What’s Up with Real Estate?
National news and local views for the week ending Friday, June 9, 2023
National Real Estate News
Without a doubt
With very few exceptions, home prices are rising again nationwide. According to Black Knight, median home prices are now only 1% below their peak in June 2022. Nearly half of the largest 50 cities (mostly in the Midwest and Northeast) are either back at or setting new record highs. And we're also seeing rapid home price recoveries in hard-hit west coast cities like Seattle and San Jose.
That inventory problem
The number of homes available for sale nationwide should be rising right now. Instead, active inventory has been roughly flat for the last four months at 560,000-580,000. Why? Because new listings are running 20-30% below last year, but demand is robust. To put the current inventory figure in perspective, in May 2019 there were 1.2 million homes available for sale.
Skip and a jump?
The market expects the Federal Reserve to 'skip' a rate hike next week. Of course 'skip' doesn't mean 'stop', but even a pause could result in a nice drop in mortgage rates if (and this is a big IF) Fed Chairman Jerome Powell's commentary is a bit more patient/prudent and a lot less hawkish than it has been previously. Unfortunately, the recent inflation and jobs data hasn't helped us.
Local Market Trends
Here you can enhance your area’s housing market data with your own insights and commentary!
| Area | Median Price | Active Listings | New Listings - 5 days | Median Days on Market |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fairfax, VA |
$887,250
0%
|
110
0.6%
|
26 |
19
-0.2%
|
/) from May. to Jun. 2023.
