Legendary baseball player and manager Yogi Berra once said of a restaurant: “No one goes there anymore. It’s too crowded.” He could just as easily have been describing Middle Tennessee: Houses are selling so fast that people can’t buy them.

That’s happening to Realtors like Caroline Rigsby. On several occasions homes have been purchased so quickly – within moments of going on the market or even before they are listed – that they are unavailable by the time potential buyers hear about them.

“I can’t even get my people in fast enough to get it under contract,” says Rigsby, a Realtor with Zeitlin & Co.

In hot neighborhoods, buyers are even competing for houses that are about to go on the market. That happened with one of Rigsby’s listings in Nashville’s Belmont neighborhood.

“On Sweetbriar, we had multiple offers while the photographer was there to get it on the market,” says Rigsby. “A dream scenario.”

Home sales throughout the Nashville region saw double-digit growth in the second quarter of 2012 compared with the second quarter of 2011. The weakest market – if you could call it that – was Williamson County, which had growth of more than 18 percent. Davidson, Rutherford and Wilson counties all saw sales growth of more than 24 percent, according to the most recent market survey by Chandler Reports.

Home buyers are beginning to bid against one another again for desirable properties, at least when they can find them.

“We’ve seen multiple offers. We haven’t seen those in four or five years,” says Lawrence Lipman, founder of The Lipman Group-Sotheby’s International Realty.

“I’ve sold a few this year that I didn’t put on the market. Seven figures,” Lipman adds.

Some buyers put off making a purchase while waiting for the economy to improve. Now they realize prices are as low as they can go and interest rates are at historic lows, “so I’ll get off the fence,” he says.

Home prices may go up as demand increases, but that hasn’t happened yet in the broader market. The biggest increase in average prices during the second quarter was in Wilson County, where they rose 5.8 percent.

In Nashville, sales were up 24.6 percent in the second quarter of 2012 compared with the same period in 2011. There were 3,235 home sales at an average price of $201,803 last quarter compared with 2,596 sales at an average of $192,873 a year ago. The average price was up 4.6 percent.

East Nashville’s 37206 Zip Code was one of the hottest markets. Sales were up 52 percent – to 225 – and the average price was up 13.8 percent to $177,171. In 37212 (Hillsboro-West End), sales were up 18.6 percent – to 115 – and the average price rose 6.3 percent to $372,313.

Not all neighborhoods shared the same pricing strength. In 37215 (Green Hills) there were 170 sales, a 37 percent increase, but prices declined about 1 percent to $477,330. In the Belle Meade-West End 37205 Zip Code, there were 182 sales, a 27.3 percent increase, but the average price increased only 2.8 percent to $458,425.

In 37220 (Oak Hill), the average price fell more than 17 percent to $337,840. Sales were up more than 44 percent to 62 transactions.

Lipman has a theory about why prices in some highly desirable neighborhoods haven’t jumped in response to increasing demand. Move-up buyers – people who are selling one house and purchasing another one – are getting such great deals on their new houses that they are willing to sell the old one at a discount.

“It’s a wash,” he says.

In Williamson County, 1,273 houses changed hands during the second quarter of this year, 18.2 percent more than the same period in 2011. The average price rose 3.2 percent to $378,445.

Brentwood was one of the strongest markets, at least in price. There were 281 sales, a 26.6 percent increase. The average price was up almost 12 percent to $591,171.

In Spring Hill, where General Motors announced it is creating 1,900 new jobs at its former Saturn factory, 160 homes were sold, a 58.4 increase. The average price was up 3.4 percent to $230,803.

In fast-growing Rutherford County, 1,312 houses were sold in the second quarter, a 26.6 percent increase over last year. The average price was up 2.2 percent to $150,809.

“The market is on fire. It’s the perfect storm,” says Re/Max Realtor John Ehlers.

The county is experiencing strong job growth, which is strengthening the housing market.

Nissan is creating 2,300 new jobs in Smyrna, where it will have a total of 5,800 employees. Amazon.com announced it is building fulfillment centers in Rutherford and Wilson counties. That will create more than 1,300 jobs.

The economy is getting stronger overall, Ehlers says, which encourages people to stop renting and buy a home or to trade up to a nicer house.

“Last year people were nervous,” he says. “Now they know they’re not going to lose their jobs.”

Sales were up 80 percent in Murfreesboro’s 37127 Zip Code, where 99 houses changed hands. The average price was $156,025, a 2.2 percent increase. In 37128, there were 323 sales, a 30.2 percent increase. The average price was up 3.3 percent to $172,933. In 37129, there were 222 sales, an 11 percent increase. The average price was up almost 6 percent to $168,053.

In Smyrna, 225 homes were sold during the second quarter, a 48 percent increase over 2011. The average price was $140,325, a 7.6 percent increase.

“Good houses don’t last,” Ehlers says of the quick pace of sales.

In Wilson County, there were 630 home sales in the second quarter, a 24 percent increase over the second quarter of 2011. The average price was up almost 6 percent to $201,042.

In Lebanon’s 37090, sales declined nearly 4 percent to 51 transactions but the average price rose more than 27 percent to $189,504. In 37087, 198 homes were sold, a 22.2 percent increase. The average price rose nearly 8 percent to $184,077.