officer of the company.    The Grove will open for the 2012-2013 academic year and will cater to the students attending the University of Arkansas.  The Fayetteville campus saw an enrollment increase by almost 30% in the past 5 years.

Area Foreclosures Continue to Be Low (February, 2012)

Foreclosures remain at significantly lower numbers than a year ago.

Retailers Absorb Empty Space (January, 2012)

The Northwest Arkansas region is seeing more of its retail space taken up in 2011.  The region had 1.1 million square feet of available retail space at the beginning of 2011.  The total dropped to about 800,000 SF by the end of the year, according to Tom Reed, partner with Streetsmart Data Services of Fayetteville.  The data does not include strip centers.  Approximately 70% of the available retail space is split between Rogers and Fayetteville.  There is some shifting between the two markets as well as retailers that want to have presence in both places.  Limited new construction and favorable lease rates for existing vacant properties have helped the region's absorption rate.  The overall vacancy rate for non-owner occupied retail space was about 12.5% at the end of 2011, a marked improvement from the 17% high in mid-2009.

Total Retail Space, Including Strip Centers and Owner-Occupied Venues of At Least 50,000 SF, in Benton and Washington Counties

Latest Statistics

Source: Xceligent