Welcome to Fall! (OK, not officially until September 21, but we’re post-Labor Day now).
So, are sizzling Summer temps and home prices behind us? Well we can’t go that far, but the market appears to be closer to normalizing. According to a recent article in The Real Deal (9/3/21), nation-wide inventories are still below year-ago levels, but less so in August (25.8% below) than July (33.5%). Prices remain relatively firm though as the average listing price dropped only slightly to $380,000 in August from July’s record of $385,000. August’s figure is up 8.6% from a year ago and 20% from two years ago.
Where are prices headed from here? There are several factors at play. Rental prices have crept up recently but the effects of the end of eviction moratoriums around the country on future rental prices is uncertain. What is certain is that as rents go up, housing purchases make more economic sense. Add in continued historically low mortgage rates, and a recipe for continued housing price strength is in place. Sellers may be sensing a pricing peak here, however, as anecdotal evidence builds that sellers are more inclined to reduce asking prices to meet market demand.
If you have any questions about the market or would like more specific statistics on your area(s) of interest, please do not hesitate to reach out.