If you've been watching the Middle Tennessee housing market and wondering whether to buy, sell, or wait, this is the post for you. The headlines nationwide talk about a market in slow motion. The reality here is more specific, more interesting, and more useful than that.

Davidson and Williamson are two different markets operating inside the same metro. They don't move in lockstep. Understanding the gap between them, and the movement between them, is exactly what smart buyers and sellers need right now.

Here's what the data shows as of February 2026.

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The Numbers By County

Davidson

 

Davidson is in a genuine correction. Not a crash, but a reset. Median sale prices came in around $484K in December 2025, up 5.5% year-over-year on a county-wide basis, but data specific to the city of Nashville tells a different story: the median came in at $451K in January 2026, down 5% from the same month last year.

Homes are taking longer to sell as well. The average days on market has stretched to 88 days, up from 74 days a year ago. Sellers are receiving about 3% below list price on average, and inventory has climbed roughly 13 to 17% compared to last year. That's meaningful breathing room for buyers who were getting steamrolled in 2021 and 2022.

Newer townhome developments near downtown Nashville offer a modern urban lifestyle with views of the growing skyline. (Source: MDHA)

Williamson

 

Williamson is a different story. Median sale prices in Williamson County were tracking near $975K as of October 2025, up 6.5% year-over-year. Franklin specifically shows a median single-family price around $852K to $884K as of early 2026. This is one of the most expensive counties in Tennessee, and demand has not meaningfully softened.

Homes here are moving in about 67 days, faster than Davidson, and the Greater Nashville Realtors president noted recently that demand in markets like Brentwood and Franklin continued to grow over the past year. School districts, lifestyle, and limited land supply keep a floor under values here that simply doesn't exist in other parts of the metro.

The rolling hills of Williamson are home to some of Middle Tennessee's most prestigious estates and resilient property values. (Source: Realtor.com)

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What This Means If You're Buying

In Davidson

You have leverage. Use it.

This is the window buyers have been waiting for. Inventory is up, competition has cooled significantly, and sellers are accepting concessions on price, repairs, and closing costs that simply weren't on the table two years ago. The frantic multiple-offer environment of 2021 to 2022 is largely gone.

Downtown condos and urban townhomes in particular have flattened in price, giving first time buyers and relocators real options. The East Bank development is bringing new inventory online in the city. Buyers in Davidson now have time to compare, negotiate, and conduct proper due diligence.

That said, well-priced, well-presented homes in desirable neighborhoods like Germantown, East Nashville, and Green Hills are still moving in the 46 to 50 day range. The leverage exists, but it's not infinite.

In Williamson

Be prepared and move decisively.

Williamson is a different game. Supply is tighter, demand from families and relocators remains strong, and the school system story hasn't changed. Buyers here should be fully pre-approved before they start touring, and should expect to act quickly on homes that check the boxes.

The good news: even here, pricing has become more disciplined. Overpriced listings sit. Sellers who price strategically are still closing quickly, but the days of automatically waiving inspections are behind us. Buyers who know neighborhood-level data, not just county-level data, are the ones winning without overpaying.

For buyers priced at the upper end of Davidson but still wanting Williamson quality, Spring Hill and Thompson's Station represent the logical bridge: newer construction, more square footage per dollar, and access to the same school system that drives demand north of the county line.

Thoughtfully staged and well-presented interiors remain a critical differentiator for sellers in today's more discerning market.

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What This Means If You're Selling

In Davidson

Pricing is everything right now.

The days of listing high and waiting for the market to catch up are over in Davidson. Homes that are overpriced are sitting, and sitting hurts you. Buyers are watching price reductions closely, and a listing that has been reduced once signals weakness even if the final price is fair.

The right strategy: price it correctly from day one, present it well, and market it aggressively. Sellers who do those three things are still closing. Those who don't are watching their days on market tick up and their leverage erode.

Spring is still your best window. Historically, February through May produces the most buyer activity in Middle Tennessee. If you're planning to sell in 2026, getting to market in the next 6 to 8 weeks puts you ahead of summer competition.

In Williamson

You still have the upper hand, with conditions.

Williamson sellers retain an advantage, particularly in established neighborhoods close to top-rated schools. Demand from families relocating from the Northeast, Midwest, and California has not evaporated.

However, the market has gotten more sophisticated. Buyers here are educated, well-represented, and patient. A home that isn't move-in ready or is priced above comparable sales will sit. The buyers who are active in the $800K to $1.2M range are not making emotional decisions.

Your differentiators: condition, location within the county, school zone, and pricing relative to recent comps. Not 2022 comps, but 2025 comps. Work with an agent who can pull neighborhood-level data, not just county-wide averages.

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Is the Market Crashing?

No, and it's worth being specific about why.

A crash requires a significant oversupply of homes combined with forced selling: foreclosures, job losses, or debt driven panic. None of those conditions exist in Middle Tennessee right now. Foreclosure rates remain near historic lows. Unemployment in the Nashville metro is well below the national average. And the structural drivers of demand, corporate relocations, population growth, limited land, haven't reversed.

What we have instead is normalization. The 2020 to 2022 market was an anomaly driven by historically low rates and pandemic-driven demand. The current market is closer to what a healthy, functioning market looks like: buyers have choices, sellers have to compete, and prices move based on real fundamentals rather than fear of missing out.

For anyone who purchased in the last 3 to 5 years: values in Williamson have held and, in many areas, continued to appreciate. Davidson has softened modestly from peak, but the long term trajectory for a growing city with strong job fundamentals remains positive.

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The Davidson and Williamson Dynamic: What's Really Happening

 

One of the most interesting trends in this market is the movement between these two counties. Buyers who are priced out of Franklin or Brentwood are increasingly looking at East Nashville, Antioch, and Donelson in Davidson. Buyers who want the suburban lifestyle at a lower price point than core Williamson are landing in Spring Hill, Nolensville, and Thompson's Station.

Meanwhile, buyers relocating from high-cost metros like Los Angeles, Chicago, and Atlanta consistently list both counties when they search. LA buyers in particular have shown the highest search interest in Nashville on Redfin. For these buyers, even Williamson prices represent a significant discount to what they left behind.

This migration dynamic is one of the core reasons values in both counties have proven resilient. It's not just local demand. It's a national story about where people want to live.

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A Note on Rates

Mortgage rates have stabilized in the low to mid 6% range heading into 2026, with the 30-year fixed hovering around 6.1 to 6.2%. That's not the 3% environment of 2021, but it's also not the 7.5% spike of late 2023.

The average loan amount for Davidson sits at $1,029,250, meaning many higher-priced homes in the area can still be financed conventionally before entering jumbo territory. FHA and VA borrowers who qualify are still seeing rates below 6% in some cases, which is keeping first time buyer activity alive in Davidson.

The practical advice: get pre-approved now. Even a small rate improvement before spring could make a meaningful difference in purchasing power, and lenders are competitive right now.

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And if you're buying, in either county, reach out. Navigating the gap between these two markets is exactly what we do.