It’s official – the spring market is starting to heat up again.
According to the latest RE/MAX national housing report, home sales increased by 20 percent month-over-month in May. New listings also saw an 8.7 percent uptick.
However, increased seasonal demand seems to be outpacing inventory, driving up the national median home price to $423,000 – the highest it’s been since June 2022.
Homes sold in May stayed on the market for an average of 31 days – three days less than the previous month.
Ahead of the peak time for market activity in June and July, RE/MAX data shows a 0.4 percent increase in inventory compared to last month, with housing supply up by 9.7 percent compared to May 2022.
“The sizeable jump in May homes signals the start of the peak selling season,” Nick Bailey, RE/MAX President & CEO said. “But lack of inventory remains the biggest challenge for home buyers, with the vast majority of homeowners having a mortgage rate under 5 percent – and a good chunk of those are under 3.5 percent – we’re not seeing as much move-up activity as usual.”
“This means fewer available listings for buyers to choose from – and most likely some continuing bumpiness in the market. That said, sales are still happening, and experienced agents are still finding solutions for their buyers and sellers.”
On a regional basis, Seattle, WA had the largest decline in year-over-year sales transactions – down 35.8 percent. Seattle also saw a 35.4 percent decrease in new listings compared to last year.
“The Seattle housing market remains defined by healthy demand and ultra-low supply,” John Manning, managing broker of RE/MAX Gateway in Seattle said. “While home prices have been pressured by higher mortgage interest rates, homeowners still see their homes as an excellent long-term investment.”
“Additionally, almost all homeowners who purchased before 2022 benefit from historically low interest rates. Combining strong long-term outlook with low-interest mortgage rates, Seattle homeowners have little incentive to sell their homes.”
At the opposite end of the sales activity spectrum, only two of the 51 surveyed metro areas had a year-over-year sales percentage increase in May – Bozeman, MT and Fayetteville, AR both at +3.1 percent.
