A Year In Review - 2022 Market Report
2022 began where 2021 left off: Mortgage rates were near historic lows, buyer competition was fierce, and homes were selling at a breakneck pace, often with multiple bids and all-cash offers, due to pent-up demand and a shortage of housing supply, causing sales prices to soar to new heights. But all that changed a few months later as mortgage rates began to rise, adding hundreds of dollars to monthly mortgage payments and causing housing affordability to plummet to its lowest level in decades. As borrowing costs continued to increase, home sales and home prices began to slow, and after two years of record-breaking activity, the red-hot housing market was finally cooling.
Sales: Pending sales decreased 24.1 percent, finishing 2022 at 5,673. Closed sales were down 21.8 percent to end the year at 5,747.
Listings: Comparing 2022 to the prior year, the number of homes available for sale was up by 88.6 percent. There were 977 active listings at the end of 2022. New listings decreased by 9.7 percent to finish the year at 6,874.
Prices: Home prices were up compared to last year. The overall median sales price increased 18.3 percent to $485,000 for the year. Detached home prices were up 15.0 percent compared to last year, and attached home prices were up 20.0 percent.
List Price Received: Sellers received, on average, 99.6 percent of their original list price at sale, a year-over-year improvement of 0.4 percent.
Home sales continued to decline throughout much of the year, as affordability challenges took their toll on market participants, forcing many prospective buyers and sellers to the sidelines. To help offset rising costs, some buyers moved from bigger, more expensive cities to smaller, more affordable areas, while others turned to the rental market, where competition and rental prices surged. As mortgage rates continued to climb and market conditions shifted, many homeowners were reluctant to sell their homes, and with buyer demand down, homebuilders eased production, further constraining an already limited supply of housing.
Looking ahead to 2023, much depends on inflation, mortgage interest rates, and the broader state of the economy, although economists predict many of 2022’s housing trends will continue into the new year: home sales will soften, price growth will moderate, inventory will remain tight, and there will be greater variability between markets nationally, with some regions possibly seeing price declines while other, more affordable areas of the country remain in high demand and experience price growth.