RE/MAX: September Home Sales Slow Amid Strong Prices, Low Inventory
RE/MAX, Denver, said home sales fell for the fifth time this year in September, while home prices rose for the 71st consecutive month.
The company’s October National Housing Report said September home sales dropped by 4.2% year-over-year in its analysis of housing data in 54 metro areas. Going in the opposite direction, the Median Sales Price increased to $225,000. Though the lowest price since March, it was 2.3% higher from a year ago. The last month when home prices did not increase year-over-year was October 2011.
The report noted in the wake of Hurricane Irma in early September, Miami saw home sales drop 35.2% year-over-year. Houston, meanwhile, posted a 3.2% gain despite the impact of Hurricane Harvey in late August. Days on Market declined by one week, from 56 in September 2016 to 49.
At 3.6, the Months’ Supply of Inventory was the lowest of any September in the report’s 9-year history. Twenty-three markets are at three months or less. Inventory dropped by 14.1% year-over-year, with 46 metro areas seeing fewer homes for sale. Year-over-year, inventory has declined every month since November 2008.
“We’re not seeing any relief from the nationwide housing shortage as we enter the typically slower fall and winter selling seasons,” said Adam Contos, RE/MAX Co-CEO. “Plain and simple, we need more homes, particularly at the entry-level price point. Until then, it will most likely continue to be a seller’s market with homes going from listed to sold quickly.”
Of the 54 metro areas surveyed in September, the overall average number of home sales decreased by 14.9% compared to August and decreased by 4.2% from a year ago. Sixteen of the 54 metro areas experienced an increase in sales year-over-year, including, Billings, Mont.,+18.4%, Burlington, Vt., +7.6%, Chicago, 7.4%, Honolulu, +4.6% and Las Vegas, +3.8%.
The median of all 54 metro Median Sales Prices was $225,000, down 5% from August but up 2.3% from a year ago. Only five metro areas saw a year-over-year decrease or remained unchanged (Trenton, N.J., -8.5%, Hartford, Conn., -5.3%, Billings, Mont., -2.2%, and Augusta, Maine and Baltimore at 0.0%). Eight metro areas increased year-over-year by double-digit percentages, with the largest increases seen in Seattle +13.7%, San Francisco +13.2%, Providence, R.I. +13%, Las Vegas +12.2% and Tampa, Fla. +11.4%.
Average Days on Market for homes sold in September rose to 49, up two days from August and down seven days from the a year ago. Metro areas with the lowest Days on Market were Omaha, Neb. at 23, Seattle at 25 and San Francisco at 26. The highest Days on Market averages were in Augusta, Maine 105 and Burlington, Vt. at 94.
Homes for sale in September dropped by 3.6% from August and by 14.1% from a year ago. However, the Months’ Supply of Inventory increased to 3.6 from August at 3.1, compared to 3.9 a year ago. Fifty-one metro areas surveyed reported a months’ supply of less than 6.0, which is typically considered a seller’s market. Metro areas that saw a months’ supply above 6.0, which is typically considered a buyer’s market, were Miami at 11.8, Augusta, Maine at 6.4 and Birmingham, Ala. at 6.3. Markets with the lowest Months’ Supply were San Francisco at 1.2, Seattle at 1.5, Denver at 1.6 and San Diego at 1.8.
