Existing-home sales skyrocketed in February, according to the latest from the National Association of Realtors.
- M-O-M: Existing-home sales jumped to an annual rate of 4.58 million, up 14.5% from the previous month and snapped a 12-month slide and representing the largest monthly percentage increase since July 2020.
- Y-O-Y: Despite the big jump, existing-home sales were still down 22.6% compared to one year ago.
End Of An Era. The median existing-home price for all housing types fell to $363,000, a decline of 0.2% from February 2022. This ends a streak of 131 consecutive months of year-over-year increases, the longest on record and one month shy of exactly 11 years.
- The median existing single-family home price was $367,500 in February, down 0.7% from February 2022.
Inventory. Total housing inventory registered at the end of February was 980,000 units, identical to January and up 15.3% from one year ago. Unsold inventory sits at a 2.6-month supply at the current sales pace, down 10.3% from January but up from 1.7 months in February 2022.
- Properties typically remained on the market for 34 days in February, up from 33 days in January and 18 days in February 2022.
Analysis. Lawrence Yun, NAR Chief Economist, says while rates are playing a role its more prices and the overall economy. “Conscious of changing mortgage rates, home buyers are taking advantage of any rate declines…Moreover, we’re seeing stronger sales gains in areas where home prices are decreasing and the local economies are adding jobs.”
REGIONAL DATA
South Leads Sales. The South continues its dominance in February with existing-home sales jumping to an annual rate of 2.11M in February, up 15.9% from January but still down 21.3% from one year ago. The South now represents 46% of all existing-home sales in the US.
- The Midwest sales rate jumped to 1.09M (+13.5%), the West increased to 860k (+19.4%), and the Northeast saw a slight increase to 520k (+4.0%).
South & Midwest Stay Positive. While the national median sales price did fall year-over-year for the first time in almost eleven years, the South and the Midwest were still in positive territory. The Midwest jumped 5.0% in February to $261,200 and prices in the south increased 2.7% to $342,000.
- The median home price fell 5.6% in the West to $541,100 and prices fell 4.5% in the Northeast to $366,100.
- The median home price in the Northeast is now 7% higher than the South. Have to wonder if in two months if the South stays positive with falling prices in the Northeast could the South overtake the Northeast? Pre-pandemic homes in the Northeast were 36% higher than the South.