There’s great news, good news and bad news related to Limestone County’s housing market for potential sellers, buyers and renters in 2017.

First, the great news — realtors are anticipating a strong year, despite national forecasts to the contrary. A robust 2017 would represent a continuation of a successful 2016, which saw many new and pre-existing homes gobbled up by first-time buyers and those transferring to the area.

Year-to-date home sales through November were up 19.4 percent over prior year, according to the University of Alabama’s Alabama Center for Real Estate, or ACRE. In November alone, local home sales totaled 121 units, an increase of 39 percent over November 2015.

Realtor Kathy Norton with ReMax/Legacy said she anticipates a successful year, but added it won’t be without its challenges. She said while homes are flying off the market, home prices haven’t quite returned to previous highs enjoyed before the Great Recession.

“Prices were going out of sight before the crash,” she said. “I think the market needs to stabilize.”

Good news

The fact there are fewer homes on the market is good news for sellers, but not necessarily for all sellers. Norton said there seems to be less interest in homes priced at $300,000 and above.

“We’ve really had a swarm on homes priced $150,000 and below,” she said. “Those have really been the hot item.”

Not all pre-existing homes are an easy sell at that price point, however. She said buyers still want many modern amenities offered by new construction. Norton explained upgrades can help sell an older home but so can general routine maintenance.

“There are certain things you have to do to maintain your home,” she said. “Some (sellers) don’t understand that.”

For those who don’t mind taking on a project, there are loans available for fixer-uppers priced well below the $100,000 mark. Norton explained the loans are perfect for buyers who find a $70,000 house that needs $25,000 to $30,000 worth of work to gut a kitchen or make other significant repairs.

Bad news

Anyone looking to rent an inexpensive house, as opposed to buying one, may simply be out of luck. As of Tuesday, there were only a handful of rental homes in Athens for $1,000 or less.

“The rental market around here is unreal,” Norton said.

The news is also bad for anyone wanting to take advantage of the historically low interest rates enjoyed in the wake of the recession. There could be as many as three interest rate hikes by the Fed in 2017. Norton said it’s possible the mortgage rate could be 5 to 6 percent by May, depending on loan type.

Higher mortgage rates could have one silver lining: As some buyers are priced out, sellers may have to be more flexible on prices. Over time, that could help stem home prices.

Low inventory and strong demand helped push prices higher in 2016 at the fastest pace in 10 years, according to an analysis by Zillow. The company predicts that U.S. home prices increase about 3 percent in 2017, down from a gain of about 6.5 percent this year.

Tips for buyers

If mortgage rates continue to climb, there are moves would-be homebuyers can make to better offset some of the higher borrowing costs.

Consider lowering the interest rate by paying a fee to the lender up front, something known as buying down the interest rate. Or go with an adjustable-rate mortgage, which has a low, fixed-interest rate for a few years, typically five or 10, then adjusts to a higher rate.

Another move: Ask the seller to pay the buyer’s closing costs. That can free up more cash for buyers to manage the higher borrowing costs.

— The Associated Press contributed to this report.