Market Report - June 2022
Rising inflation, soaring home prices, and increased mortgage interest rates have combined to cause a slowdown in the U.S. housing market. To help quell inflation, which reached 8.6% as of last measure in May, the Federal Reserve raised interest rates by three quarters of a percentage point in June, the largest interest rate hike since 1994. Higher prices, coupled with 30-year fixed mortgage rates approaching 6%, have exacerbated affordability challenges and rapidly cooled demand, with home sales and mortgage applications falling sharply from a year ago.
New Listings were down 8.7 percent to 631. Pending Sales decreased 26.0 percent to 450. Inventory grew 23.8 percent to 868 units.
Prices moved higher as Median Sales Price was up 28.7 percent to $514,846. Days on Market decreased 5.5 percent to 86 days. Months Supply of Inventory was up 60.0 percent to 1.6 months, indicating that supply increased relative to demand.
With monthly mortgage payments up more than 50% compared to this time last year, the rising costs of homeownership have sidelined many prospective buyers. Nationally, the median sales price of existing homes recently exceeded $400,000 for the first time ever, a 15% increase from the same period a year ago, according to the National Association of REALTORS®. As existing home sales continue to soften nationwide, housing supply is slowly improving, with inventory up for the second straight month. In time, price growth is expected to moderate as supply grows; for now, however, inventory remains low, and buyers are feeling the squeeze of higher prices all around.