Last month’s home sales posted the highest year-over-year gain for January in 11 years, increasing an average of 10.5% in the 54 metro areas covered by the report. Meanwhile, the 15.6% year-over-year drop in inventory was the largest decline since May 2017 and marked the seventh consecutive month of year-over-year shrinkage in the number of U.S. homes for sale.

Despite very low inventory, January and December (+13.5%) marked the first back-to-back months with double-digit year-over-year growth in home sales since June and July of 2015.

January’s Median Sales Price of $256,000 – though 3.4% below December – was 8.9% higher than January 2019 and extended the string of year-over-year price increases to 13 months.

In the nearly 12-year history of the report, three January records were set or tied last month:

·         Fewest Months Supply of Inventory: 3.1

·         Fewest Days on Market: 59 (tied with January 2019)

·         Highest Median Sales Price: $256,000

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December posted a record finish to a year and a decade, with a year-over-year increase in home sales of 13.5% in the 54 metro areas covered by the report. That was the highest increase of any month in 2019, and the highest for the month of December since 2009.

Also posting a record for 2019 was the inventory decline of 14.5% year-over-year, accompanied by corresponding drops in Months Supply of Inventory – 3.3 vs. 4.8 a year earlier – and Days on Market – 54 compared to 55 a year ago.

Year-over-year, sales were up five months in 2019, with the majority occurring in the back half of the year. Inventory, meanwhile, grew year-over-year in each of the first six months, then shrunk in each of the last six months.

The Median Sales Price of $266,000 was 11.1% higher than December 2018 and the highest year-over-year increase for any month of 2019.

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Tight Inventory Accelerates Sales,
Pushes Up Median Sales Price

A fifth straight month of shrinking inventory year-over-year triggered several November records in the 11-year history of the RE/MAX National Housing Report: fewest Days on Market at 49, fewest Months Supply of Inventory at 3.3, and the highest Median Sales Price at $257,000.

In the 54 metro areas covered by the report, November home sales overall averaged 1.0% below November 2018 following significant year-over-year increases in September and October. Thus far, four months of 2019 posted year-over-year sales increases and seven, including November, have seen declines. Three of the monthly declines, however, were less than 2% below 2018 sales levels.

The November Median Sales Price of $257,000 marked a 7.9% year-over-year increase. It was the third-highest year-over-year increase thus far in 2019.  While prices declined month-to-month from June through September, price appreciation began to accelerate in October and the November Median Sales Price topped October by 0.7%. November prices have topped October’s for nine consecutive years, dating back to 2011.

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Sales and Prices Increase,
Inventory Sharply Declines

Home sales, which lagged during the first part of 2019, continued their recent rebound with another strong month in October. October 2019 sales finished 3.9% higher than in October 2018. At the same time, inventory posted a steep 9.0% year-over-year decline across the report’s 54 metro areas, while the Median Sales Price of $254,800 set an October record.

With May, July and September already in the positive column, October became the fourth month of the past six to post a year-over-year increase in sales, which hadn’t happened for nine months prior to May.

Meanwhile, inventory resumed the skid that has dominated the last decade. October’s year-over-year decline of 9.0% was the largest for any month since May 2018. The downturn resulted in October’s Months of Inventory dropping to 3.1 – the lowest October amount in the report’s 11-year history. The 49 Days on Market was the second-lowest figure for October in report history, trailing only 2018’s 48.

The Median Sales Price of $254,800 set an October record for the report and the 8.4% increase year over year was the highest for the month since 2013.

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September Home Sales Post Highest Year-over-Year Gain in Nearly Three Years

While signaling the end of 2019’s peak selling season, September home sales rose 8.1% year-over-year – the largest year-over-year increase since November 2016. Home purchases increased in 47 of the report’s 54 markets, forcing already tight inventory totals to drop 6.1% year-over-year for the biggest decline in over a year.

The year-over-year increase in September 2019 sales was the largest September increase since 2013. This was accompanied by an August-to-September decline of 17.0%, which – while larger than average – was significantly less than the month-to-month drop of 24.4% in September 2018, when sales sharply declined amid an uncertain interest rate environment.

September 2019 marked the third consecutive month of year-over-year inventory decline. That reversed the strongest 9-month-stretch of year-over-year inventory growth – from October 2018 to June 2019 – in report history. Meanwhile, the August-to-September seasonal inventory decline of 1.5% was less than the August-to-September 5-year average drop of 2.3%.

September’s Median Sales Price of $254,500 was a year-over-year increase of 4.5%, which is in line with the year-over-year average gain of 4.9% for 2019’s first nine months.

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Year-Over-Year Home Sales Slip 1.6% After Largest Inventory Decline in 13 Months

August 2019 existing home sales slipped 1.6% from a year ago, despite buyer demand exceeding available housing supply, according to the RE/MAX National Housing Report. Following July’s year-over-year sales increase of 2.3%, the slight August decline marks the sixth month of 2019 that produced fewer sales than 2018.

Buyer demand outpaced homes listed for sale in August, causing the largest inventory decline in 13 months. An analysis of the report’s 53 metro areas shows August inventory shrank 5.5% year-over-year, the largest drop since 7.8% in July 2018. August’s inventory contraction followed July’s year-over-year inventory decline of 1.5% after nine consecutive months of year-over-year inventory growth. Months Supply of Inventory decreased to 2.8 compared to 2.9 in July 2019 and eclipsed the previous August low in the report’s 11-year history.

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Home Sales Increase 2.4% in July,
Ending Nine Months of Inventory Growth

July home sales bounced back after a sluggish June by increasing 2.4% year over year, according to the RE/MAX National Housing Report. This was enough to end nine months of year-over-year inventory growth as the number of homes for sale declined 1.4%.

A drop in home sales from June to July is typical in the report’s 53 metro areas. But the 0.2% decline from June to July 2019 was by far the smallest month-over-month decline since July 2013. And while June sales failed to top May for only the second time in the report’s 10-year history, July sales set a report record for the month.

July’s Median Sales Price of $273,000 – while down slightly from June’s all-time report record high – was 9.2% higher than July of 2018. It marked the seventh consecutive month of year-over-year price growth. Home prices have risen, year over year, in 88 of the last 90 months dating back to February 2012.

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June Sales Post Unusual Decline
as Median Price Reaches All-Time High

Typically the strongest month for home sales, June saw closings decline 4.7% from May and 7.8% from June 2018, according to the RE/MAX National Housing Report. Going in the opposite direction, June’s Median Sales Price of $276,000 was an all-time high in the 10-year history of the report.

June has recorded the most sales each of the last five years (July led 2013 sales). This is only the second June in report history to have fewer sales than May. With sales slowing, June inventory increased 1.3% over June 2018, marking the first year-over-year rise in June inventory in the report’s history. Moreover, inventory grew for the ninth consecutive month, and the report’s 54 metro areas had the most units for sale since August 2016.

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Home Sales Accelerate
While Inventory Hits 34-Month High

May home sales ticked slightly higher year-over-year, ending a 9-month streak of declines, according to the RE/MAX National Housing Report. At the same time, inventory grew for the eighth consecutive month, representing the most units for sale since August 2016 in the report’s 54 metro areas.

Homes sold quickly, as evident in the Days on Market average of 47 – the second-fastest May average in the 10-year history of the report. And home sales increased 15.3% from April to May – the second-highest April-May jump in report history.

Home sales were up 0.4% over May 2018 – the first year-over-year gain since July 2018. The number of homes for sale increased 4.9% year-over-year to set a report record for the highest May growth. However, based on the pace of home sales, May’s 2.6 Months of Inventory was down compared to April’s 2.8 months and the 2.9 months of May 2018.

The Median Sales Price of $259,500 was up 3.4% year-over-year, representing the lowest May increase since 2011.

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Spring Home Sales Back on Pace as Price Increases Moderate

April home sales finished just 1.1% below a year ago as selling times shortened and tight inventory held steady, according to the RE/MAX National Housing Report. Meanwhile, April’s median home price of $251,000 in the report’s 54 markets was up a mere 2.1% – the smallest year-over-year April increase in eight years.

April’s year-over-year sales decline of 1.1% marked the ninth consecutive month of year-over-year decreases, but April’s sales dip was the smallest during that time. At the same time, inventory increased 4.8% and marked the seventh consecutive month of year-over-year growth in number of homes for sale.

Compared to March, home sales in April sped up by a full week, taking an average of 52 days instead of 59. The average in April 2018 was 51 days. The Months Supply of Inventory in April decreased year-over-year from 3.0 to 2.6.

While the March-over-February increase in home sales of 28.8% was the smallest in five years, the April-over-March increase of 11.2% was an April-over-March record for the 10-year history of the report.

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