U.S. Median Home Prices Hits All High
The median home price in the U.S. rose 20% year over year in the four-week period ending July 18 to a record $364,160, Redfin data released shows. However, the pace of growth is expected to slow, as imbalances in demand and supply gradually ease, said the Seattle-based Redfin, which has tracked more than 400 housing markets across the country since 2012. On the demand side, there were signs that home-buying activity began to ease. The seasonally adjusted Redfin Homebuyer Demand Index—a measure of requests for home tours and other services from Redfin agents—dipped slightly during the week ending July 18. It was up 16% from a year earlier, although during July 2020, housing activity was restricted by Covid-19 lockdowns. The trend was further evidenced in mortgage applications and pending home sales. During the week ending July 16, mortgage purchase applications fell 6% from the prior week, Redfin said. Pending home sales were up 9% year over year to 66,016, the smallest annual increase since the four-week period ending June 28, 2020. Pending sales were down 11% from their 2021 peak during the four-week period ending May 30. In the meantime, housing supply continues to expand. New listings during the four weeks were up 2% from a year earlier to 94,392 homes. Active listings, the total number of homes listed for sale at any point during the period, fell 29% year over year, the smallest decline since the four-week period ending Jan. 17, according to the report. Although homes still sold at a brisk pace—with 52% of homes entering into contract within the first two weeks on the market—sellers began to adjust their expectations. Asking prices of newly listed homes have been basically flat since late May. The median asking price for new listings was $360,975, up 12% from the same period last year, but shy of the all-time high set during the four-week period ending June 27, according to the report.