The total number of homes listed for sale on Realtor.com fell by 3.5 percent from September to October, to 2.12 million — the fifth consecutive monthly decline, the company said.

Inventories of homes listed for sale on Realtor.com were down nearly 21 percent in October from a year ago, with 135 of 146 markets tracked posting double-digit annual percentage declines.

The total number of homes listed for sale on Realtor.com fell by 3.5 percent from September to October, to 2.12 million — the fifth consecutive monthly decline, the company said.

Inventories of homes listed for sale on Realtor.com were down nearly 21 percent in October from a year ago, with 135 of 146 markets tracked posting double-digit annual percentage declines.

Lower inventories, combined with generally stable list prices, can be seen as a positive sign that the overall housing market is holding its own, Realtor.com said in summarizing statistics pulled from its databases.

But housing markets remain fragile, particularly those with high unemployment rates and large numbers of seriously delinquent borrowers, the company said.

Analyzing a combination of factors, including unemployment rates and annual changes in median list price, median age of inventory, total listings, and Realtor.com search rank, Realtor.com compiled a top 10 list of "Turnaround Towns."

Realtor.com Top 10 Turnaround Towns

 
Market
Median
list
price,
annual
change
Median age
of inven-
tory,
annual change
Total
listings,
annual change
Unem-
ploy-
ment
rate
(Aug-
ust)
Real-
tor.com
search
Rank
1. Miami, Fla. 25.06% -22.41% -49.23% 11.2 19
2. Orlando, Fla. -0.09% -27.68% -44.76% 10.3 12
3. Fort Myers-
Cape Coral, Fla.
32.81% -12.10% -40.68% 11.5 38
4. Phoenix-
Mesa, Ariz.
5.19% -23.46% -47.72% 8.4 6
5. Fort
Lauderdale,
Fla.
3.77% -15.38% -37.74% 11.2 13
6. Sarasota-
Bradenton, Fla.
17.5% -18.62% -32.03% 11.1 42
7. Lakeland-
Winter Haven, Fla.
12.08% -17.60% -36.4% 12.1 69
8. Boise City, Idaho 14.61% -23.76% -40.84% 9 132
9. Fort Wayne, Ind. 10% -8.25% -16.61% 8.4 78
10. Ann Arbor, Mich. 8.52% -13.08% -24.83% 7.2 65

Source: Realtor.com and U.S. Bureau of Labor.

Eleven of the 20 markets that have seen the greatest annual decline in active listings were in Florida, including Miami, Orlando, and Fort Myers, where inventories were down 40 percent or more from a year ago.

Four other top 20 markets for inventory declines were also located in so-called "sand states": Phoenix-Mesa, Ariz. (-48 percent); Oakland, Calif. (-38 percent); Bakersfield, Calif. (-38 percent); and Fresno, Calif. (-37 percent).

Top 20 markets Realtor.com inventory declines

Market

Total listings, October

Change from year ago

Change from September

1. Miami, Fla.

13,457

-49.23%

-1.24%

2. Phoenix-Mesa, Ariz.

19,407

-47.72%

0.39%

3. Orlando, Fla.

11,365

-44.76%

-0.57%

4. Boise City, Idaho

3,086

-40.84%

-5.1%

5. Fort Myers-Cape Coral, Fla.

11,179

-40.68%

0.71%

6. Oakland, Calif.

6,892

-38.31%

-6.08%

7. Bakersfield, Calif.

2,988

-38.16%

-4.2%

8. Fort Lauderdale, Fla.

13,926

-37.74%

-0.54%

9. Naples, Fla.

7,381

-37.05%

1.97%

10. Fresno, Calif.

3,542

-37.00%

-4.91%

11. Portland-Vancouver, Ore.-Wash.

9,077

-36.68%

-6.85%

12. Lakeland-Winter Haven, Fla.

3,480

-36.40%

0.55%

13. Melbourne-Titusville-Palm Bay, Fla.

5,193

-35.90%

-0.83%

14. Savannah, Ga.

1,428

-35.61%

-3.79%

15. Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, Fla.

20,469

-34.78%

-2.51%

16. Sarasota-Bradenton, Fla.

8,036

-32.03%

1.09%

17. Daytona Beach, Fla.

7,392

-31.69%

-1.94%

18. Jacksonville, Fla.

10,871

-31.66%

-2.5%

19. Atlanta, Ga.

59,127

-31.41%

-4.72%

20. Dayton-Springfield, Ohio

7,934

-31.20%

-4.25%

United States

2,116,794

-20.77%

-3.48%

Source: Realtor.com.

At $189,900, the median list price of all homes tracked by Realtor.com in October was essentially unchanged from September and up 2.6 percent from a year ago. Although 46 markets posted annual declines in median list price, 100 markets held their own or posted gains.

The 10 markets posting the biggest annual decline in median list price were Chicago (-12.6 percent); Detroit (-10.9 percent); Las Vegas (-10.4 percent); Atlanta (-8.6 percent); Los Angeles-Long Beach (-7 percent); Ventura, Calif. (-7 percent); Sacramento, Calif. (-6.7 percent); Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater Fla. (-6.6 percent); Orange County, Calif. (-6.6 percent); and San Francisco (-6 percent).

Eight of the 10 markets posting the largest annual increase in median list price were located in Florida.

Top 20 markets annual increase median list price

Market

Median list price, October

Change from a year ago

Change from September

1. Fort Myers-Cape Coral, Fla.

$219,000

32.81%

1.86%

2. Miami, Fla.

$249,999

25.06%

No change

3. Naples, Fla.

$368,333

23.19%

-0.18%

4. Sarasota-Bradenton, Fla.

$235,000

17.5%

0.86%

5. Punta Gorda, Fla.

$174,800

16.62%

2.88%

6. Boise City, Idaho

$154,615

14.61%

3.08%

7. West Palm Beach-Boca Raton, Fla.

$215,000

13.22%

2.63%

8. Lakeland-Winter Haven, Fla.

$129,900

12.08%

0.31%

9. Daytona Beach, Fla.

$179,000

11.94%

0.56%

10. Grand Rapids-Muskegon-Holland, Mich.

$139,900

10.24%

No change

11. Fort Wayne, Ind.

$110,000

10%

-1.79%

12. West Ariz.-RSA

$255,000

9.91%

0.39%

13. Shreveport-Bossier City, La.

$174,900

9.38%

-1.05%

14. Honolulu, Hawaii

$469,000

9.32%

0.43%

15. Charleston, W.Va.

$165,000

8.55%

-1.46%

16. Ann Arbor, Mich.

$164,900

8.52%

-0.06%

17. Springfield, Ill.

$129,900

8.34%

0.7%

18. Washington, D.C.-Md.-Va.-W.Va.

$387,500

8.24%

2%

19. Fort Worth-Arlington, Texas

$165,000

8.18%

0.06%

20. Central Fla.-RSA

$159,999

8.11%

0.06%

United States

$189,900

2.65%

-0.05%

Source: Realtor.com.

The median age of Realtor.com listings in October was 110 days, up 2.8 percent from September but down 1.79 percent from a year ago. Most markets with the longest median inventory age were located in the Southeast, including the South-South Carolina RSA, which topped the list at 185 days.

Top 10 markets inventory age

Market

Median age of inventory (days)

South S.C.-RSA

185

Wilmington, N.C.

168

Myrtle Beach, S.C.

165

Reading, Pa.

153

Gainesville, Fla.

152

Santa Fe, N.M.

150

Savannah, Ga.

150

Naples, Fla.

149

Asheville, N.C.

146

Tallahassee, Fla.

143

Central Fla.-RSA

139

Portland, Maine

136

Punta Gorda, Fla.

133

Trenton, N.J.

132

West Palm Beach-Boca Raton, Fla.

131

Fort Pierce-Port St. Lucie, Fla.

131

Mobile, Ala.

131

Philadelphia, Pa.-N.J.

131

Pensacola, Fla.

130

Greenville-Spartanburg-Anderson, S.C.

130

United States

110

Source: Realtor.com.

The 10 markets with the freshest inventory by median age in October were Oakland, Calif. (49 days); Denver (52 days); Fresno, Calif. (61 days); Phoenix-Mesa (62 days); Stockton-Lodi, Calif. (66 days); Bakersfield, Calif. (66 days); Detroit (67 days); Washington, D.C. (67 days); San Francisco (68 days); and San Jose, Calif. (73 days).

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