Published October 11, 2026 in Market Update

Foley is still absorbing homes faster than the national market

By Chris McClure

Real estate, Primary market

This is not a story about whether to move. It is a story about whether your price matches the market that is actually clearing inventory right now.

Freddie Mac put the 30-year fixed rate at 7.40% as of October 8, 2026. That is real pressure on buyers. But financing cost is a condition, not a verdict. The question is whether Foley is still moving homes under that pressure. The Real Estate Data Aggregator says it is.

The number that matters most

The National Association of Realtors reported 4.9 months of supply nationally, its highest level in over ten years. The Real Estate Data Aggregator counted 3.3 months of supply in ZIP 36535, the main Foley ZIP code, for the three months ending August 31, 2026. That gap is the story. Foley is absorbing homes at a pace the national market is not matching.

This is not a personality test. Are you priced to move in this market, or are you priced against a market that no longer exists?

What the Real Estate Data Aggregator counted in Foley's 36535

Sales are up. Pending sales are up sharply. Supply is down. Prices held nearly flat, up just 1.4% year over year. Homes are taking a little longer to sell, 8 more days than a year ago, so pricing against current competition still matters.

How the rest of the Foley market reads

Foley is not one product. ZIP 36535 covers South Foley and the heavy new construction corridor near the beach. ZIP 36507 covers a different part of the market. The numbers are not the same.

ZIP 36507 sold homes faster, a median of 53 days against 80. But 36535 moved far more volume and held a stronger sale-to-list ratio at 97.9%. Both ZIPs are tighter than the national market. Neither is the same as the other.

One thing the national rate picture changes

Freddie Mac put the 30-year rate at 7.40% on October 8, 2026. The 15-year averaged 6.73% the same week. Builders like D.R. Horton, active in South Foley and North Gulf Shores, compete on rate buydowns and closing cost help. If you are selling a resale in 36535, your competition is not just the house next door. It is the builder's total financing package. Price against that, not just against the asking price on the new home.

Pending sales up 25.7% year over year tells you buyers are still committing. They are working around the rate, not waiting it out. That matters if you are deciding when to list.

Where the market is slower

Not every part of this area reads the same. The Real Estate Data Aggregator counted 5.6 months of supply in ZIP 36549 (Lillian) and 5.8 months in the same period, both above the national figure. ZIP 36530 (Elberta) came in at 5.6 months, with median days on market at 115 days and new listings up 44.4% year over year. More supply, slower pace, and more competition from new listings. That is a different pricing problem than Foley faces.

ZIP 36542, which covers much of Gulf Shores, showed 7.5 months of supply. Median days on market there ran 103 days. Sales were down 9% year over year. That is a buyer's market by most measures. Orange Beach's 36561 ZIP came in at 6.1 months, with a median sale price of $735,000 and sales up 6.7%. Different product, different pace.

What this means if you are a seller

Foley's 36535 is clearing inventory. Pending sales jumped 25.7% year over year, per the Real Estate Data Aggregator. But the median home took 80 days to sell, 8 days longer than a year ago. The market is moving, and it is also more patient than it was. Price tight to current competition, and the market rewards you. Price above it, and 80 days can become longer.

What this means if you are a buyer

Supply in Foley is lean. When the right fit shows up, it will not wait. Freddie Mac's 7.40% rate as of October 8, 2026 is real, but so is the fact that 97.9% of list price is what sellers in 36535 are getting. There is not much room to negotiate price down. There may be room to negotiate terms.