RE/MAX, LLC announced that June home sales posted a near-record 37 percent gain over a pandemic-impacted May while months supply of inventory dropped below two months for the first time in the report’s 12-year history.
Overall, U.S. home sales returned to near seasonal levels—just 6.9 percent lower than last June, which was the third-highest sales month of 2019. All of the report’s 53 metro markets posted gains over May and a third of them topped last June. The June results were far different than those of May and April, which both reflected widespread stay-at-home mandates in many states.
“June home sales snapped back in a major way,” said Adam Contos, RE/MAX Holdings CEO. “With historically low interest rates, stabilizing unemployment and increased mobility tied to working remotely, buyer demand remains high in most areas of the country. We’re seeing positives in several leading indicators such as pending sales and mortgage applications.”
“The biggest challenge continues to be lack of inventory, and over time we may see some gains around people wanting a different living environment after spending so much time at home this year. There’s also some potential in the idea that with changing workplace dynamics, underused commercial spaces could be transformed into residential properties. Creative solutions like that may provide some relief for inventory constraints as well as affordability issues.”
The 37 percent increase in sales from May to June was the third-highest month-over-month turnaround in the report’s history. The 12-year average for May-to-June sales increases is 8.4 percent.
Going in the opposite direction, inventory dropped 27.9 percent year over year, pushing the months supply of inventory to 1.9 from the previous report low of 2.7 months set in May. The number of homes for sale is at low levels not seen consistently since early 2018.
June’s median sales price of $275,000 is up 1.9 percent year over year, the lowest year-over-year price increase of any month since December 2018’s 0.4 percent price drop. Days on market averaged 45, the same as the previous June.
Closed Transactions
Of the 53 metro areas surveyed in June 2020, the overall average number of home sales is up 37 percent compared to May 2020, and down 6.9 percent compared to June 2019. Leading the year-over-year sales percentage increase were Tulsa, Okla., at +15.9 percent, Little Rock, Ark., at +14.6 percent, and Dallas/Ft Worth, Texas at +9.3 percent.
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Median Sales Price – Median of 53 Metro Median Prices
In June 2020, the median of all 53 metro median sales prices was $275,000, up 0.8 percent from May 2020, and up 1.9 percent from June 2019. Only one metro area, Des Moines, Iowa at -1.3 percent, saw a year-over-year decrease in median sales price. Two metro areas increased year-over-year by double-digit percentages: Miami, Fla., at +11.1 percent and Indianapolis, Ind., at +10.0 percent.
Days on Market – Average of 53 Metro Areas
The average days on market for homes sold in June 2020 was 45, down one day from the average in May 2020, and equivalent to the average in June 2019. The metro areas with the lowest days on market were Omaha, Neb., at 22, Cincinnati, Ohio at 23, and Seattle, Wash., at 25. The highest days on market averages were in Des Moines, Iowa at 90, Miami, Fla., at 88, and New York, N.Y. at 85. 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 53 Metro Areas
The number of homes for sale in June 2020 was down 5.3 percent from May 2020 and down 27.9 percent from June 2019. Based on the rate of home sales in June 2020, the months supply of inventory decreased to 1.9 compared to 2.7 in May 2020, and decreased compared to 3.2 in June 2019. A six months supply indicates a market balanced equally between buyers and sellers. In June 2020, of the 53 metro areas surveyed, zero metro areas 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 Manchester, N.H., at 0.7, and a tie between Albuquerque, N.M., and Boise, Ida., at 0.8.
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