Housing Supply Overview
The potential of an affordability conundrum has veered into the national spotlight, as household wages struggle to keep pace with home price increases. Yet it is ill-advised to predict a heavy shift toward fewer sales and lower prices. Consumers have learned a lot in the last decade. For
the 12-month period spanning September 2017 through August 2018, Pending Sales in the Western Upstate region were up 0.3 percent overall.
The price range with the largest gain in sales was the $300,001 and Above range, where they increased 12.1 percent.
The overall Median Sales Price was up 5.0 percent to $170,100. The property type with the largest price gain was the Condos segment, where prices increased 8.1 percent to $127,250. The price range that tended to sell the quickest was the $150,001 to $200,000 range at 76 days; the price range that tended to sell the slowest was the $300,001 and Above range at 127 days.
Market-wide, inventory levels were down 0.6 percent. The property type that gained the most inventory was the Condos segment, where it increased 28.7 percent. That amounts to 5.0 months supply for Single-Family homes and 5.1 months supply for Condos.
Monthly Indicators
Many sellers and builders are in a good position for financial gains, as the economy continues to favor putting existing homes on the market and building new homes for sale. We are finally beginning to see some upward movement in new listings after at least two years of a positive outlook. There may not be massive increases in inventory from week to week, but a longer-term trend toward more new listings would be a good sign. Low inventory should continue to create a competitive situation for buyers, causing price increases over the next several months.
New Listings were down 0.8 percent to 708. Pending Sales decreased 31.5 percent to 352. Inventory shrank 3.7 percent to 2,010 units.
Prices moved higher as Median Sales Price was up 13.4 percent to $170,000. Days on Market increased 40.8 percent to 100 days. Months Supply of Inventory was down 2.0 percent to 4.8 months, indicating that demand increased relative to supply.
This winter and spring exhibited unseasonal weather patterns in much of the country. As the seasons change to something more palatable, wages and consumer spending are both up, on average, which should translate positively for the housing market. Being quick with an offer is still the rule of the day as the number of days a home stays on the market drops lower. If that wasn’t enough for buyers to mull over with each potential offer, being aware of pending mortgage rate increases is once again in fashion.
To view these, and previous, market reports click here.