A Slowdown May Be Coming To Nashville, But Fundamentals Still Enticing

All hot real estate markets cool down eventually, but when will Nashville's time come? Market experts we talked to said: not yet.

Northwood Ravin CEO David Ravin said he is cautiously optimistic. "I believe we need to see the supply of new apartments continue to slow to ensure demand can keep up. But compared to a year ago, that appears to be the case."

Even so, he anticipates some softening in the market before it gets better. Most developers consider Nashville, especially Downtown, a market that needs to digest what is already happening.

"I believe developers will start to move onto other less competitive cities."

But job creation in Nashville is very compelling and all the activity Downtown should start to feed off itself in a positive way.

"With more residential comes more office and more retail," Ravin said. "Which in turns makes it a more compelling place to live."

Matthew Wiltshire, director of the Mayor’s Office of Economic & Community Development, said he is as optimistic about Nashville’s economy as he was one year ago. "And that’s saying something, because I was pretty enthusiastic about the future then." 

He said his positiveness is based on the fact that the same fundamentals underlying Nashville’s attractiveness a year ago — a strong workforce and a high quality of life, low cost of living, and the best music scene in the country — remain intact today.

"Macroeconomic conditions will ebb and flow, but Nashville will continue to outperform."

Find out more at our Nashville State of the Market event, where Ravin, Wiltshire and other market experts will be speaking, on April 18 at Gaylord Springs Golf Links. Sign up here.