Despite a pandemic that continues to infiltrate the lives of all across the globe, real estate is off to a strong start this summer. According to realtor.com®’s recent Weekly Recovery Report, the company saw an all-time high of monthly user traffic in June (86 million unique users)—breaking the record of 85 million users in May. Additionally, Realtor.com® hit its highest level of unique users on June 25 at 7 million.
The company’s Housing Market Recovery Index was 97.8 nationwide for the week ending July 4—the biggest weekly increase in the index’s history. Currently, the index is just 2.2. points below the pre-COVID baseline, but supply continues to pose a challenge in market recovery, as total listings are down 31 percent YoY and new listings are down 4 percent.
Here’s the market breakdown for the week ending July 4:
New Listings: -4 percent YoY
Median Listing Prices: +6.2 YoY
Total Listings: -31 percent YoY
Days on Market: 3 days slower YoY
On a regional basis, the West index marked 104.4 for the week, leading the recovery at above pre-COVID levels. The Northeast index posted 102.1, while the South and Midwest continue to lag behind at 96.4 and 95.4, respectively. Two more markets have crossed the recovery benchmark, bringing the total to 14. The following areas are experiencing the greatest recovery: Boston, San Francisco, Denver, Philadelphia and Los Angeles.
“The consistent, record-level homebuyer interest we’ve detected on realtor.com® over the last five weeks is setting up the tightest summer homebuying season on record,” said Javier Vivas, director of economic research for realtor.com®. “All-time low mortgage rates and easing job losses have boosted buyer confidence back to pre-pandemic levels. With supply at record lows, the backlog of demand portends increased competition and a seller’s market in the weeks ahead. While buyers are back, growth in home sales this summer will be constrained by the slow return of sellers and the limited amount of homes hitting the market.”
For more information, please visit www.realtor.com.
