Typically the strongest month for home sales, June saw closings decline 4.7 percent from May and 7.8 percent from June 2018, according to the latest 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 percent 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.
“Record prices appear to have kept June sales figures from topping a strong May,” says RE/MAX CEO Adam Contos. “Nevertheless, there are indications, including the return of very favorable mortgage rates, that the pace could pick up in July. Several encouraging longer-term trends—ongoing demand, improving inventory levels, low interest rates—are helping the market make incremental progress on multiple fronts. But supply remains a concern, so we need more homes to be built.”
Starting in 2013, June has also produced the highest median sales price of each year. June’s record $276,000 was 6.7 percent higher than the $259,000 recorded in June 2018. June’s price increase accelerated compared to the prior three months, each of which had a year-over-price increase of less than 3.5 percent. Contos continues, “The jump in sales price after months of moderation is worth watching for its impact on affordability.”
June’s days on market total of 44 meant that sales happened three days faster than in May but took three days longer than June 2018. Months of inventory in June 2019 was 2.8, the same as May’s and below June 2018’s 3.1.
Closed Transactions
Of the 54 metro areas surveyed in June 2019, the overall average number of home sales is down 4.7 percent compared to May 2019, and down 7.8 percent compared to June 2018. Leading the month-over-month sales percentage increase were Burlington, Vt., at +21.8 percent; Boston, Mass., at +13.4 percent; and Hartford, Conn., at +13.1 percent.
Median Sales Price – Median of 54 metro median prices
In June 2019, the median of all 54 metro median sales prices was $276,000, up 6.2 percent from May 2019, and up 6.7 percent from June 2018. Two metro areas saw a year-over-year decrease in median sales price: San Francisco, Calif., at -2.0 percent, and Hartford, Conn., at -0.1 percent. Three metro areas increased year-over-year by double-digit percentages, with Boise, Idaho, +10.7 percent; Albuquerque, N.M., at +10.4 percent; and Philadelphia, Pa., at +10.0 percent.
Days on Market – Average of 54 metro areas
The average days on market for homes sold in June 2019 was 44, down three days from the average in May 2019, and up three days from the June 2018 average. The metro areas with the lowest days on market were Omaha, Neb., at 22; Denver, Colo., at 25; and Seattle, Wash., at 26. The highest days on market averages were in Augusta, Maine, at 108; Miami, Fla., at 82; and Hartford, Conn., at 74. Days on market is the number of days between when a home is first listed in an MLS and a sales contract is signed.
Months Supply of Inventory – Average of 54 metro areas
The number of homes for sale in June 2019 was down 0.6 percent from May 2019 and up 1.3 percent from June 2018. Based on the rate of home sales in June 2019, the months supply of inventory held steady at 2.8 from May 2019, and decreased compared to 3.1 in June 2018. A six-months supply indicates a market balanced equally between buyers and sellers. In June 2019, of the 54 metro areas surveyed, only Miami, Fla., at 7.0 reported a months supply at or over six, which is typically considered a buyer’s market. The markets with the lowest months supply of inventory were Omaha, Neb., and Manchester, N.H., both at 1.0, and Minneapolis, Minn., at 1.8.
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